Having met and worked with a number of people suffering from fibromyalgia, the thing I've noticed they have in common is excessive muscular tension, and I mean off the scale, accompanied by high anxiety. Nobody knows what causes the illness, or how to cure it, but it seems to me that dealing with these two areas must surely help. The difficulty is that by the time a person has got to a point when all movement causes pain, a weekly Alexander lesson cannot compete with the tho

In his book, 'The Use of the Self', FM Alexander wrote, 'End gaining is a universal habit'. What he was referring to is the tendency we all have to focus on an end result whilst losing sight of, and often at the expense of, the means-whereby that result is achieved. He viewed end gaining as a deadly sin but it's very difficult to avoid. As humans we have innate curiosity and drive; we have deadlines, responsibilities and important priorities. We get a lot done and many would

The late Alan Rickman was easily one of my favourite actors. There was never a role in which, in my opinion, he was not utterly spellbinding and brilliant. I loved the versatility with which he played such diverse characters, from the Sheriff of Nottingham to Colonel Brandon to Professor Snape, each time encapsulating a completely new, plausible and memorable entity. As is the case with many famous film stars he had training in the Alexander technique. He once said, 'With t

Of all the many different groups of people who train in the Alexander technique, the acting community is possibly the largest. This has a lot to do with the fact that FM Alexander was himself an actor. His physical training technique was initially devised in order to solve the problems that he himself was struggling with on stage. For over 100 years famous film stars have extolled the virtues of lessons which they very often receive as an integral part of the curriculum at t

Actors often talk about an 'outside eye' looking at them and judging them. It can prevent them from being present in the moment and therefore spoil their work. The outside eye is an imaginary critic and it's not just actors and other performers who feel it's gaze. People sometimes refer to a monkey or a parrot sitting on their shoulder, watching and whispering a negative commentary to them in their ear. It all amounts to the same thing - a destructive emotional force which

In her drama school training Natalie Dormer studied the Alexander Technique: 'When you work the unnatural hours that actors work, and when you fly as much as we do, you have to pay attention to your body—or else you’re a disaster ready to happen' All celebrity performers know the value of body language; of viewing their own body as a musician would view an instrument, which is why so many train in the Alexander technique. Training in the technique allows you to infinitel

In many sports you are required to make rapid mental calculations to estimate where the ball is going to land as it spins its way towards you. If you can meet it at just the right moment you can send it off to a new place and increase your chances of winning. All of this happens at speed and it takes enormous skill to keep your eye on the ball at the moment of impact. Also, in a game like football or hockey, you need to determine where all your team members and opponents are