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Finally, a book that lays out, step by step, a natural way to relieve back pain — and it doesn't involve herbs, chiropractors, physical therapists, acupuncture or any other external intervention (though these modalities can help, as well).
The only catch: You have to change your postural habits in terms of sitting, sleeping, walking and so on. But if you follow Esther Gokhale's detailed instructions to stretch, strengthen, bend, sit and sleep your way to correct postural alignment, the habitual poor posture patterns you've developed will change, alleviating back pain.
Throughout the book, Gokhale incorporates testimonials of how her eight steps have helped them, and in the book's foreword, plenty of medical doctors back them up. As Dr. Deirdre Stegman of the Palo Alto Medical Foundation in California points out, Gokhale's instructions are easy to integrate, even into busy schedules.
The one thing about Gokhale's method is: You have to follow it. “8 Steps to a Pain-free Back” isn't a book you can read once and expect it to cure your back pain. As she points out, learning new movement patterns — which is exactly what she's teaching — is akin to learning a new language. You have to take time to study it, break it down (which Gokhale masterfully has done already), and practice, adjust, practice again, adjust, and practice until it becomes second nature.
Gokhale studied biochemistry at Harvard and Princeton, then became an acupuncturist through the San Francisco School of Oriental Medicine. After her first pregnancy, she experienced severe back pain from a herniated disk, which led her to surgery. But after a year, the back pain returned, and her doctor suggested more surgery.
Instead, she began researching her own solution. She spent five years training at L'Institut d'Aplomb in Paris and took classes at Stanford University Medical School and its department of anthropology. Then she photographed, filmed and interviewed people who didn't experience back pain — despite hard labor or sedentary lifestyles (such as pottery making) — from Asia, Africa, Europe and South American. The result is her book, which brings a new level of hope to the nearly 90 percent of Americans suffering from back pain. It teaches people ways to sit, sleep, stand, walk and bend in order to protect and strengthen bones and muscles, as well as promote effective breathing. She suggests spending 15 to 45 minutes on each lesson, which she breaks down into: an introduction that discusses the importance and benefits of the movement pattern; detailed instructions; and a summary, complete with signs of improvement and troubleshooting information.
While some “exercise” or “how-to” books rely on one series of photographs and some written explanation, Gokhale's goes the extra miles (no pun intended) by presenting photographs of people of all ages, races, cultures, lifestyles and historic time periods. She even includes photos of statues and illustrations to drive her particular lesson home, be it aligning the neck, pelvis or shoulders correctly. Then she follows the information up with photos of poor posture, or mistakes people make (such as overcompensating) when trying to make the changes. The variety of photos, with detailed cutlines, and her words allow readers to truly implement her instructions, in order to realize lasting change.
And, while some instructional books can be dry and boring, hers is filled with interesting facts, photos and stories; for example, she talks about how healthy posture was the norm before the late 19th and early 20th centuries. In the 1920s, slouching in fashion magazines became popular, as healthy postures were interpreted as “stiff” and “formal.” Coincidentally, in the 20th century, debilitating back pain became common.
Though Gokhale's book takes some effort to learn both intellectually and kinesthetically, it leads to plenty of freedom in terms of pain relief.
The only catch: You have to change your postural habits in terms of sitting, sleeping, walking and so on. But if you follow Esther Gokhale's detailed instructions to stretch, strengthen, bend, sit and sleep your way to correct postural alignment, the habitual poor posture patterns you've developed will change, alleviating back pain.
Throughout the book, Gokhale incorporates testimonials of how her eight steps have helped them, and in the book's foreword, plenty of medical doctors back them up. As Dr. Deirdre Stegman of the Palo Alto Medical Foundation in California points out, Gokhale's instructions are easy to integrate, even into busy schedules.
The one thing about Gokhale's method is: You have to follow it. “8 Steps to a Pain-free Back” isn't a book you can read once and expect it to cure your back pain. As she points out, learning new movement patterns — which is exactly what she's teaching — is akin to learning a new language. You have to take time to study it, break it down (which Gokhale masterfully has done already), and practice, adjust, practice again, adjust, and practice until it becomes second nature.
Gokhale studied biochemistry at Harvard and Princeton, then became an acupuncturist through the San Francisco School of Oriental Medicine. After her first pregnancy, she experienced severe back pain from a herniated disk, which led her to surgery. But after a year, the back pain returned, and her doctor suggested more surgery.
Instead, she began researching her own solution. She spent five years training at L'Institut d'Aplomb in Paris and took classes at Stanford University Medical School and its department of anthropology. Then she photographed, filmed and interviewed people who didn't experience back pain — despite hard labor or sedentary lifestyles (such as pottery making) — from Asia, Africa, Europe and South American. The result is her book, which brings a new level of hope to the nearly 90 percent of Americans suffering from back pain. It teaches people ways to sit, sleep, stand, walk and bend in order to protect and strengthen bones and muscles, as well as promote effective breathing. She suggests spending 15 to 45 minutes on each lesson, which she breaks down into: an introduction that discusses the importance and benefits of the movement pattern; detailed instructions; and a summary, complete with signs of improvement and troubleshooting information.
While some “exercise” or “how-to” books rely on one series of photographs and some written explanation, Gokhale's goes the extra miles (no pun intended) by presenting photographs of people of all ages, races, cultures, lifestyles and historic time periods. She even includes photos of statues and illustrations to drive her particular lesson home, be it aligning the neck, pelvis or shoulders correctly. Then she follows the information up with photos of poor posture, or mistakes people make (such as overcompensating) when trying to make the changes. The variety of photos, with detailed cutlines, and her words allow readers to truly implement her instructions, in order to realize lasting change.
And, while some instructional books can be dry and boring, hers is filled with interesting facts, photos and stories; for example, she talks about how healthy posture was the norm before the late 19th and early 20th centuries. In the 1920s, slouching in fashion magazines became popular, as healthy postures were interpreted as “stiff” and “formal.” Coincidentally, in the 20th century, debilitating back pain became common.
Though Gokhale's book takes some effort to learn both intellectually and kinesthetically, it leads to plenty of freedom in terms of pain relief.
