Alexander Technique in Portobello, Edinburgh - Edinburgh

Lydia Cresswell

A calming environment to learn in and a superb teacher to learn from. Julia is kind, attentive and switched on making the experience very wholesome. She is a clear, engaging, and intuitive teacher. In her lessons I have fun, I am focused, I am relaxed, and I am constantly amazed at what I discover. She has to hand a variety of equipment and tools to access all sorts of ways to explore. By keeping a practice of the Alexander Technique I feel more connected to the world around me with better awareness, and I feel a much easier connection throughout my body and thinking. It affirms my opinion that the Alexander Technique is fundamental for being human, is accessible for everyone, and gives everyone the knowledge of their own empowering ability. Because of this, I went to the school open day for the Alexander Teacher training, where I was impressed by the mix of teachers and the layout of the course, all delivered with great love for the Alexander Technique. - Lydia Cresswell

redstone rebel

After just a few lessons with Julia I'm starting to see how far-reaching the Alexander Technique can be. I find myself thinking about it as I'm going about my daily life and it's giving me more choice about how I approach everyday situations. This is helping with the lower back pain I initially hoped to address, but I also find myself applying it more widely, for example to my work and to interactions with others. Julia's open and empowering approach during lessons really suits me.

Tamsin Haggis

I worked with an Alexander teacher for a number of years before moving to Edinburgh. My first lesson with Julia was a delight. She made everything much more straightforward and fun than I was used to. I learnt a number of things in only one lesson that put me on the path to solving a longstanding ankle problem, and recently she helped me when I was in a lot of pain from a back injury. I can't recommend Julia Woodman highly enough for her welcoming and relaxing manner, her sensitivity and her expertise.

Felicity Pricam

The introduction course I did with Julia was a totally life changing experience. My doctor recommended I try the Alexander Technique due to constant back and neck pain. I am so glad I did, having tried so many things like pilates and yoga. This has changed my relationship to my body and my experience of it in an extraordinary way. Thank you Julia!

Maz

I came to Julia because I was doing a desk job, struggling with anxiety, and not feeling very grounded in general. I was amazed at how quickly I started to become aware of my body, movement, and habits including regarding my posture and thinking. Julia worked from a very practical and mind and body, perspective, actively listening to help me with daily tasks or requests, such as working at a desk, stepping on and off a bus or going up stairs, etc. I also found that she was able to provide interesting ways of working with breathing and using images or other ideas as part of the lessons, which weren’t at all ‘airy fairy’ – they actually helped to clarify and cement the physical/bodily elements of the Alexander Technique, which helped with my anxiety generally. I was never judged, found Julia to be friendly, professional, and astute in picking up on what I was asking or wanting to learn.

I am not someone that spends weekends on yoga retreats, or who generally has much time in my life for me. I work office hours, in a professional role, and I wasn’t sure what to expect at first…but despite my initial reticence, I have found this to be an extremely effective method, and have been really surprised at how quickly I’ve been able to integrate the teachings into my everyday life after just 6 lessons. For me it is a shame that the Alexander Technique isn’t more widely known in society. It is an extremely accessible, practical and powerful method. You couldn’t ask for a better teacher.