British Autogenic Society

In training for relaxation: What can deal with stress, high blood pressure, heart trouble, weight problems and arthritis - and all without pills?
Article from The Times, Thursday, October 13, 1988
by Liz Hodgkinson
© Times Newspapers Ltd. 1988

To many people, the term "autogenic training" has a decidedly cultish, Californian sound to it. But after 10 years of use in Britain, this technique of conscious relaxation is being enthusiastically adopted by a growing number of doctors and hospitals as an effective, non-drug way of treating a wide variety of emotional, mental and physical conditions.

The technique was first developed in the Twenties by a German doctor, Wolfgang Schultz. In the Fifties it migrated to Canada and Britain by Dr. Malcolm Carruthers and his wife, psychotherapist Vera Diamond, to be used by doctors as an alternative to tranquillizers, sleeping pills, beta-blockers and other widely prescribed modern drugs. and was extensively used by stress expert Hans Selye. It was brought to

Autogenic training was originally developed as the western answer to meditation, and is related to self-hypnosis. It can work to bring down blood pressure, normalize body chemistry and reduce stress in fraught situations. It allows you to switch from an internal state of war to one of peace. The technique has to be taught initially by a medically qualified person, but after eight or 10 lessons, patients can do it at home for themselves.

A series of exercises where you give yourself relaxing instructions, enable you to slow down your heart and generally switch off the body's alarm system. Once you have learnt how to do it, the technique can be used in any stressful situation. "You can do it in a car, on a train, on a plane, sitting in an office or lying in bed," Dr. Carruthers says. "It is also effective for those who have high blood. pressure, heart trouble, weight' or smoking problems and arthritis."

Carruthers emphasizes that AT must initially be done under careful medical supervision: "Certain medical conditions, such as diabetes or asthma, would need careful handling, as in unqualified hands these conditions could get worse."

When Jean Coleman, chief clinical psychologist at the. Fairmile Hospital, near Oxford, first heard of autogenic training, she was highly suspicious. "It sounded like absolute rubbish," she said. "But then I started training shooters for the Olympics, and discovered that coaches in other countries were already using it." She is now vice-chairman of the British Association for Autogenic Training and Therapy.

Coleman says AT differs from ordinary relaxation techniques because it can produce worrying side-effects at first. "AT can bring to the surface deeply-hidden anxieties and tensions. One characteristic is the frontal headache, and another is left chest pain. Very often, deep anger and frustration come out when people are being taught AT, and you have to know how to deal with it.

"The basic idea behind autogenic training," Coleman says, "is that you achieve a particular state of mind called passive concentration, where you repeat certain phrases over and over to yourself. People find that after a bit of practice, their body functioning starts to alter slightly. AT is a way of helping the body return to its natural resting state."

Coleman has found the technique particularly useful for athletes as it helps them to peak more effectively by increasing the flow of oxygen to the muscles. It has also been used in industry to help managers become more decisive and solve problems positively.

"In Canada it has been used in schools, where studies have shown that behavioural problems waned and exam results improved," Coleman says. 'In my work here, I am also discovering that it helps writers and artists to overcome blocks. This is because it can free creativity."

Coleman says it is now used in the NHS in some antenatal clinics, and also to help healing after major surgery. "I also use it to help people with severe behavioural problems, with phobias and schizophrenics. I've had dramatic successes with suicidally depressed patients, with policemen who've been assaulted and have developed feel about going out on the beat, and with overweight people who use food as a tranquillizer."

Carruthers says that AT is, essentially, "the gentle art of talking to yourself. This is often regarded as the fist sign of madness but we see it as the first sign of mental health.'

top of page previous article next article