I first took private lessons for the following symptoms:

The Alexander Technique appealed to me because it:

• deals with pain indirectly by correcting the use of the whole body, through conscious awareness rather than brute force.
• is based on the assumption that the head leads in all movement. I was already familiar with the idea because, as a champion springboard diver in my teens I was taught that the balance of the head controls the angle of take-off, the height of take-off, movement through the air, and entry into the water.
• assumes the use of the self as a single psycho-physical organism. This reflected my own experience, though it was at odds with the dualism I had been taught at university.
• gives extra value for money because although back pain was a major symptom, I thought I would get broader emotional benefits.

I have never experienced sciata since. Although I sometimes still get backache, I can fix it in a minute. Best of all I am happier in myself and more at ease in social situations and in new situations. During a two-week bicycle tour in Cuba I did not suffer saddle soreness, despite dire warnings from friends!