Definition: Inhibition

Inhibition comes from the Latin for restraint and in Alexander Technique terms, has nothing to do with repression.

In physiology, this term refers to the restraining of an organic process, or the prevention of its initiation by neurological or physiological means (Penguin Dictionary of Psychology)

In the Alexander Technique, the term refers to a learned process, in which a person chooses to stop or inhibit a habitual reaction to a stimulus. This allows the individual a moment’s pause, in which to choose whether or not to respond to the stimulus and if so, how to perform an action in response.

As Alexander stated:

'all those who wish to change something in themselves must learn... to inhibit their immediate reaction to any stimulus to gain a desired end' and in order to stop falling back 'upon the familiar sensory experiences of their old habitual use in order to gain it, they must continue this inhibition whilst they employ the new direction of their use'.

F M Alexander ~ The Use of the Self p. 115

In other words we learn to 

• Stop ~ Think and Direct ~ Then Move