Spondylitis and the Alexander Technique: quick relief or lasting solution?
Spondylitis is, like arthritis, an inflammation of joints. Spondylitis affects the joints of the spine, leading to pain and stiffness.
Ankylosing spondylitis is just the same. The spondylitis is said to be “ankylosing” if the stiffness and loss of mobility are becoming permanent. So if you have ankylosing spondylitis you are getting stuck in your bent position and unable to straighten up.
A lot can often be done to encourage your spine to free up again, so long as the joints have not actually fused. Even if they have fused, there is still a lot that can be done to improve the mobility of the rest of your body.
The main causes of the inflammation and consequent pain and loss of mobility are:–
- wear and tear
- physical damage due to injury
- rheumatoid arthritis
Wear and Tear
The usual assumption is that the wear and tear is the result of over-use. It isn’t. Mis-use is the culprit.
Question: “What can be done about this?
Answer: “A great deal. This kind of spondylitis boils down to osteoarthritis of the spine. To learn more, see my osteoarthritis page.”
Physical Damage due to Mechanical Injury
The expectation for recovery must depend on the particular details of the injury. Just a few general points:–
- The body does have a natural ability to heal itself. Given the right conditions, much more is possible than you probably expect. Since every case is individual, and since the possible is rarely attempted, nobody is in a position to make authoritative predictions: you can only work at it and see what happens.
- Many injuries never heal because the right conditions are not fostered. This is not only about the quality of medical care — though, of course, that is important. It also depends on your readiness to try whatever seems to be the most promising option, not knowing how well, or even whether, it will work. Your courage, common sense and open mind will often work wonders. Always remember that the most dedicated and talented human help you can get is only human and therefore fallible. If you expect other people to perform miracles for you, you will probably be disappointed. If, refusing to give up you persist until you find the key, what seems like a miracle often does happen. More often than not, the Alexander Technique is that key.
- Very often the main factor that stops the spondylitis healing is that same mis-use that I mentioned earlier. Before the injury, you could ignore it. Now, if you want to get better, it is vital that you investigate this matter further.
My osteoarthritis page is a good place to start.
Rheumatoid Arthritis
The Alexander Technique does not attempt to correct auto-immune disorders. These must be dealt with in other ways.
However …
Even in rheumatoid arthritis, there is almost always a strong element of mis-use. The arthritic pain alone is enough to encourage this mis-use. Even if your quality of movement was impeccable before your immune system started attacking your joints, the habit of stiffening (because it hurts to move) itself creates more pain — usually a lot more pain. This can be dealt with by learning the Alexander Technique. It is all too easy to turn the rheumatic problem into a scapegoat.
So, even if your spondylitis is caused by rheumatoid arthritis, a course of Alexander lessons could be very helpful. If you haven’t done so yet, I recommend that you read my arthritis page now.
Further Resources
Here are some ways I can help you further.
Wherever you live
- If you’re not already getting my free weekly article delivered to your inbox, then go here to get it.
- Repoise is our membership site for people who are serious about improving themselves (and getting out of pain as they do that). Find out more here: SmilingBackMethod.com/Repoise
When you join, you will:–
- have daily access to me. Together we will work out what’s going wrong for you and how to fix it
- learn from reading other Repoise members’ questions and following their progress as they work with me
- get access to all my articles, not just the ones that are published on my web-site
- I’m writing a book about my work. It will come out on the 1st July 2010. The book I was going to write this year (on the Tube Principle) was a bit too specialised so I changed my mind about writing that book. This new book will still include a chapter or two on the Tube Principle — and, of course, much more besides.
If you’re in Liverpool (or can get to Liverpool)
- I’m also running introductory workshops in Liverpool teaching you how to apply my work to improve your life. Go here for details of the next workshop: SmilingBackMethod.com/workshop
- There’s no substitute for individual lessons. Ring me on 0151 708 6172 to book your initial lesson. (Leave your number so I can get back to you).
If you’re further away and can’t get to Liverpool
- There’s still no substitute for individual lessons. Here’s where you can find a teacher near you in the UK or elsewhere
- Remember to still do the things I listed above for everyone. Even if you’re having lessons from someone else, you will find these a very great help. They’ll help you understand your lessons better and get a lot more out of them. All my own pupils read my weekly articles and several of them are active members of Repoise.
