Sue Holladay - Playing with Posture: Positive Child Development Using the Alexander Technique

Sue brings to this work the same quality of lightness of being, playfulness and delight that I experienced from her teaching when I began my own journey with the Technique some 12 years ago. My first encounter with the Alexander Technique had been through musicians describing the greater ease with which they created sound. As a violinist (albeit amateur), I was intrigued. Subsequently, in my role as a chiropractor, I question ed the use of external functional appliances to correct or optimize the mechanics of the foot and temporo - mandibular joints , and I began taking lessons myself.

With this experience I recall observing that primary school children would benefit if the teaching of the Technique were part of their formal learning experience. Over the years this instinct has been borne out as I have observed the benefits in children of all ages who have taken lessons. There are, of course, the direct and more tangible benefits of effortlessly making a fuller sound when playing a musical instrument , or improvements in co-ordination . M ore profoundly, the ease with in the body that they develop seems to help the se individual s navigate the challenges of transitional periods in their lives , or what we might call rites of passage , like puberty.

However Playing with Posture has a far broader scope. The book excels at communicating the essence of the Alexander Technique in such a way that is very readable and also highly kin a esthetic - immediately I read the directions ...

Let the neck be free

To l et the head go forward-and- up,

To l et t he back, lengthen and widen,

And let the knees go forward-and-awa y

... I feel my body responding! Head forward and up, back opening and I notice that I carry this reawakened awareness with me in all the normal comings and goings that make up my day. What a joyful, peaceful and delightful space this is! Its a place from which there is space to chose my perspective in any given moment. I particu larly like Sues short form, Stop, Think, A ct , as I feel its a useful translation of the directions both for those who have not yet had the experience of one-to- one A lexander T echnique lessons and for those who have . I t shortens the directions to a form tha t both children and adults can very easily integrate into their lives making all the benefits of being truly present in ones body , and therefore present in all activities, accessible in a new way.

When I recommend patients take A lexander T echnique lessons it can be a challenge to convey the essence and therefore value of the Alexander T echnique in a way that makes the potential benefit s meaningful to an individual. This book easily and clearly communicates this message by demonstrating its applicability to the everyday , through examples of activities and tasks that most people can relate to , such as pushing a super market trolley, sitting at a desk or washing-up. The inclusion of games for parents and teachers to play with children provides ample opportunities fo r practical exploration and fun.

The author brings to this work the unique combination of the authority of a teacher who has a wealth of experience in many different contexts and a compassionate unders tanding of the human condition - our lapses, our forgetfulness as we fall into old patterns of postural strain and compromise. The material is readable and accessible through the sharing of personal experience and the lightnes s of approach. Those slouching postural tendencies are explained when we understand that too much tension in one muscle group pulls us into a place of compromise. As we comprehend the roots to such patterns we can let go of the idea that it is about laziness and then there is room for a different choice , b eginning with freeing the neck, breakthrough!

Neuro - developmental delay and the remediation of persistent primitive reflexes is an area of special interest in my work with children. Sally Goddard-Blyth has been profoundly important to the area as a whole and to my personal practice and references to her work within this book give further validation to Playing with Posture. I have observed some of the most rewarding and dramatic results as the retained reflexes are inhibited , allowing age appropriate neurological development to be restored and completed. It is an area of work that is huge in terms of positive consequences for the individuals enabling them to reach their full potential . It is also an area which , despite compelling evidence , continues to be largely neglected at huge cost to individuals and their families with the consequent implications f or society as a whole. I t is particularl y gratifying that this topic is covered in a straight forward and encouraging manner in this book and in such a way that the material will be relevant to parents, teachers , both mainstream and special needs , and to the wider field of health practitioners.