Tension and Stress Relief Techniques

My background is working as a Cognitive Behaviour Therapist in NHS Wellbeing services delivering groups and individualised psychological therapies.  My professional training as a psychological therapist involved working with stress, anxiety disorders and long-term conditions.  Alexander Technique operates very differently from talking therapies and although there are therapeutic benefits from Alexander hands-on work there is also an educational process taking place as people themselves learn how to let go of tension and stress during lessons.  I feel my background has informed my awareness of how different types of physical and emotional stress can commonly affect people and I have a natural affinity to want to deliver wellness programmes. 

Modern life can at times present us with competing demands. It can pull us in different directions and it can sometimes feel consuming. Stress can occur when demands placed on a person feels unbalanced with their perceived ability to cope. Stress can affect a person's mindset and manifests emotionally and physically such as tension. Feeling stressed can also prompt reactive and habitual behaviours which sometimes people wish to change.  Our bodily systems can also be placed under stress from our environment, lifestyle and poor health.

Alexander lessons develop people's self-management skills to balance both the mind and body. They offer a space to explore and unpick habitual reactions and provide a new way of responding to various stimuli presented by life.  Sometimes people are very aware of levels of tension and stress in thier bodies, at other times people can be surpised to discover muscle tightness which was previously unonscious to them.  Through this updated and improved body awareness the lessons teach you stress relief techniques to release any unrequired tension which has accumulated in your body.   

Many people report feelings of calmness and relaxation from taking lessons. Feelings of lightness and ease can occur when people let go of deeply held tension. Engrained tension can be difficult to identify and proprioceptive feedback from hands-on work helps to bring this into people’s awareness and also guides them to letting it go. Alexander lessons themselves are aimed at calming the nervous system through easing physical tension and holding patterns. This release of tension can also help to promote improved breathing as you stop interferring with your natural rhytmn of breathing with unnecessary muscle tightness.