The direct cost of the treatment of chronic back pain is estimated to be approximately 100 billion dollars/year. The number of suffers continues to rise. Last summer the British Journal of Medicine published a large randomized study that showed an 85% reduction in back pain through lessons in the Alexander Technique. After a year, patients who had 24 lessons in the Alexander Technique had an average of 3 days with pain in the preceding 4 weeks compared to the control group that experience an average of 21 days of pain out of the preceding 28.

This is quite an amazing result but will it lead to more people studying the Alexander Technique? There are many reasons it might not. First of all, few people have heard of the Alexander Technique. Although the study was reported in the popular press most readers are not likely to pursue something that is an unknown. Second, lessons would have to be paid for out-of-pocket. Further, lessons imply more effort than receiving treatment.

All these factors are reflected in the way people treat their own bodies versus how they treat their cars. When a car starts exhibiting “symptoms”; funny noises, red lights, etc. the owner will insist that the mechanic find the root cause and fix it. Most people don’t disconnect warning lights (except the ones who call car talk) and turn up the radio loud to cover up weird noises. And when it comes to finding the $1,000 to replace a leaky radiator, they find it. After all we all need our cars in good working order to live our lives. But when it comes to the body, most people are happy finding a pill to mask the symptom and are really loath to spend money to find out, and change, what they might be doing (the root cause) to create their symptoms.

But I think that attitude is changing…..because, after all, we want our bodies in good working order to live a good life!