Casual Midterm part 2

·    Summarize: Primary Control, Unreliable Sensory Appreciation, Inhibition, Direction, Ends and Means

• Primary Control is all about the relationship of your head, neck and torso. All three of these must be in sync with each other while lengthening the spine. They must line up with each other. The best examples of this can be found in infants, other animals, and Fred Astaire. Our ability to be upright makes us human, and there is loads of evidence supporting the use of primary control.
• Unreliable Sensory Appreciation is the distortion of our senses through years of misuse. As we grow up, we form habits that mislead our senses into believing something is the way it is. For example, if I do nothing but stare at a screen all day (like a TV) then my eyes and sight will be affected. We can use the alexander technique to rebuild our senses. It requires suspending our judgments about the world, our place in it and ourselves. This will lead us on the path to discovering out “true needs”.
• Inhibition is the ability to stop or delay a response until we are willing to make it. This is a key factor in removing our habits. Even the smallest gestures like sitting down or standing up cause our bodies to tense in certain places. Inhibition helps get rid of those habits and allow our bodies to be better balanced. It does this when the student learns to say no to their habits.
• Direction, specifically focusing on the head, neck and back, is being aware of where your body is in space and time. Is your back hunched? Is your neck tense from extending the head out? Alexander suggests allowing the head and neck to be free and the back to lengthen and widen. Since we have to constantly fight against gravity, the direction we should think about is “up”. Practicing direction require one to think “I allow the head and neck to be free” and the body will respond. But an Alexander teacher is also needed.
• Ends and Means is Alexander’s way of saying “enjoy the journey”. Practicing this technique and changing our habits should not be thought of as an end goal. It’s all about the work to perfect the technique. After all, we are all different and we have different needs. We need to remain open to our needs while studying this technique to make sure we are serving our bodies best. It’s all about the “means” by which we reach our “end” goal.

·    Reflection: What did you find interesting, helpful, confusing, etc. about the reading?

• I really enjoyed reading about these techniques, but I found a lot of the descriptions kind of confusing. I would really like to do some Alexander technique. I think it would make more sense. But I really did find his ideas interesting. I just wasn’t super sure what inhibition or primary control had to do with my body. I’m sure true understanding of the Alexander technique requires years of practice. But while I was ready I was constantly checking my posture.