Improved Health
Back Pain
Since its creation over a hundred years ago, many people have used the Alexander Technique to improve chronic back pain. Lessons in the Alexander Technique teach us to have a clearer understanding of what our physical habits are, how these habits give rise to back pain, and how to prevent the old physical habits in order to move in a way that is healthier.
In August 2008, the British Medical Journal published a study including 579 patients with chronic back pain, some of whom received a series of Alexander Technique lessons. In the table below, the results of the study for the number of days in pain experienced in the last four weeks are shown. The control group of the patients who received standard medical treatment reported experiencing pain on about three quarters of the last 28 days both at the beginning and at the end of the study. Twelve months after the beginning of the study and three months after their last lesson the patients receiving 24 Alexander Technique lessons reported an average of only three of the last 28 days in pain.
| Time elapsed since beginning of the study |
Control Group | 6 lessons of Alexander Technique | 24 lessons of Alexander Technique |
| After 3 months | 24 | 13 | 8 |
| After 1 year | 21 | 11 | 3 |
This table compare the number of days with back pain in the past four weeks reported by the participants. Little et al., BMJ 2008; 337; a884.
Several other measures were used to determine the effectiveness of the treatments. One measure of physical capacity called the Roland disability score measures the ability of patients to carry out daily activities like getting out of a chair. Using this measure the results showed that six Alexander Technique lessons coupled with exercise produced 75% of the benefit of 24 Alexander Technique lessons. However, these patients were still experiencing on average ten of the last 28 days in pain.
To read the complete study, please visit the British Medical Journal Website.
