How (not) To Treat A Lady

Alexander’s 2nd & 3rd discovery are both dependent upon his 1st Discovery.

That’s why I write “Alexander’s Discovery” in a singular form.

FM’s 1st Discovery was that his Postural movements calibrated everything else. 

By “everything else” I mean breathing, circulation, digestion, sensory reception, your lymphatics etc. etc. This makes sense when you reflect upon it – our ability to move is where it all started. Movement defines our difference from plants.

Therefore, the ability to move is primary to all moving things. 

Duh.

But on that sunny day of a rock concert just outside of Gosford in Australia, a Lady was going to utilise Alexander’s 2nd Discovery to defeat me for the first and only time, ever.

As the only contestant to ever come close to winning my $50 prize - she rose from the chair the final time while slightly pulling back her head. The two judges reluctantly agreed that it had happened, and it was all over. 

“Can I try again?” she asked plaintively as she sat down again.

How could I deny a Lady her last wish?

“Of course!”

Then she put her hand delicately on the back of her head, and rose from the chair in exquisite silence, without a tremor in her head movement. It was perfect. I was astonished. I wanted to marry her right then and there.

***

By putting her hand on her head to assist herself – she duplicated the insight that led to Alexander’s 2nd Discovery. 

Alexander discovered that his hands were contagious.

Just as your emotions are contagious. 

Have you ever had the experience of walking into a new space and “feeling the tension in the room”? Neuroscientists have done a lot of experiments to demonstrate that emotions are “contagious” to others. I can affect your emotions by merely being in mine.

As I wrote previously - https://atsuccess.com/blog/2021/03/mystery-alexander-touch.html - Alexander experienced incredible frustration in trying to verbally communicate to students his Discovery that head/spinal coordination organised “everything else”.  This is a sensation – not something you can achieve by imposing a postural construct on your body. As a result, FM started to use his hands.

It was him plugging into you. 

Today, your Alexscovery trainer is still plugging into you.

If I am your trainer - what you get is what I am. The “what I am” part takes thousands of hours of training and practice – that’s how Alexscovery trainers (aka Alexander Technique teachers) train. They don’t train on how to help you; they train on how to help themselves. This is where they find the knowledge to help you. And they can communicate this knowledge by using their hands.

***

“Wait!” I scream before thinking.

“Touching your head is not allowed!!”

“Do it again!!!”

She did it again without her hand touching the back of her head - without that touch to assist her, she pulled back her head, and I got to keep my $50.

I didn’t marry her. She left, and I never saw her again.

Instead, I had to deal with another Lady.