Testimonials for Eileen Troberman
Alexander Technique San Diego
"I found Eileen on Youtube in November 2021. After watching her videos titled ‘Finding Ease’ and ‘Finding Ease Daily Practice’, I booked a lesson with her the same day. Even through a Youtube video, I was immediately drawn to her warm, calm, poised, and comforting presence.
"Following pregnancy, I found my body in extreme pain in most of my joints. After extensive testing it came to my knowledge that I have hypermobility syndrome. My pianist friend encouraged me to contact Eileen Troberman for Alexander Technique. He had told me that working with her changed his life. I called her on New Year's Eve of 2021 and was immediately struck by the ease and graciousness of her voice. She radiated kindness through the phone and I knew I would want to work with her. As I am based in Texas, we had our lessons via zoom.
"I got RSI (repetitive strain injury) in my hands, and had trouble with basic tasks like typing, washing dishes, and even cutting my own food. Having heard that the Alexander Technique could help, I signed up for online lessons with Eileen. What a great decision! Eileen is a fantastic teacher. She explains things so clearly and coaches so well. At first, I thought she must be reading my mind--I would randomly think of something she'd taught me and she would immediately notice the change in my body, just from seeing me on screen! Thanks to our lessons, I've learned how to move easily and without pain!"
"I have been studying the Alexander Technique with Eileen over the past year and cannot speak highly enough of her and her teaching. I originally came to Eileen because of pain and tension in my back and neck from long hours working at a microscope. I always had a nagging sense that there was something that I was doing to exacerbate the problem but couldn't work out what to do about it myself. With Eileen's guidance, I have gained a greater understanding of how my body moves and of the critical role that thinking plays in performing even the simplest of activities without strain. My pain and tension have improved and I now use the Alexander Technique in activities throughout the day to help prevent problems from developing. The skills I have gained have been transformational and will continue to serve me for the rest of my life. Eileen truly is a master teacher with endless experience to share. To anyone considering a lesson, I would recommended her wholeheartedly."
Eileen teaches a graduate course (TGDR 239) in the Alexander Technique at the University of California Department of Theatre and Dance. Here are a number of comments made by her students. All the evaluations may be viewed here.
- "Eileen is a master of Alexander! She really knows what she's doing and is so confident in the efficacy of the work that it translates directly into us easily!!
- "Eileen was one of the most present and caring instructors of this quarter. She promoted a lot individual work inside and outside of the classroom, and consistently made an effort to check in. Her classes allowed the students to use the work we were doing in other classes as our own class project, which encouraged us to apply the practice outside of the classroom.
- "Keep this woman. She is a genius and we need it more than 1 quarter. This course should be expanded to at least three quarters, rather than one.
- "Eileen is absolutely wonderful and knows exactly what she is talking about. She can look at you and know where you hold tension in your body, and tell immediately how to help you lose that tension and then can see when you do lose that tension.
- "I have never learned so much in such a short amount of time. This class has saved me in more ways than one. Eileen's teachings are like a magic trick. Day by day she works on one small thing, yet subconsciously that one thing affects every other thing we are doing in all of our other classes. She knows exactly what she is doing."
Graduate Students
UCSD class TDGR 239
"After my first lesson with Eileen, on the car ride home, I was singing along to a familiar playlist and I noticed immediately that my voice was more resonant, and that my lower range was extended by at least two full notes! Then I submitted some voice auditions, and whether I end up getting the jobs or not, I was very satisfied with the emotional range I was able to access effortlessly. Can't wait to see Eileen again!"
"I have worked with Eileen via Skype for two months, after seven month of hands-on with a local teacher. I was worried about using Skype, since I'd always associated feeling the hands of the teacher as essential to the Alexander Technique, but I really liked Eileen's website videos, so I decided to go for it.
"In my work as a Holistic Health Practitioner, it is essential to have a functional understanding of a wide variety of healing methods. My research led me to a study of the Alexander Technique. I was very impressed by the scientific and practical rationale for the method, so I began asking around my community who was "the best Alexander Practitioner". I was given Eileen's name multiple times, and when I saw the consensus of opinion on her expertise, I booked an appointment so I could learn from a master. Needless to say, Eileen is a very centered, highly educated, skillful woman, who in a few hours, made it very clear to me how powerful and beneficial Alexander work is. I began referring her clients with only very positive results. She is like a zen Master that can teach you how to be present in yourself, and move effortlessly. When Eileen guides you to using your body naturally and effortlessly, it is as though a well-spring of previously bound energy is now free to express itself through you as new-found joy and creativity. If you want masterful help, see the Master. From my personal experience, I suspect that if Alexander himself were still here, he too would be on Eileen's client list.
Love and chi, "
Paul Chek
Holistic Health Practitioner
Founder, C.H.E.K Institute
"My name is Ellie and I'm a professional jazz singer and singing teacher in New York City. I previously was teaching and singing in Hollywood, San Francisco, and San Diego travelling between them each week. I have long used Eileen, not only myself to improve my singing, but to refer students to her from my teaching studio so that they could make faster and deeper progress. At conservatories and universities with outstanding music departments, it is a given that they have an Alexander Technique teacher there working with the students and I wanted to give my students as serious of a training as possible.
"I think I met Eileen in 2004 or 2005 when one of the students I recommended take Alexander Technique found her offices in Leucadia (pretty much, that is Encinitas). I went to her myself once and that was it - I was hooked because she was a tremendous teacher and I heard results in my singing voice right away. I signed up for weekly lessons, myself!
"Fast forward to 2016. I have moved to New York (Sept 2015), but continue to see San Diego students via Skype and been referring to Eileen for 12-13 years. I have been going to her for the same length of time and seeing her when I am back in San Diego every few months. The results in my students are phenomenal, but also my singing voice has become much better. I have, of course, had years of vocal training, but Alexander Technique is essential to getting your best voice possible and Eileen is one of the best teachers out there!
"As you can tell, I can't recommend Eileen Troberman enough. I know people say that, but really this is absolutely true. Whenever a student goes to her, they make much, much faster progress in their speaking or singing lessons with me - it is well worth the time and the money to go if you value more productive time in your voice lessons. As a singer, though, she has given me the edge I need to really be the best I can possibly be - an ongoing endeavour, to be sure, but now I have not only the vocal skills, but the ease of use of my voice to be competitive in the crowded NYC market."
Eleonor England
Professional jazz singer and singing teacher.
Singing Lessons NYC
"I came to Eileen Troberman in a great deal of pain from a car accident. I was in San Diego to work on a play as an onstage musician, which included running while playing the violin, and many, many hours of rehearsals. Eileen helped me with all aspects of the work, from how I stood when I was not playing, to how I held my head when I was. I healed so much in the two months that I worked with her - in huge increments from each lesson. And even better then that - both my playing and singing are freer than they have ever been. Eileen has an amazing way of teaching. She was completely intuitive to my way of learning - she used imagery, examples with skeletons and pictures, and mantra like sentences, which was exactly what I needed to maintain my progress while focusing on intricate work. Each lesson left me in awe of how much we can truly impact our own well being with the right guidance. I am so very grateful to her not only for how great I feel, but for the gift of that awe."
"Eileen has changed my life! After years of trying many methods to free myself of neck pain and headaches, I came to Eileen and the Alexander Technique. It didn't take long at all for me to find near complete healing. Now Eileen is helping me learn to move in a way that is gradually alleviating the back pain I incur from simple daily activities.
"I can't speak highly enough about Eileen Troberman and her Alexander Technique San Diego center. As a physician with a great deal of expertise in musculoskeletal matters and as a performer, I consider the teachings of Alexander Technique training as something that should be essential to everybody's basic knowledge of how to go about their activities of daily living. Whether you're performing in front of an audience or in a cubicle, learning how to move with ease (absence of tension) will improve your skills and comfort. In addition to myself and family members, I've referred many patients to Eileen. She is simply amazing and my patients all learn from her. I heartily recommend her!"
"Since studying with Eileen just before and during this year's PGA Champions tour, I've had my best year ever! You wouldn't expect someone to get so much better when they're older and after almost 30 years of being in the PGA!
"My Alexander lessons with Eileen helped my playing so much over just one summer which is particularly evident now that I'm back in term at Bard Conservatory and playing principal horn for the first time. I find the technique immensely helpful and use it everyday when I play and just when I'm walking!
"I started Alexander Technique lessons with Eileen because of a severe piano-related injury on both forearms. At that time, I was unable to play because of the pain and I was forced to take a leave of absence from college. After a few months of lessons, I am able to perform again, pain free, with more ease and better tone quality. Thanks to Eileen and Alexander Technique I will be able to return to college this fall to finish my Bachelor's degree in music."
"Eileen is an exceptional teacher and I recommend her to anyone looking to find ease of movement in their own body and prevent future pain. As a lifelong dancer and a dance and yoga teacher, I started Alexander Technique to improve my movement and flexibility and after my first lesson with Eileen I knew right away that I had found an incredibly experienced and knowledgeable teacher. Each appointment with Eileen I learn important information about how to move the human body in a healthy and efficient way. Eileen always knows exactly how to best help me on that particular day and with whatever questions/issues I bring up, so that each appointment with her is unique and fits my needs. Since I have started lessons with Eileen, my whole body movement and feeling has improved, I have less pain and more mobility in all of my joints, I have learned how to breath correctly and correct the root of many of my movement problems beginning with my own thought patterns about movement. Eileen is an incredibly calming, insightful, and caring teacher as well, I can't recommend her enough!"Excerpts from Andrea's admission letter that won her a full scholarship to The Juilliard School. "Although we had always been looking, that was when my ever more frantic, never ending search for the cure (for tendinitis) began. Everyone had a different solution. One teacher told me my viola setup was completely wrong, another told me that my technique was flawed, and many said I needed to stop playing entirely. Each time I fixed something from my posture, the pain in one area would be relieved only to jump to a new area. I was feeling pain in places that tendons didn't even exist. My teachers and doctors where perplexed, and no one understood why I still had pain. After over a year of struggle, we concluded that I had to stop playing entirely to heal. This meant I would miss the window for college auditions for Fall of 2013. I recall these six months of "healing" as the most painful I've ever experienced. The pain never subsided from not playing.
One day, I received an email from a teacher. Having heard about my struggle, he referred me to an Alexander Technique teacher, Eileen Troberman. After the first session, I found out that all the pain I had derived from tense shoulders. Over the next few months, we worked to fix the way I moved both with and without the viola. Eventually, I was back to playing full time. It was a miracle." Click here to read Andrea's entire admission essay.
Andrea Fortier
Violist and Juilliard student
"Hi. My name is Allegra and I'm a television anchor and an actor. And as a hobby, I skydive and I play Polo. I sought out Eileen two or three months ago because both in my acting and in my anchoring I was having issues with my voice. I had a lot of tension in my throat. My voice got very tired especially on long days on camera where I pushed in the wrong manner and I actually even lost my voice which is a problem when I work several days in a row. I knew the Alexander Technique though I didn't know it that well, but I was aware that probably with body posture and with movement, I could help my voice and actually that's exactly what happened.
"And on top of that I had several good surprises in the sense that another of my issues is that I have a lot of stage fright and working with Eileen has really helped me work through those tensions in my body that block me especially before auditions so doing what she suggested is a great way to relax and then when I'm on set, applying the same methods, obviously you know, adapted to the situation, really helps me out in relaxing my body relaxing my voice and the result is, first of all I don't lose my voice which is the most important thing. I have a much better quality of voice.
"I'm also finding a lot of benefits in the sports and to be completely honest, also in my private life in the sense that applying the Alexander Technique and applying what Eileen is teaching me again makes me much more present so it make me more accessible." See the results and listen to all of Allegra's words by clicking her image above.
Allegra Nasi
Television Anchor in Italy
"Her office was inviting, and Eileen was welcoming and accommodating. I loved being able to see the way that muscles interact and how everything is so connected. She was able to recognize and treat both my specific symptoms and the underlying causes. While I was lying on the table, I went through a series of emotions: building worry that I had made a mistake, and that this would be ineffective, then hope that it was actually going to work, until I reached amazement, that without prescription drugs, without intensive massage work, and without multiple painful physical therapy appointments, Eileen had eliminated 90% of my pain. I was convinced.
I left her office moving better and without pain, armed with knowledge about how I was using my body. She coached me to retrain the way I breathed, walked, and played my flute to avoid creating spasms. I scheduled a second appointment for the next morning. Eileen's treatment and training are the reason I was able to get through the weekend, and not only that, I was able to perform without the stress and concern that I normally experience in high pressure situations like that. It was a truly liberating experience. It was the final push I needed to help me to go on to win 1st place at the San Diego Flute Guild Artist Gold Competition." Read the entire testimonial by clicking here.
Sarah Vay Kerns
Flute Teacher and Performer
"Hello my name is Brenda and I'm a student of Eileen Troberman. I've studied with Eileen, the Alexander Technique for the past almost 16 years. When I first came to Eileen, I was a few months out of neck surgery. I have a lot of stress a lot of tension up in my other body. I'm also a pianist. I do classical and some jazz and i'm a piano teacher.so as I said when I first came to Eileen, I had a lot of tension, I felt a lot of tension, but in working with her and her hands-on approach her gentle way – and um the gift that she has of looking at anyone, no matter what their line of work is and telling them how to move more effectively and how to release and make them aware of ways they're holding habits they have that they don't even know they have because they have been doing them so long, she is really good at helping to release those tensions and so I just wanted to give my testimonial today to recommend her. If you're looking to find ways to move effectively,to have less tension and to also just improve your confidence and sense of well-being, I highly recommend Eileen Troberman." See the results and listen to all of Brenda's words by clicking her image above.
Brenda Martin
Pianist and piano teacher
"My son and I have had the pleasure of studying with Eileen for over a year. Eileen has a profound knowledge of human anatomy, sensory awareness, and movement. She has helped my son play the piano with greater ease and command of the instrument and has helped us both to develop better postural habits and learn to use our minds and bodies in a more effective, relaxed, and integrated manner. I am always amazed by Eileen's keen observations and insights. She has a wonderful way of explaining the principles of the Alexander Technique and showing a student how to apply those principles to their everyday lives. Anyone who is interested in learning to move through life with greater ease would benefit greatly from lessons with Eileen. "
"I first worked with Eileen in the MFA in Acting program at the University of California, San Diego, where she was brought in to teach for a semester. I had been taking acting, movement and voice classes my whole life – and in moments, I knew that I was in the presence of a master teacher who could help me address my tendency to "push" in a way no teacher before had been able. I continued to study with her privately, and the ease and spontaneity she brought into my acting work made a profound difference in my time at school and my professional career once I graduated. I moved to New York, and worked with many Alexander teachers there, but none has come close to Eileen's particular genius. Now that I'm a teacher myself (I teach a class in writing/performing one-person plays), I've come to admire Eileen even more for her teaching style: she is able to communicate clearly and practically about very subtle adjustments and she never addresses an issue in a session that she cannot help you improve in that session – so you never feel overwhelmed. I couldn't recommend her more highly." "
Matt Hoverman
Actor, teacher, playwright
"Eileen is an exceptional communicator. As the Director of Operations for a large organization I understand how difficult it is to communicate with a variety of types of people who understand and process information in different ways.
"Analise was born with a hernia on her diaphragm muscle that was not diagnosed until she was two years old. As a result, she lived in a great deal of pain and used only the top portion of her lungs to breath. Her inability to breath properly made it impossible for Analise to speak clearly or walk far due to extreme shortness of breath.
."Eileen has an amazing understanding of the human body and the ways it interacts with the mind. Through gentle touch and very clear images and metaphors she opens a gate allowing the brain to let the body do what it already knows naturally but has forgotten…
"Working with Eileen over the past two years, my movement capacities have increasingly refined with each session. As a body worker and dancer, finding effective body use is quite important. Through practicing Alexander Technique under Eileen's tutelage I have found more free and easier movements in my dancing, as well as more sensitive, effective and sustainable posture and touch in my bodywork practice. Eileen's heartfelt enthusiasm for her work and the act of attaining grace is healthily contagious. I leave her office feeling invigorated, light and free. I appreciate her ability to adaptively communicate Alexander Technique in ways that clearly make sense to me. Her ability to apply Alexander Technique to any specific movement situation I bring up is a fantastic testament to the depth of her knowledge. "
"The Alexander Technique has been extremely beneficial for me in significantly reducing chronic shoulder, neck and low back pain that I had developed as a result of an injury and being hunched over a computer for many years. With a degree in engineering physics and being involved in research and development all of my life, I was somewhat skeptical in the beginning to say the least but decided to keep an open mind. I've found that there is actually a lot of science behind the Alexander Technique and the significant benefits I experienced convinced me. Besides the chronic pain relief and tight muscle relief, I sleep much better and my friends comment on my great posture that I've developed."
"The teachings of F. M. Alexander have revolutionized my understanding of the way the body moves, whether running, playing the piano or just living. Eileen is not only one of the clearest proponents of the Alexander Technique anywhere, but she is also one of the finest teachers I know in any discipline."
Paul Kenyon
Piano Professor, Point Loma Nazarene University
Learn more of Paul's thoughts about Eileen on his blog.
"Eileen has an interest in how the brain works and in functional anatomy, both of which are areas of interest and continual study for her. She came to the Technique from a background in acting and gymnastics"
Alexander Technique Teachers Network
