Alana Cox, M.AmSAT
Teacher of the
Alexander Technique

155 Holtshire Road
Orange, MA
(978) 544 6174
alanaforat@hotmail.com

Private Lessons
Group Workshops

 
 
"I have been taking lessons in the Alexander Technique with Alana for over three years now and my posture and the way I move my body has changed dramatically. I am so much more aware of how I sit, stand and hold my body; everyone should learn the AT! Alana is a highly skilled practitioner whose commitment to the Technique is truly inspirational."
- Gregg Crawford

 
 
"Through Alana's gentle guidance in the Alexander Technique my body is re-learning the natural way to hold itself - from a place of true balance rather than the habitual tendency to contract and tighten in an effort to move the body correctly. It shows me that I can trust the body's ability to move it self wisely. This has brought a deepening ease and awareness as I move through life, allowing for a greater presence of heart when relating to others."
- Annie Nugent

Credentials
I am certified to teach by the American Society for the Alexander Technique (AmSAT) and I offer private lessons at my home studio in Orange, MA. I have conducted workshops at the Mass. Council on Aging, Green River Yoga & Movement Arts in Greenfield, Listening - Wellness Center in Barre, Mt. Wachusett Community College in Gardner and Leominster campuses, Keene State, the Back-N-Touch Wellness Center in Fitchburg and local senior centers. I serve as the Healing Arts Coordinator for the North Quabbin Garlic and Arts Festival.

The Alexander Technique teacher training was one of the best things I have ever done for myself. I completed the three year 1600 hour training and graduated in 2004. I am currently a post graduate where I assist with the teacher training course at the Alexander Technique School of New England (ATSNE) in Amherst, MA where I trained. By a wonderful coincidence, when I graduated I was able to retire from my job at the UMass Donahue Institute. I was free to share my passion for the Alexander Technique with others. I am doing what I love and loving what I do.

I am passionate and enthusiastic about the Technique because it has helped me so much and in so many ways. I have committed myself to teach others, especially those like myself who have experienced chronic physical and emotional pain. I offer this holistic body mind educational approach to well-being to people of all ages and professions.

My Story
I discovered the Alexander Technique after 25 years of seeking relief from chronic joint/muscle pain and excruciating headaches, the result of a serious auto accident. I consulted with a variety of doctors whose prescriptions were physical therapy, cortisone shots and drugs. I found no relief so I experimented with Chiropractic and alternative medicine such as Homeopathy, Reflexology, massage, Acupuncture, Chinese herbs, magnets and Feldenkrais, etc. After many years my doctors eventually diagnosed me with fibromyalgia. Click here to read more about my story.

At this point I was desperate and depressed. I did a computer search on alternative health and discovered the Alexander Technique. From the first description I read and my first experience, the Technique drew me like a magnet. I was impressed by the subtle and profound changes that I experienced. I knew after my first lesson that I wanted to become a teacher when I grew up, although I was already a grandmother.

The Technique taught me the tools to change my own unconscious habits that were creating and exacerbating my problems. Rather than going to someone else to "fix" me, I discovered that I had within myself the tools for change. I soon realized that I had found a powerful tool to help me help myself where no one else could. It was the most empowering truly profound and life altering experience I have ever had. It was in fact the greatest gift I have ever received. Plus, I had found the passion of my life.

I was taught how to address the deeply ingrained, habitual unconscious muscle tension that led to and worsened my chronic pain. I soon realized that I had to take responsibility for my own pain, my own recovery and myself. The Technique gave me a choice that I did not realize I had; the choice to learn how to control pain and change how I thought and felt about myself. It has also given me invaluable tools for managing the emotional and physical demands of everyday life.

Additional Benefits
In addition to learning how to help myself relieve chronic pain I experienced other unexpected benefits. I am an avid walker and I often suffered with exercise induced asthma, lower back pain and would frequently trip and stumble. The slightest incline or a flight of stairs would leave me gasping for air and reaching for my asthma inhaler. After several months of lessons I no longer needed my inhaler. Now climbing up hills is a breeze; tripping and stumbling are things of the past.

I also have a genetic and progressive hearing loss where I experience tinnitus, ringing in the ears. I truly thought it would make me crazy. The strain to hear unconsciously caused me to tighten my muscles and create more intense ringing, muscle tension and strain. Now I rarely notice the ringing, but if I do, I apply my Alexander tools and the ringing miraculously dissipates.

I had always been an insomniac and chronic worrier; I kept myself awake with regrets of the past and "what if" worry of the future. My mind ran 90 miles an hour and I had no concept of being in the now. The Technique taught me the discipline and appreciation of being in the present moment.