Atlas›Domain X · Body, movement, breath & physical›Guide 050
Guide X-050

Mézières method and global postural reeducation (Souchard)

Françoise Mézières, Philippe-Emmanuel Souchard1947France
A 18 · L 68 · M 1414 interventions in the Trinity explorer
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[source: …] where a claim comes from[uncertain] not confirmed in a primary source[synthesis] the writer's reconstruction

1. Introduction

Version followed: two related physiotherapy methods are described side by side. The Mézières method is described from M. Nisand's EMC article (2010). Nisand is a physiotherapist, a former assistant to Françoise Mézières, and technical lead of a Strasbourg university diploma in postural reconstruction. The description is supplemented by a French patient-information page and a 2023 Italian training programme. Global postural reeducation (Rééducation Posturale Globale, RPG; GPR in English) is described from Philippe Souchard's own book as presented by its publisher (Elsevier, 2022), a 1996–97 Spanish summary of Souchard's introductory course, a Quebec GPR training listing, and two Brazilian reviews. The procedural detail in Souchard's and Mézières' books themselves is [uncertain: not verified].

What it is. Both are posture-based physiotherapy methods. They are delivered by physiotherapists (in France, masseurs-kinésithérapeutes holding the state diploma) who have completed extra training in the method. They are not psychotherapy, and a psychotherapist does not deliver them. This guide therefore describes the method as its developers and schools publish it, and then sets out the psychotherapist's own role alongside it: when to suggest it, referral and collaboration, preparing clients with trauma histories for hands-on work, integrating body experience, and recognising and passing on adverse effects. [source: Nisand 2010; Maiia 2022; Quebec GPR listing]

Origins.

  • Françoise Mézières (1909–1991) was a French physiotherapist. Her method dates from 1947. [source: Wikipedia, Françoise Mézières; Maiia 2022]
  • Nisand dates the initial observation behind the method to 1947. Her explanatory "laws" were published only in 1984, and her concepts kept evolving under her direction until her death in 1991. [source: Nisand 2010]
  • Thérèse Bertherat and Carole Bernstein's Le Corps a ses raisons (1976) is credited with bringing her work wide recognition. [source: Wikipedia]
  • Philippe-Emmanuel Souchard had taught the Mézières method. He developed RPG on the basis of anatomy, biomechanics, kinesiology and osteopathy. [source: Teodori et al. 2011]
  • Sources disagree on when RPG began. Ferreira et al. (2016) say it was developed empirically in 1981. Gonzalez-Medina et al. (2021) say "the 1950s", which conflicts with the other accounts. [uncertain] Souchard's publisher says RPG has been used since the 1980s in many countries. [source: Elsevier 2022 page]

Core idea of how change happens, as the developers state it.

  • Mézières (translated from French): Mézières rejected the view that musculoskeletal disorders come from failing to resist gravity. She held instead that they come from shortening of the spinal erector muscles, organised in four interlinked "muscle chains" that are powerful and tend to shorten. On this view, the shortening produces three-dimensional deformations of the spine and limbs, which are said to cause pain. Deformations can shift along the body "like a ring on a curtain rod" (Nisand's image). Treatment aims to reduce deformations by stretching the chains as a whole, using static contractions from stretched positions, with no compensation allowed anywhere in the body. [source: Nisand 2010]
  • RPG: on this account, static (postural) muscles form fascially linked functional chains. These chains shorten under load, and a lesion spreads along its chain, so symptoms may appear far from their cause. Individualised, active, sustained global postures performed in exhalation lengthen the shortened chains as a whole. The aim is to trace symptoms back to their cause and restore what the method calls morphological harmony. [source: Palacín 1996–97 (translated from Spanish); Ferreira et al. 2016]
  • Gonzalez-Medina et al. (2021) report the RPG view that chains shorten through constitutional, behavioural and psychological factors. This causal account is the method's own and has not been independently established. [source: Gonzalez-Medina et al. 2021]

Evidence status (brief, for the referring clinician).

  • Ferreira et al. 2016 (11 RCTs, 383 participants): GPR was better than no treatment for pregnancy-related low back pain, chronic low back pain and ankylosing spondylitis. It was not better than other active treatments such as segmental stretching, Isostretching or comprehensive exercise. No placebo-controlled trial existed. GRADE quality was low to very low.
  • Gonzalez-Medina et al. 2021 (chronic non-specific low back pain): pooled results favoured GPR for pain and disability. Trial counts and effect sizes differ between the abstract and the body of the paper, so treat the results cautiously.
  • Teodori et al. 2011: findings were mixed and methodological quality was limited. Most trials used fixed sets of postures rather than individualised selection.
  • Mézières: Nisand attributes the method's limited spread and early distortion to the absence of clinical trials, little publication and inconsistent teaching. He also questions whether a single "Mézières method" still exists, given how second-generation schools have diverged. [source: Nisand 2010]
  • Adverse events: not reported in the reviewed trials (Ferreira 2016). Teodori (2011) calls GPR non-invasive and cites a study reporting no side effects.
  • No method here is a treatment for physical disease beyond what physiotherapy regulators accept. Health claims belong to the developers and carry the evidence status above.

2. Framework

Neither method has a published set of phases with formal criteria for moving between them. The sequence below is assembled from the sources. [uncertain: no formal phase criteria found]

Phase A: Assessment and posture selection (physiotherapist).

  • Mézières: "body reading" (lettura del corpo) from the front, back and side, in forward flexion and lying on the back. This includes assessment of the breathing pattern and palpation of the thorax, spine, shoulder girdle, foot and neck. [source: Olis 2023 Italian programme (translated)]
  • RPG: functional assessment combining photography, interview, examination, "retraction tests" and "re-equilibration tests". These feed a decision algorithm (a posture-selection chart) that matches active global treatment postures to the patient's disorder. [source: Quebec GPR listing; Elsevier 2022 table of contents]

Phase B: Treatment in global postures (physiotherapist).

  • Mézières: individual, long sessions, weekly at the start of treatment. [source: Nisand 2010] A French patient page gives about one hour per session. [source: Maiia 2022]
  • GPR: in randomised trials, a mean of 15 sessions (range 8–60) over a mean of 10 weeks (range 6–16), mostly weekly. One trial used an unsupervised home programme. [source: Ferreira et al. 2016] Trials in low back pain used 10–15 sessions of about 30–60 minutes. [source: Gonzalez-Medina et al. 2021]
  • These figures describe published practice and trials. They are not a prescription.

Phase C: From static to movement and self-maintenance.

  • RPG: Souchard's book covers integrating RPG results "from static to movement". It also presents Stretching Global Actif (SGA) for prevention and maintenance in sport and work. [source: Elsevier 2022 table of contents]
  • GPR: the Quebec course pairs postures with sensorimotor exercises. [source: Quebec GPR listing]
  • Mézières: schools diverge here. Nisand states that self-postures are prohibited in the Mézières method. The Italian programme teaches autoposture (self-postures). [source: Nisand 2010; Olis 2023] This is a version difference.

The psychotherapist's parallel track [synthesis].

  1. Screen and discuss whether a referral fits.
  2. Arrange medical clearance where needed.
  3. Prepare the client for hands-on work, especially after trauma.
  4. With consent, liaise with the physiotherapist.
  5. Debrief body experiences in psychotherapy sessions.
  6. Monitor for adverse effects and boundary problems, and help the client report them.

When to review [synthesis].

  • Review after an agreed block, using the client's own goals (pain, function, wellbeing).
  • If there is no meaningful change, discuss other evidence-based options with the client and their doctor. The reviews show GPR is not superior to other active treatments.

3. Guiding principles

Principles of the methods (as the developers state them).

  • Global, not analytic (Mézières; RPG "globality" or "totality"): the chains are worked as a whole. In practice, expect the physiotherapist to work far from the painful spot. [source: Nisand 2010; Palacín; Ferreira 2016]
  • Muscle chains (Mézières: four chains, with emphasis on the posterior chain; RPG: posterior static chain, anterior and diaphragmatic chains, shoulder and arm chains, lateral hip chain): these are the developers' organising concepts, attributed to them rather than established anatomy. In practice, clients may hear explanations that link, say, foot or breathing patterns to neck pain. [source: Nisand 2010; Palacín; Ferreira 2016; Olis 2023]
  • No compensation tolerated (Mézières): the stretch is held while compensations elsewhere are prevented. In practice, the work is precise and effortful, and the client is corrected often. [source: Nisand 2010; Teodori 2011]
  • Isometric eccentric contraction (Mézières, translated): static contraction from positions of external stretch. In practice, the client works actively and is not passively stretched. [source: Nisand 2010]
  • Individuality (RPG): the physiotherapist treats the patient, not the disease, and chooses postures individually. In practice, two clients with the same diagnosis may get different postures. [source: Palacín; Ferreira 2016]
  • Causality (RPG): the cause may lie at a distance from the symptom. In practice, the assessment covers the whole body. [source: Palacín; Ferreira 2016]
  • Lengthen static muscles rather than strengthen them (RPG): Souchard's teaching argues that strengthening static muscles worsens shortening. In practice, this departs from conventional strengthening advice, so the client may need help reconciling the two kinds of advice. [source: Palacín]
  • Active, not passive (RPG): the client participates throughout. [source: Palacín; Maiia 2022]
  • Work in expiration (RPG): exhalation is held throughout the posture. The first step of a session is to have the patient exhale. In practice, this breathing pattern can bring up sensations that matter to anxious or trauma-affected clients (see Section 4). [source: Palacín]
  • Postures, not alternating exercises (RPG): sustained, gentle, progressive traction over time, rather than brief strong pulls. [source: Palacín]
  • Four protected functions ("hegemonies") (RPG): breathing, free hands, feet on the ground and horizontal gaze. The method holds that the body defends these through compensation. [source: Palacín]
  • Form determines function (Italian Mézières teaching: "La forma determina la funzione"). [source: Olis 2023]
  • Within pain limits (French patient information): postures progress "en accord avec les capacités du patient" (in line with the patient's capacities) while respecting limits set by pain. [source: Maiia 2022]

Principles for the psychotherapist [synthesis unless cited].

  • Stay in your lane. Do not combine psychotherapy with hands-on postural work unless your own code allows it and you hold the training. Mainstream codes require practising within competence (e.g. UKCP item 23; BPS 2.3; APA 2.01). [source: touch-code notes; see Web sources]
  • Consent to touch is continuous. Consent is given before and during touch, and the client may refuse or end any touch at any time. Genital or sexual touch is always inappropriate. [source: USABP Code VIII]
  • Collaborate, don't merge roles. When a client receives parallel services, discuss the implications with them to avoid confusion (EABP 6.b). Share information only with consent.
  • Attribute claims. Present muscle-chain and causal explanations as the method's model, not as fact. Present the evidence honestly: low to very low certainty, and no better than other active treatments.
  • No body-memory narratives. Do not interpret emotions or images that arise during postures as recovered memories (see Section 5).
  • Safety first. Screening, medical clearance and red-flag referral come before any suggestion of the method.

4. Intervention inventory

This section has two parts.

  • Part A describes what a trained physiotherapist does, as the sources publish it. This is so you can explain it to clients and prepare them. It is not a set of instructions, and no hold times, forces or breathing timings are given. The "Steps" there describe how the component is published, and the example language is what a psychotherapist might say when explaining it.
  • Part B gives the psychotherapist's own interventions. These are [synthesis] unless cited.

Part A. Method components (delivered by trained physiotherapists)

A1. Morphological and functional assessment

  • Purpose: to identify which chains the physiotherapist considers shortened and which compensations are present, and to choose postures.
  • Steps (as published):
    • Mézières: body reading from several views and in forward flexion, assessment of the breathing pattern, and palpation of thorax, spine, shoulder girdle, foot and neck. [source: Olis 2023 (translated)] An initial interview locates the painful areas. [source: Maiia 2022]
    • RPG: photographs, interview, examination, retraction tests and re-equilibration tests, then a decision chart for choosing postures. [source: Quebec GPR listing]
    • The client is usually in underwear or close-fitting clothing to be observed [uncertain: not verified].
  • Example language (psychotherapist preparing the client, illustrative): "The physio will start by looking at how you stand and move, and may take photos. You can ask what each step is for, say what you'd prefer to wear, and ask for photos not to be taken or to be deleted."
  • Watch for:
    • Body-image distress, shame or dissociation when being looked at or photographed, especially with eating-disorder or trauma histories.
    • Whether the client understood and agreed to photography and to how the photos are stored.
    • Working well looks like this: the client can describe the plan in their own words.

A2. Global stretching postures

  • Purpose: to lengthen shortened chains as a whole while preventing compensations. This is the method's main therapeutic tool. [source: Nisand 2010; Palacín]
  • Steps (as published, general terms only):
    • GPR postures named in the literature include "frog on the floor" (arms open or closed), "frog in the air", sitting, standing against the wall, standing inclined forward, and a "skier" posture. Each posture is held as a sustained global stretch; its length is set by the physiotherapist and is not given here. [source: Teodori et al. 2011] In trials, two or three postures were typically used, mainly for the posterior chain. [source: Gonzalez-Medina 2021] The physiotherapist selects active global postures for each patient. [source: Quebec GPR listing]
    • Mézières (Italian programme, translated): supine postures (global and semi-global), standing lunge postures, unsupported standing postures, seated postures, quadruped alignment and a global thoracic rebalancing posture. [source: Olis 2023] Postures become progressively more demanding within the client's capacity and pain limits. [source: Maiia 2022]
  • Example language (illustrative): "These are slow, held positions where you'll be asked to keep working actively while the physio adjusts you. It can be surprisingly tiring and intense, and you can ask to pause or come out of a position at any point."
  • Watch for:
    • Pain beyond what was agreed, dizziness, numbness or tingling, breath-holding, or the client "pushing through" to please the therapist.
    • Feeling trapped in lying positions, especially on the back with legs raised; this is relevant after sexual or physical trauma.
    • Working well looks like this: the client reports manageable effort, feels free to stop, and sees function improve against their own goals over the agreed block.

A3. Breathing in exhalation

  • Purpose (RPG): inspiratory muscles are said to be static muscles that tend to shorten. The method has the patient exhale at the start of a session and keep working in exhalation throughout. [source: Palacín (translated from Spanish)] Souchard's book has a chapter on the diaphragm. [source: Elsevier 2022] Mézières programmes include diaphragm work and breathing-pattern assessment. [source: Olis 2023] French patient information says postures are meant to free breathing. [source: Maiia 2022]
  • Steps: guided by the physiotherapist within the posture. No timings are given here.
  • Example language (illustrative): "Part of the method is a long, guided out-breath. If that makes you lightheaded or panicky, tell the physio straight away, and we can talk about it here too."
  • Watch for:
    • Lightheadedness, tingling, chest tightness, panic or an urge to gasp.
    • Clients with panic disorder, respiratory or cardiac disease need the physiotherapist and doctor to know beforehand [synthesis].

A4. Active isometric-eccentric contraction without compensation

  • Purpose: the client actively contracts from a stretched position while compensations elsewhere are prevented. [source: Nisand 2010 (translated); Palacín: active contraction of the muscle being lengthened improves results]
  • Steps: cued and corrected by the physiotherapist. In GPR, the antagonists also co-contract. [source: Ferreira 2016]
  • Example language (illustrative): "You'll be asked to hold very precise effort while the physio stops other parts of your body from 'cheating'. Being corrected a lot is part of the method, not a sign you're doing badly."
  • Watch for:
    • Perfectionism, self-criticism or a sense of failure under constant correction.
    • Feeling controlled; this is relevant for clients with histories of coercion.

A5. Hands-on work by the physiotherapist

  • Purpose: to guide the postures, give tactile and proprioceptive input [source: Teodori 2011], and prepare tissues.
  • Steps (as published):
    • Mézières (Italian programme, translated): preparatory manoeuvres, fascial work, and techniques called ponçage and pompage (fascial and joint), plus distal corrections at the elbow, forearm, hand and fingers. [source: Olis 2023]
    • RPG: manual traction and correction within postures. The book covers fascia and trigger points. [source: Elsevier 2022 table of contents]
    • Pelvic-floor work: Souchard's book includes a chapter on female stress urinary incontinence. Any pelvic or intimate-area assessment belongs only with a regulated pelvic-health clinician, after specific consent and with a chaperone offered. [source: Elsevier 2022; consent standard per USABP VIII]
  • Example language (illustrative): "The physio will use their hands to guide and hold positions. Before you start, agree where they will and won't touch. You can say 'stop' or 'not there' at any moment, and you can ask for a chaperone."
  • Watch for:
    • Touch that was not explained or agreed, touch near the groin, buttocks or chest without specific consent, or any sexualised remark or touch. These are boundary violations to report (see B6).
    • Freezing or going quiet during touch, which can mean the client could not object rather than that they consented.

A6. Self-postures and Stretching Global Actif (self-maintenance)

  • Purpose: to maintain results between or after sessions.
  • Steps (as published):
    • Schools differ. Nisand states that self-postures are prohibited in the Mézières method. Some Italian Mézières training teaches autoposture. [source: Nisand 2010; Olis 2023]
    • Souchard presents SGA for prevention, maintenance and recovery in sport and work. [source: Elsevier 2022]
    • One GPR trial used an unsupervised home programme. [source: Ferreira 2016]
    • Home practice is set only by the treating physiotherapist; this guide gives no exercises.
  • Example language (illustrative): "If the physio gives you home positions, we can look at how practice fits your week. I won't change what they've set; any questions about the exercises themselves go back to them."
  • Watch for:
    • Compulsive over-practice, using stretching to manage anxiety in a rigid way, or abandoning practice with shame.
    • Confusion between different schools' advice.

A7. From static to movement and sensorimotor integration (RPG)

  • Purpose: to carry gains from the postures into movement and daily function. [source: Elsevier 2022 table of contents; Quebec listing: postures combined with sensorimotor exercises]
  • Steps: set by the physiotherapist. Details are [uncertain: not verified].
  • Example language (illustrative): "What do you notice now in how you sit at work or carry shopping? Let's link that to what matters to you."
  • Watch for: gains in function and confidence, not only in posture. Watch also for preoccupation with "correct" posture or body shape.

Part B. The psychotherapist's interventions

B1. Deciding when to suggest it

  • Purpose: to match the suggestion to a client's goals, such as persistent musculoskeletal pain affecting mood or function, or a wish for an active, body-focused physical treatment alongside psychotherapy. [synthesis]
  • Steps:
    1. Clarify the physical complaint, and whether it has been medically assessed and diagnosed.
    2. Explain honestly what the method is and its evidence status. In trials it is better than no treatment for some low-back conditions, but not better than other active treatments, and the certainty is low. [source: Ferreira 2016]
    3. Present alternatives, such as standard physiotherapy and exercise approaches.
    4. Let the client decide.
  • Example language (illustrative): "Some physios use a posture-based method called Mézières or global postural reeducation. Studies suggest it can help some back conditions compared with doing nothing, but not clearly more than other physio approaches. Is that something you'd want to discuss with your GP or a physio?"
  • Watch for:
    • Hopes that it will "release" psychological problems, or that it can treat a disease.
    • Using the referral to avoid emotional work in therapy.

B2. Safety screening and medical clearance

  • Purpose: to make sure physical red flags and conditions needing caution reach a doctor and the physiotherapist before treatment.
  • No published list of contraindications exists in the method sources used here: neither the Mézières nor the GPR descriptions, including the publisher's excerpt from Souchard's book, state any. An Italian Mézières programme lists "indications and contraindications" as a teaching topic without publishing them [source: Olis 2023; Elsevier Connect excerpt, Souchard 2022]. The screening steps below are therefore the writer's synthesis, except the back-pain warning signs, which follow NHS patient guidance [synthesis].
  • Steps [synthesis unless a source is given]:
    1. Ask whether a doctor or physiotherapist has assessed the problem.
    2. Check for warning signs that need medical review before any physical treatment. Immediate care: difficulty passing urine or opening the bowels, loss of bladder or bowel control, numbness in the saddle area, or progressive leg weakness. Prompt review: fever, unexplained weight loss, a history of cancer, pain that wakes the client or does not ease with rest, pain after trauma, thoracic or chest pain, long-term corticosteroid use or immunosuppression, or feeling generally unwell [source: Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Red flags in back pain].
    3. Flag conditions to disclose to the physiotherapist and doctor: recent surgery or fracture, osteoporosis, pregnancy (GPR has been trialled in pregnancy-related low back pain [source: Ferreira 2016], but obstetric advice still applies), active inflammatory flares, hypermobility, cardiac or respiratory disease (because of effortful holds and prolonged exhalation), anticoagulation, epilepsy, and panic disorder. This list is a prompt for the clinician's judgement, not a published contraindication list [synthesis].
    4. Ask the client to share the list with the physiotherapist.
  • Example language (illustrative): "Before you book, it's worth your GP or physio knowing about your osteoporosis and your heart medication, so they can say whether held stretching positions are suitable for you."
  • Watch for:
    • The client minimising symptoms.
    • Pain presented as "just stress" without a medical assessment.

B3. Referral and collaboration

  • Purpose: to connect the client with a properly qualified practitioner and coordinate care.
  • Steps:
    1. Look for a registered physiotherapist with method-specific training.
      • France: state-diploma physiotherapists. More than 500 practise Mézières, after training of at least one year. [source: Maiia 2022]
      • Quebec: GPR training is open to physiotherapists only. [source: Quebec GPR listing]
      • Italy: one Mézières course also admits doctors, osteopaths, massofisioterapisti, children's neuro-psychomotor therapists (TNPEE), motor-bioenergetic chiropractors (MCB) and sports-science graduates. Check what the individual's actual profession and registration are. [source: Olis 2023]
      • UK: physiotherapists are statutorily registered with the HCPC, and "physiotherapist" is a protected title. [uncertain: not verified]
    2. Note that method training is a private postgraduate qualification, not a separate regulated profession [synthesis].
    3. With written consent, agree what will be shared and how.
    4. Discuss parallel care with the client so roles do not blur (EABP 6.b). Take no referral fees (EABP 5.d). [source: EABP Ethics Guidelines; see Web sources]
  • Example language (illustrative): "Would it help if I spoke briefly with your physio about how anxiety shows up in your body? I'd only share what you agree to."
  • Watch for:
    • Practitioners without a recognised healthcare registration.
    • Claims to cure disease or psychological conditions.
    • Pressure to buy long courses up front.

B4. Preparing a trauma-affected client for hands-on postural work

  • Purpose: to make consent real and to reduce the risk of retraumatisation in sustained, corrected, touch-based postures.
  • Steps [synthesis; consent standards from USABP VIII]:
    1. Map the specific triggers: lying on the back, legs raised, being held still, touch in particular areas, undressing, being photographed, the therapist's gender, closed rooms, and breath being directed.
    2. Rehearse requests: a chaperone or support person, a preferred gender of therapist, clothing choices, keeping eyes open, exits visible, being told before each touch, a stop word or signal, and pacing.
    3. Remind the client that consent can be withdrawn at any time, and that freezing is not consent.
    4. Practise grounding skills to use during sessions.
    5. Plan the debrief.
  • Example language (illustrative): "Let's work out what you'd like the physio to know, and the words you'll use if you want to stop. 'Pause' is enough; you don't owe an explanation."
  • Watch for:
    • Compliance or people-pleasing.
    • Dissociation reported after sessions.
    • Avoidance of booking, which may be fear rather than lack of interest.

B5. Integrating body experiences in psychotherapy

  • Purpose: to make use of sensations, emotions and images that arise during long held postures and exhalation, without turning them into claims about the past.
  • Steps [synthesis]:
    1. Invite a factual account: what was noticed, when, and how intense.
    2. Link it to the client's present-day patterns, such as bracing, holding the breath, or tolerating discomfort to please others.
    3. Use whatever approach you are trained in.
    4. Keep in-session body work limited to non-touch awareness that falls within your competence.
  • Example language (illustrative): "You said tears came during the long out-breath. What was that like, and what do you make of it now?"
  • Watch for:
    • Emotions arising during physical work are common, but they are not evidence of "stored" memories.
    • Do not suggest that a posture released a memory (see Section 5).

B6. Recognising and passing on adverse effects and boundary violations

  • Purpose: to make sure physical harm, worsening symptoms or misconduct reach the right people.
  • Background: adverse events were not reported in the GPR trials, which means they were not measured, not that they are known to be absent. [source: Ferreira 2016]
  • Steps [synthesis]:
    1. Ask routinely about pain after sessions, new symptoms, and distress.
    2. Advise prompt medical review for new neurological symptoms or severe pain.
    3. Encourage the client to tell the physiotherapist about lesser setbacks.
    4. For unconsented, intimate or sexual touch or remarks:
      • Believe the client and attend to their safety.
      • Help them consider reporting to the physiotherapist's regulator. In France this is the professional order; in the UK it is the HCPC [uncertain: not verified]. Where massage-type practitioners are unregulated, the routes are an association or a health complaints body. [source: touch-code notes on Canada and Australia; see Web sources]
      • Follow your own safeguarding duties.
  • Example language (illustrative): "What happened isn't part of any legitimate treatment. Would you like to think through your options for raising it, including with the body that registers physiotherapists?"
  • Watch for:
    • Self-blame ("I didn't say no").
    • Grooming signs: secrecy, extra sessions, personal contact outside the clinic.

B7. Keeping your own role boundaries

  • Purpose: to avoid an unlicensed or dual role.
  • Steps:
    1. Do not demonstrate or apply the postures, manual techniques or guided exhalation yourself.
    2. Mainstream codes require competence and boundaries and prohibit sexual contact (BACP 2018 paras 33–35; UKCP items 4, 8 and 23; APA 10.05). [source: touch-code notes; see Web sources]
    3. Body-psychotherapy codes regulate touch explicitly: assessment of whether touch is appropriate, informed consent (written consent highly recommended), and the right to refuse or end touch at any time. [source: USABP Code VIII; EABP Principle 7]
    4. If you are also a qualified physiotherapist, keep the two services clearly separated and seek supervision about the dual role.
  • Example language (illustrative): "That's a question for your physio. I'm here to help with how this is affecting you."
  • Watch for: pressure from the client, or from yourself, to "just show" a stretch.

5. Handling problems

The method sources do not address psychological difficulties. Everything in this section is [synthesis] unless cited.

  • Pain or flare-up after sessions.
    • Encourage the client to report it to the physiotherapist before the next session.
    • New neurological signs, severe or escalating pain, or any red flag from B2 need medical review first.
    • Don't reassure the client that it is "the method working".
  • Client cannot say stop during postures (freeze, fawn).
    • Rehearse the stop signal again, and suggest agreeing check-ins at set points.
    • Suggest a chaperone or support person.
    • If stopping still isn't possible, pause the referral and work on this in therapy first.
  • Overwhelm during exhalation or held positions (panic, tears, flashbacks, dissociation).
    • Normalise the reaction without interpreting it.
    • Agree a plan with the client (and, with consent, the physiotherapist): come out of the posture, open the eyes, return to normal breathing, and orient to the room.
    • Debrief in therapy.
    • If it recurs, consider a non-touch, less effortful alternative.
  • "Body memory" or recovered-memory claims.
    • Some bodywork cultures say postures "release" stored trauma. None of the cited sources for these two methods makes that claim; the RPG literature mentions only psychological factors in chain shortening. [source: Gonzalez-Medina 2021]
    • If a client or practitioner treats images that arise in a session as recovered memories, follow memory-research cautions. Memories can be shaped by suggestion and expectation. Do not confirm, investigate or build a narrative of abuse from bodily sensations alone. Stay neutral, focus on present functioning, and consult a supervisor.
  • Non-adherence or dropout.
    • Explore the reasons: cost, time, fear, shame, little benefit, or conflicting advice. RPG argues against strengthening static muscles, which can clash with conventional exercise advice. [source: Palacín]
    • Respect the client's choice to stop.
    • Given the evidence, another active treatment is a reasonable alternative. [source: Ferreira 2016]
  • Over-adherence and perfectionism.
    • Look for constant posture-checking, rigid daily stretching rituals, or body dissatisfaction framed as "bad posture".
    • Treat these as clinical material, and screen for an eating disorder or body dysmorphia where relevant.
  • Rupture with the psychotherapist ("you sent me there and it hurt" or "it was humiliating").
    • Acknowledge your part in the referral and explore what happened.
    • Check whether there was a boundary violation (B6).
    • Repair before you suggest anything further.
  • Rupture or conflict with the physiotherapist.
    • Help the client voice the concern directly, or support them to ask for a different practitioner.
    • Don't triangulate. With consent, a joint conversation may help (EABP 6.b).
  • Practitioner making disease or psychological cure claims.
    • Name the evidence status: low to very low certainty, and not superior to other active treatments. [source: Ferreira 2016]
    • Advertising claims may be subject to national advertising rules (e.g. UK ASA/CAP). [uncertain: not verified]
  • Version confusion (Mézières vs RPG vs derived schools such as "postural reconstruction", or self-postures allowed vs prohibited).
    • Ask which school the practitioner trained in.
    • Nisand himself questions whether a single Mézières method still exists. [source: Nisand 2010]
  • Client asks you to guide stretches or exhalation in session.
    • Decline unless you hold relevant training and your code allows it (B7).
    • Offer non-touch awareness work within your competence, or refer back to the physiotherapist.

Sources

Web sources

Books cited

  • Souchard P. (2022). Rééducation posturale globale. Elsevier Masson. Described here from the publisher's description, table of contents and an excerpt on Elsevier Connect.
  • Bertherat T., Bernstein C. (1976). Le Corps a ses raisons. Cited via the Wikipedia page [uncertain].
  • Lomas-Vega et al. (2017), a GPR review of spinal disorders, is cited only via Gonzalez-Medina 2021 [uncertain].

Web sources (professional codes and regulation)

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