Connected Conversations: Exploring the Space Between – Alexander Technique and Craniosacral Therapy Practice
The ASO Newsletter - 53rd edition
Working together to enable greater understanding of the Alexander Technique through disciplined inquiry.
Introduction
This month, ASO continues with a series of conversations with Alexander Technique (AT) teachers who offer another professional practice alongside their AT teaching. In this episode, Erica Donnison speaks with Adrian Farrell, an Alexander Teacher who is also a Craniosacral Therapy (CST) practitioner based in London.
The conversation explores Adrian’s personal journey into both modalities and offers a reflection on his lived experience of their similarities and differences. Rather than presenting a formal comparison, Adrian shares his own embodied perspective—touching on the interplay between the two approaches and how working with both has influenced his practice and understanding. The discussion also includes his reflections on the impact of online teaching to his practice, aspects of touch, and the nuanced space between therapeutic and educational roles. Additionally, it considers the challenges of articulating embodied experience and the dynamic, emergent nature of states of being and perceiving.
The reflections shared are personal and practice-based, they raise questions about embodied experience, mechanisms of change, and the roles of touch and relational presence—questions that continue to inform our research body and dialogue (see below for additional related research).
Related Research
These studies offer additional context for the themes explored in this conversation:
Touch and psychological processes:
Glover et al. – Exploring the psychological processes underlying touch: lessons from the Alexander Technique.Educational approaches, self-efficacy, and embodiment:
McPherson et al. – Self-efficacy and embodiment associated with Alexander Technique lessons or with acupuncture sessions: A longitudinal qualitative sub-study within the ATLAS trial.On the processes underlying change in AT:
Kinsey & Glover – How does the Alexander Technique lead to psychological and non-physical outcomes? A realist review.Further discussion:
ASO Episode 19 – Introducing the realist review on psychological and non-physical outcomes.
About
Adrian Farrell, MSTAT is an Alexander Technique (AT) teacher with a corporate background having worked in investment banking for many years. Initially taking AT lessons for back pain and a computer related repetitive strain injury, he became fascinated with the technique as it also helped aid stress responses, making a hectic lifestyle more manageable. When the opportunity arose to train to be an AT teacher, he decided to use that time to also train in Craniosacral Therapy, a decision that has influenced his AT teaching in various ways. Adrian is also a life long guitar player and was commissioned by the publisher GuitarVivo to write a book on AT for guitar players called Effortless Guitar. The book is also available as an audiobook and is available from Amazon and Audible. To learn more visit: www.alexander-technique.london
Erica Donnison is part of the ASO team.
Thank You
Thank you to Adrian Farrell for his time and generous contribution to this post. To our community, your participation matters—you can support our work by subscribing, sharing this post, commenting below, or emailing us. Thank you, and we’d love to hear from you!