Testimonials

Here are a list of some quotes from pupils past and present:

I’ve seen osteopaths and chiropractors in the past for my back pain. Both seem to fix the problem, but then it always comes back. I was starting to feel - aged 31 - that I should just learn to live with the pain as a part of life.

But the Alexander Technique is helping me to become aware of what’s causing the pain in the first place, to alleviate the symptoms and, slowly, to change my behaviour to stop it happening at source.

Jon, Producer, BBC

I was initially rather sceptical being educated in a scientific/medical background. However I had some problems and wanted to seek another opinion as to how they might be addressed. These were 1) Posture, I had been becoming increasingly bent over suffering back spasms etc. 2) I had problems walking my dogs for over half an hour due to lack of energy and back pain 3) Mentally I was unwell with depression and anxiety problems which had been longstanding.

I must say that I have been most impressed with the results of attending lessons. I can now attest to the fact that I walk my dogs much more freely for just over an hour, covering approx 3 miles without any significant pain. I believe my posture is much more upright and confident. My mental state is also somewhat improved and I can function with less misery. Of particular significance to me is that a few months ago I had to give a speech to approx 200 people. Something which ordinarily would have filled me with horror and much anxiety. I practiced some tips which you gave me for the speech, slept well on the night before and was congratulated several times for the clarity of my speaking!

Many thanks indeed are due to you and I heartily commend (the Alexander Technique) to prospective clients with similar problems.

Pete

Having recently found the right medication to alleviate long term chronic pain and mobility issues, I found that while I now felt fairly normal, I had learnt many bad habits in terms of posture and movement, and had forgotten many good ones. Cathie’s instruction in the Alexander Technique has been instrumental in helping me to re-learn the most basic of activities: such as standing, walking, and sitting without stressing my body. Through the sessions and the techniques I’ve learnt from Cathie, the remaining tension in my back has been greatly reduced and I feel much more comfortable and confident with my mobility.

Alice, BBC employee

Learning Alexander Technique with Cathie has been a life-changing experience. Having suffered with a debilitating work-related repetitive strain injury for almost 8 months… Alexander Technique lessons have liberated me from the never-ending pain cycle I’ve experienced since my RSI symptoms started last Summer. After just 2-3 lessons I was feeling the benefits - I am far more aware of my posture and how I move, the inherent bad habits (which I had no clue about previously!), and the invaluable tools to change these bad habits and banish the pain. 

I look forward to my weekly lesson as it’s half an hour away from the stresses of daily life. Without fail I come out of the lesson feeling calm and rejuvenated. Thanks in part to Cathie, RSI no longer dominates my life, and when I do inevitably have a bad day, at least I know that I can be proactive and do something myself about the discomfort by applying the techniques Cathie has taught me. I’d recommend it to anyone who has aches and pains, works long hours in front of a computer at a desk or finds it difficult to relax and switch off from the stresses of daily life.

Lydia, BBC employee

As someone who has quite a sedentary, yet stressful work style, I have found the Alexander Technique sessions with Cathie extremely helpful. They have made me more aware of my posture and movement and I have felt improvements in the last few months. The sessions are something I look forward to and a great way of breaking up the week. Things I learn I can incorporate into everyday life. Cathie is an excellent instructor who is very good at explaining what she is doing. Highly Recommended!

Neal, BBC employee

The Alexander Technique is an answer to the voices that have come to me over the years of… “Stand up straight”, “Sit properly”, “Shoulders back and look the world right in the eye”. Golf lessons go, “relax, stay supple” and also complete these very technical moves, but “stay loose”. In actively trying, I just made all these things worse by tightening up and getting too ‘thinky’.

What can I say, thanks to Cathie, my latest pet project, me, is much improved. Symmetry and ease of action helps throughout the day and should last me a lifetime. Like the golf swing, you can’t see what you are doing wrong… The Alexander Technique gets you in that zone for effortless sitting, standing and walking around, life in fact.

Mark, Siemens

Cathie has helped NewOrbit focus on something really important. Ours is a high pressure, complex environment, with lots of context switching, lots of meetings and more than our fair share of stress. Using the Alexander Technique she has helped our team focus on our posture and, more than that, how we prepare ourselves and how we engage and use our bodies, day-to-day. The process has proved to me just how much stress manifests, unnoticed, in our posture and how it affects us physically and our feeling of well-being. I have the tools and techniques (and some of the programming) I need to help me move better, feel more balanced and centred.

The NewOrbit team are a bunch of computer geeks and mega-brains. Unguided we hunched over keyboards and slouched in chairs and had a high incidence of RSI. The Alexander Technique has already started to help our team reduce the misuse of our bodies and to feel better in our working environment. It’s why we have committed to the long term engagement of Cathie and the commitment to A.T.

Sean, CEO, NewOrbit

I am a professional organist and was recommended Alexander Technique lessons because I was having problems with R.S.I. in my wrist. After two terms of lessons I feel much more comfortable playing the organ, and feel like I have the tools to tackle any tension that occurs whilst I play. However, the benefits of A.T. have extended well beyond just organ playing - I use the relaxation techniques regularly and can feel my habits of bad posture changing. It’s remarkable how good it feels when you find good posture, and leaving all my work at the door for these sessions has been tremendous for my mental as well as physical health. It’s amazing how considering how you use your muscles for straight-forward actions (such as standing, sitting, moving your arms, picking up an object etc.) can easily be applicable in all aspects of life.

Alex, Assistant Organist, Magdalen College

Cathie has a calm authority and absolute attention to the person in front of her. She knows the music profession from the inside which makes her able to engage with problems quickly and intelligently.

I felt more equipped to help myself after just two sessions and my worn out back felt softer and more open. I would highly recommend any musician see her, particularly for vital general maintenance and protection against injury.

Lucy, Double Bass Player, 'Lord of the Rings', Drury Lane Theatre

Actually, the feeling right after coming out of the lesson is the best part of it - you feel so relaxed and tall, also very calm. Today I learned the ‘monkey’ position, which will hopefully solve the problems with my lower back. A great number of my instruments are not adjustable in height, so I am going to benefit from this position a lot.

Percussionist, European Union Youth Orchestra

Cathie is an extremely experienced and knowledgeable AT teacher.  Such is Cathie’s versatility with teaching AT, she helped my daughter apply it to both her instrument playing (piano, violin and clarinet) and also her gymnastics.  She had a lovely, personable manner with my 12-year-old daughter who couldn’t wait for her AT lessons each week!  I have absolutely no hesitation in recommending Cathie as an AT teacher.

Yvonne, parent

Cathie made my lessons very calm and enjoyable.  She explained the topic very well so I had no problem understanding what I was to do and her exercises have definitely helped my posture when playing a musical instrument and my playing overall.  She is a very kind and friendly person and I loved attending her lessons.

Christina, 12 yrs old

Alexander Technique is a way of releasing everyday strain and tension from your body.  It is especially helpful for people who play instruments, or are just uncomfortable normally as, if you have a habit of slouching or have back pains, then AT can help you remove these habits. Musicians also commonly develop habits, like tightening of the jaw when they try to play a hard piece, or the hunching of shoulders, when you don’t play it right, so being able to focus on the music and leaving your body alone can greatly improve your playing.

It has helped me because I had a lower back pain when I played the piano, but by learning to release, I could sit better on my sitting bones, and play with relative ease. You also become aware of how much tension you put on your spine and your neck, and that by lifting the tension off your spine, you can lengthen and be able to do simple things like sitting, walking and playing an instrument more easily.

George, Year 8 student, The Dragon School

As musicians move on in their playing and learning career, they begin to realise the importance of their whole body in playing their instrument. Whether it be for stability, maximising air spaces and muscle usage, support, relaxation, balance or movement our whole bodies matter either for getting the most out of our playing or for preventing injury.

If you are starting to consider posture, more advanced technique or anything beyond the basics of how to play notes on your instrument it might be wise to consider Alexander Technique to help you gain stability, strength, relaxation, balance, control and free movement in your playing. If you are a regular player of your instrument and will continue to be into later life, why not put some thought into sustaining and maximising your main instrument - your body?

Alexander technique focuses on freeing up the tension we unnecessarily hold in our bodies, encouraging us to work less and relax more….Alexander himself always progressed through his investigations with curiosity, excitement and humour - and this is how we also learn about our bodies, where we are holding tension, and where we can do less. No matter how far you go with Alexander Technique, you will never fail to learn something that will benefit your playing and reduce injury for a relaxed, aware and Alexander-enlightened future.

Roshan, Magdalen College School

Lessons with Cathie were an absolute pleasure. We developed a very good rapport and worked together to tailor the sessions towards what I needed most help with: this sense of collaboration meant that I got a huge amount out of every session. The work we did on my singing was particularly special, as we tried lots of different approaches and I produced a sound I had never heard from myself before, which was really extraordinary. I am delighted that I chose to do AT lessons and even more so that I had Cathie as a teacher – it’s been a real help to me.

Georgie

Alexander Technique really helped me with pains in my back. I tried physio at the hospital but that was a lot of hassle and it didn’t work for me. I had an MRI scan and the doctors said that they didn’t notice anything unusual. I then got really curious as to what this pain was and I consistently asked until one day, my mum came up to me and told me about Alexander Technique and I said to her: “If there is a chance that it can help with my back pain then I’ll definitely give it a go!” I was so excited and when I had my first lesson my back pain had died down. After a few lessons it disappeared! I kept going to Cathie’s Alexander Technique and every time I went I looked forward to her lovely smile and warm welcome that made me feel happy and relaxed! She really helped me and I hope she can help you!

Anna, 11 yrs old

I decided to revisit the Alexander Technique at the beginning of 2018. I’d been suffering from worsening lower back pain, shoulder and neck pain and sacroiliac joint issues resulting in left leg pain. Having experienced AT briefly back in the days when I rode dressage I just knew that it would help improve my posture and subsequently pain levels along with calming my ‘busy mind’.

Now, all my pain has reduced. The time I spend with Cathie is not only incredibly informative but also has become my quiet time, I feel calm and stress free, which I love. Cathie knows how I’m feeling before I do and so will structure the session around my particular need that day.

It has been such an interesting journey. I am now so much more aware of my body, where and when I’m putting unnecessary strain on my body and of the importance of internal ‘quiet’ along with trying to do less. I leave my sessions feeling different in a positive way……lighter, happier and more comfortable.

Sarah

Cathie is an inspirational and subtle teacher. I have learned so much over the last year but the beauty of the way that Cathie teaches is that you don’t realise you are learning. I had given up hope of having a good posture and was resigned to a seemingly inevitable slow collapse over the years, but now I feel completely different. I’m on a journey and I look forward to each lesson.

I’m inquisitive and rather impatient, but now I am convinced that the Alexander Technique is not something you can teach yourself or pick up from a book; it requires experienced guidance and patience and Cathie really knows what she is doing. Whether you need some quick inspiration or seek a deep understanding, she is a perfect guide.

Jeff

The Alexander Technique is NOT yoga or meditating, but learning about having a relaxed, happy back. It is also really fun!

Louisa, Year 5 pupil, The Dragon School

As a dancer and yoga practitioner I was looking to improve posture, coordination and balance, as well as use my body more efficiently within my dancing life and daily life.

After seven months of studying the Technique through Cathie’s teaching, I have developed a better understanding of my body’s habits and how I can inhibit these habits to get out of my own way. I have noticed an improvement in my balance and coordination, as well as a freedom within my movement not only in dance and yoga, but in daily life as well.

When I finish a lesson with Cathie, I feel taller, regain my peripheral vision and become grounded, which is often completely opposite from how I feel when entering the lesson.

Samantha