Assessment: client posture

Jane Johnson provides and introduction to postural assessment; why therapists should do it, who it will benefit, examples of different assessments, and factors affecting posture.

Bodyworkers have become familiar with postural terms such as scoliosis and genu valgum, which are used to describe a congenital, inherited position, plus used to describe a position assumed through habit, such as increased thoracic kyphosis resulting from prolonged sitting in a hunched position. 

Of course, the postures we assume provide clues to not only the condition of our bodies – traumas and injuries old and new, mild or more serious pathologies – but also how we feel about ourselves, our confidence (or lack of it), how much energy we have (or are lacking), how enthusiastic (or unenthusiastic) we feel, or whether we feel certain and relaxed (or anxious and tense). Intriguingly, we all almost always adopt the same postures in response to the same emotions.

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