Alexander Technique + Asthma
If you have asthma then you know that it is characterized by wheezing, difficulty breathing, coughing, and shortness of breath. Symptoms and severity can vary drastically person to person.
Kenneth R. Lutchen, in his article "Airway smooth muscle stretch and airway hyperresponsiveness in asthma: Have we chased the wrong horse?", indicates that there is much that we do not understand or know about how the condition of asthma occurred. The ever impossible question of the chicken and the egg is posed as to whether or not “excessive airway stiffness is the root cause rather than the consequence of amplified reactivity (asthma).” There is a thought that perhaps patients who have asthma may have “excitatory mediators or abnormally amplified neural tone” which causes them to respond more acutely to respiratory pollutants causing an asthmatic reaction. Neural tone is defined as residual muscle tension and continuous and passive partial contraction of the muscles.
It is important to note that no one body is the same as another and every body does not respond in exactly the same way to any given stimulus. There is much still to understand about asthma and its development as a medical condition and its treatment.
But it is irresponsible to not explore the idea that excessive muscle tension, habitual poor breathing, and poor body alignment would have a significant impact on how the body is able to breathe especially while in duress.
What the Alexander Technique is uniquely able to do, is to reeducate the body in its alignment, appropriate muscle tension, and interfering thoughts on breathing.
Affecting the alignment of the body puts the organs, muscles, and bones in the best relationship for optimal functioning.
Having appropriate muscle tension means that excess tension is not putting stress on the organs, tissues, bones, and muscles and that in times where more muscular activity is warranted, the body will be in a better natural state to be able to respond appropriately.
Adjusting thoughts on breathing corrects wrong habits and thinking so that during duress it may be possible to not simply react to the fear and feeling of not having breath, but to reason the best way to reestablish healthy breathing.
If you are interested in exploring Alexander Technique and its relation to breathing and asthma, reach out here!
Kenneth R. Lutchen, in his article "Airway smooth muscle stretch and airway hyperresponsiveness in asthma: Have we chased the wrong horse?", indicates that there is much that we do not understand or know about how the condition of asthma occurred. The ever impossible question of the chicken and the egg is posed as to whether or not “excessive airway stiffness is the root cause rather than the consequence of amplified reactivity (asthma).” There is a thought that perhaps patients who have asthma may have “excitatory mediators or abnormally amplified neural tone” which causes them to respond more acutely to respiratory pollutants causing an asthmatic reaction. Neural tone is defined as residual muscle tension and continuous and passive partial contraction of the muscles.
It is important to note that no one body is the same as another and every body does not respond in exactly the same way to any given stimulus. There is much still to understand about asthma and its development as a medical condition and its treatment.
But it is irresponsible to not explore the idea that excessive muscle tension, habitual poor breathing, and poor body alignment would have a significant impact on how the body is able to breathe especially while in duress.
What the Alexander Technique is uniquely able to do, is to reeducate the body in its alignment, appropriate muscle tension, and interfering thoughts on breathing.
Affecting the alignment of the body puts the organs, muscles, and bones in the best relationship for optimal functioning.
Having appropriate muscle tension means that excess tension is not putting stress on the organs, tissues, bones, and muscles and that in times where more muscular activity is warranted, the body will be in a better natural state to be able to respond appropriately.
Adjusting thoughts on breathing corrects wrong habits and thinking so that during duress it may be possible to not simply react to the fear and feeling of not having breath, but to reason the best way to reestablish healthy breathing.
If you are interested in exploring Alexander Technique and its relation to breathing and asthma, reach out here!