Red Pill
The renowned Postural Restoration Institute (PRI) is responsible for the world’s leading scientific understanding of postural adaptations, asymmetrical patterns, and the influence of polyarticular chains of muscles.
When one or more parts of the body are out of alignment or balance, the integrity of the whole system is compromised. The aim here is not to merely address your symptoms but to uncover the authentic origin of the issue and create true safety and freedom for you as a whole person—all your parts.
This approach requires that you are ready for change.
In Matrix terms, it’s a red pill rather than blue.
It is the path I wish someone had shown me a decade ago, when I went from dancer to disability—chronic, progressive one-sided pain which nothing and no one could ease nor explain.
Sacred Asymmetry
As humans, we are inherently asymmetrical. This is not a flaw, it’s a brilliant design. Our organ placement, the lobes of our lungs, the shape and strength of our diaphragm (the right side is larger, thicker, and stronger), and even brain hemispheric dominance, all create natural asymmetry.
Over 90% of the world’s population is right-handed. This deep right-sided dominance is part of our evolutionary survival intelligence. If our ancestors were being chased by a tiger, or if we’re suddenly about to be hit by a car, there isn’t time to stop to think, which foot should I step with first? We instinctively lead with the right. This innate preference is what allows us to act fast, without hesitation.
When a baby prepares to enter the world, it twists and contorts through the birth canal, guided by these very imbalances. In fact, most babies are born through the mother’s right pelvic outlet. These in-built asymmetries allow for dynamic movement, breath, and adaptability.
But this intelligent design becomes a problem when we get stuck on one side, when we stop alternating.
What’s Left?
In our modern lives, with flat floors, screens, and repetitive movement patterns, we lose the reciprocal, alternating function of our bodies. We become fixed, often on the right side. The right diaphragm begins to dominate respiration while the left becomes more of a postural brace. This imbalance affects everything from breathing to walking to how we hold tension.
In Postural Restoration, we identify and work with specific chains of overused muscle groups: the left AIC (anterior interior chain), the right BC (brachial chain), and the right TMCC (temporomandibular cervical chain). These chains become overactive when we no longer truly shift from side to side in a triplanar way: forward/back, left/right, and rotation.
This is how we end up with scoliosis, pelvic tilts, jaw tension, cranial compression and torsion, and pain patterns that seem disconnected but are deeply interwoven. We wear these patterns on our faces too. Loss of bilateral movement can create significant facial asymmetry because the cranial bones (such as the sphenoid, temporal bones and occiput) are designed for reciprocal alternation, just like the pelvis.
Restoring Rhythm
The only sustainable way to break these chronic patterns is to retrain the left side of the body to function appropriately again, while inhibiting the overused chains on the right. This begins with re-learning how to breathe, properly and fully, on both sides. Many neurological conditions reflect this truth.
Parkinson’s disease, for example, has been shown to involve a breakdown in alternating movement patterns, an inability to access reciprocal rhythm. When rhythm is lost, the body locks up. When rhythm is restored, movement—life—begin to flow again.
PRI is not only a powerful tool for addressing chronic pain, but also for elevating your other movement practices or sports, especially if you’re someone whose neck or jaw insists on doing everything (like I was).
Postural Restoration is especially helpful for those who:
• Live with chronic, “unexplained” or idiopathic pain
• Experience recurring one-sided pain or tightness
• Struggle with neck, jaw (TMD), shoulder, or hip tension
• Suffer from vision problems, eye strain, or tinnitus
• Have a history of concussion or traumatic brain injury (TBI)
• Experience anxiety, depression, addiction, or insomnia
• Feel “off” in their body but can’t articulate why
• Have experienced trauma and are stuck in either hypervigilance (overdrive) or hypo-arousal (dissociation or numbness)
• Face challenges with unexplained infertility or hormonal imbalances
• Want to move, perform, and breathe with greater ease
• Crave freedom in their body, and in their life
I am deeply passionate about helping others come home to their bodies.
I know what it’s like to feel imprisoned within mine.
I also know what it’s like to feel free.
Postural Restoration changed my life; I believe it can change yours too.