Finding Feeling and Purpose by Michael Samsel

Finding Feeling and Purpose
By Michael Samsel
To live is like to love-- all reason is against it, and all healthy instinct is for it.
Samuel Butler
Everything I did in my life that was worthwhile I caught hell for.

Chief Justice Earl Warren
To care for people is more important than to care for ideas, which can be good
servants but bad masters.
Harry Guntrip - Psychoanalytic Theory, Therapy and the Self
If the only tool you have is a hammer, you tend to see every problem as a nail.
Abraham Maslow
Action has meaning only in relationship, and without understanding relationship,

action on any level will only breed conflict. The understanding of relationship is
infinitely more important than the search for any plan of action
Krishnamurti
About the Author-- Michael Samsel
I am a 51 year-old therapist living and working in Seattle Washington. I have

undergone three years of bioenergetic training with the Florida Bioenergetics society.
My first exposure to Lowenian and Reichian ideas was in 2002 when I cracked open
Betrayal of the Body randomly. I was not able to read more than a few pages at that
time. However this set in motion a course of study and experience that now defines
my professional life. My hope is to one day gain the grounding to stand on the
shoulders of these two very human giants. Please do not hesitate to email me at
[email protected], or "leave a reply" on the contact page of my blog
When a thing has been said and well, have no scruple. Take it and copy it.
Anatole France
Love, work and knowledge are the well-springs of our

life. They should also govern it.
Wilhelm Reich
CONTENTS
Introduction
Growth and Therapy

Tradition
In the Reich and Lowen
Principles for Change

Tradition
The Concept of Character

Tradition
Energy and Movement

Tradition
Vegetative Systems
Tradition
Goals and Abilities

Tradition
Body Based Practices

Tradition
Challenges to Change
Tradition
Social Controversies
Tradition
Humanism
Tradition
Sexuality
Tradition
Introduction
Finding Feeling and Purpose
Questions of human misery and happiness are dealt with in all types of philosophy,
psychotherapy, and self-improvement movements, often with brilliance and some
accuracy, but rarely with any real change or benefit. Wilhelm Reich and Alexander
Lowen broke the change barrier by addressing something obvious that had been
overlooked: the visible unhealthy state of the body in which the person and the
misery lives. At the same time, they kept a focus on lifestyle limitations imposed or
encouraged by the larger society or the family in early life, and then later imposed by
the person onto him- or herself. In sum, the limitations in physical capacities and
lifestyle limitations reinforce each other, and together lead to a life with diminished
total feeling, a strong predominance of bad feelings, diminished energy, and little
enjoyment of relationships.
A student of Reich's, Charles Kelley, described the way back from this diminished
state as 'education in feeling and purpose.' Feeling is the present non-voluntary state
of a person made conscious; purpose is the voluntary and conscious state that is
possible to creatively develop from feeling.
To have purpose means living with true conviction and felt principle. In the absence
of feeling, an attempt at purpose produces only goals that are both lifeless, and
distorted by unconscious unmet needs. Purpose is more than the sum total of
feelings, it is true, but no purpose can be formed that works against feeling.
Intentional alienation from emotion, while it may seem to offer a greater freedom of
action, in the end results in purposelessness and despair.
This website is intended to organize the field of ideas and practices which Reich,
Lowen, and others developed to re-introduce the felt and purposeful body into life,
and if psychotherapy is used, back into psychotherapy. I call this the Reich and
Lowen tradition. It includes both health restoring practices and social critiques.
Every tradition of human growth starts with an innovator but thereafter experiences
an inevitable struggle between dogmatism, dilution, distortion, and preservation.
When anyone other than the originator propagates the ideas, changes come in,
intentionally or otherwise. These can of course be improvements, or useful
adaptations to other contexts. But they can also be changes that defeat growth
because they arise without understanding the entirety or the essence of the original
tradition. Dogmatism assumes most students will not really understand for a long
time, and so tries to preserve the original value by forbidding changes. Dogmatism of
course eventually leads to distortion because circumstances change just enough to
make mechanical application of the original ideas harmful. Popularization on the
other hand, accepts the incompleteness of understanding, but denies any risk of
dilution or distortion. Neither takes pains to preserve the original rationale, which is
necessary for any useful further innovation. Above all, in this site, my aim has been
preservation, first and foremost, of rationales, but also, second, actual useful
techniques and practices. Whatever robust trial and error investigation went on into
finding useful practices during the heyday of the Reich and Lowen tradition, the
results seemed to have been committed rather more to the oral than the written
record, and are now rapidly being forgotten.
Over time it has become clearer to me that, in developing this website, three different
perspectives tend to get mixed. The first is to compare and contrast the Reich and
Lowen tradition with the main psychodynamic or Freudian perspective. This is a
distinction that Reich and Lowen themselves strongly made in their teaching and
writing. The second perspective is to contrast the tradition with humanistic
psychology, which has a strong hand in most therapy and self-help movements
today. Together these first two perspectives lead to many references to
psychotherapy. The third perspective is to compare and contrast the Reich and
Lowen tradition with twenty-first century American trends and beliefs about 'the
good life'. This of course leads to many references about 'mainstream' social norms.
As this is a cumulative work, the three perspectives seem occasionally to get
muddled. However, picking one audience over any other does not seem to do justice
to the tradition, which is neither just a philosophy of life or just a technique of
change, it is both.
The Reich and Lowen tradition of growth is extra-cultural. For instance, it is
certainly not consistent with mainstream cultural values like power and material
success. However, it is not necessarily counter-cultural, as in depending on the
present culture to provide something to rebel against. As Alexander Lowen stated, in
the late sixties and early seventies many were drawn to this tradition because they
mistook it for an anti-authority program. A decade later most were gone. Someone
attempting to increase feeling and purpose according to this tradition is somewhat
like Maslow's self-actualized person-- able to live in the culture without undue
friction, but not looking to the culture for guidance.
As a practicing therapist in the 'teens of the twenty-first century, it has also become
clear to me, that, on top of the restrictions of character, as defined by Reich and
Lowen, there has arisen a powerful phenomenology and physiology of speed and
threat. This is characterized on this site as sympathetic shift and the trauma
response. It constitutes a dysregulation of the vegetative systems that Reich and
Lowen certainly mentioned but which has become so extensive, widespread, and
culturally defended that it must be addressed strongly, almost as a 'pre-therapy,'
otherwise traditional vigorous attempts at dissolving character with hard bodywork
and character analysis may backfire.
The good news is that the solution for sympathetic shift and trauma response is also
in working with the body, perhaps more slowly and less intrusively at first. In fact,
there has been, to be sure, a modest resurgence of attention to the body led by
workers in therapy for trauma, and the excellent work of Peter Levine, Robert Scaer,
and Bessell van der Kolk is certainly compatible with Reich and Lowen. It seems that
trauma workers have discovered that 'bottom up' approaches usually contradict the
helplessness, rage and collapse of the trauma response much better than cognitive
reframes and emotional support because these top-down approaches tend to be
captured thematically by the negativity. But while these trauma approaches may see
the body as the seat of the problem, they do not see it as the seat of the person.
Moreover, 'trauma' is usually seen as random, divorced from social and family
structures. The idea is that if the sufferer can shed the 'one-time,' 'accidental,
trauma response, all will be well. This is made acutely manifest in the American
Psychiatric Association's refusal to include childhood mistreatment in their
definition of Post-traumatic Stress Disorder. But the Reich and Lowen tradition has
always taken pains to explain how cultural forces continuously threaten the body
through small and/or relational traumas. To be emotionally healthy in a culture that
is not completely healthy requires an individual to examine the health of popular
values. Wilhelm Reich criticized specific social groups and was ostracized for it.
Alexander Lowen criticized not so much groups, but trends and practices, and he
fared somewhat better, but was still marginalized. Trauma therapists do describe
'early relational trauma' but it is no wonder that generally they dance around the
implications. After all, that is what Freud did!
Further, in the larger body of therapists that incorporate (no pun intended) the
concept of the body in their work there is a considerable proportion that approach
the body as an antenna only (often the term 'somatic' will be employed). Yes the body
can a 'source of information ('wisdom') for the mind, but this is a mind-centric
approach still. The Reich and Lowen tradition stands out by insistence that the body
is the base and fundament of life
There are some concepts in this tradition, like energy and grounding, that draw
skepticism from most of any newly-exposed audience. The tradition may be quickly
dismissed as failing the test of logic and critical thinking. However, logic and critical
thinking are only tools to get from premises to conclusions. The Reich and Lowen
tradition is not about arguing conclusions but broadening experience. New
experiences become new premises which are certainly amenable to logic and critical
thinking. The spread of this tradition is really by attraction, not promotion. Anyone
who see someone with grace, balance, joy, serenity, warmth, purpose, etc, and wants
the same, can experiment with the practices and ideas herein and see for themselves
what they experience. .
This tradition studies 'persons'. A person is not just an chemistry or physics topic to
be studied 'objectively' but also a 'phenomenon' to be studied subjectively. Subjective
knowledge is the only way to understand and experience joy, love, creativity and
connection. This is true today, was true ten centuries ago, and will be true ten
centuries hence. In fact, the subjective point of view is both necessary and superior
for studying persons, and studying the pursuit of feeling and purpose. Most
scientists, when they leave the office, (where they have likely resolutely resisted the
subjective viewpoints of others) and go shopping for groceries, or spend time with
friends and families, or vote in elections, take their own subjective view-point both as
quite adequate, and as quite accurate for important action. This double standard
needs to be confronted!
Real understanding rarely can get ahead of actual practice, but

sometimes it may. And of course superficial understanding often
substitutes for practice. Therefore the following reminder may be in
order from time to time: These ideas can only produce health when they
are implemented through actions. Having accurate directions is not the
same as traveling. First steps are more important than elaborate maps.
I make no claim to being scholarly. Rather, I intend this site be, informative,
interesting, and above all, useful. Statements are intended to be clear, direct, and at
times, provocative. I have resisted, mostly, the temptation to write so carefully that
statements are hard to criticize. This website has a 'systematizing' point of view. This
stems from my own character, and is not meant to be 'best', 'final', or exhaustive,
(that would be madness!) but merely helpful. Also it will be noticed that I have taken
the liberty to create names for many constructs myself if I knew of no existing name
within the tradition. I have tried to avoid jargonish phrases and rather put a specific
meaning on existing English words (which was certainly Alexander Lowen's
practice.)
Criticism and comments are welcomed. What is presented is not intended to be
dogma, but rather an description of different ideas and practices from a unique
tradition of psychotherapy, with an emphasis on how these ideas and practices fit
both into a life outside therapy, and into a larger culture outside therapy and outside
the individual. It is not an attempt of a grand synthesis but rather a common sense
ordering of what otherwise might seem quite uncoordinated. The attempt to capture
profound human experiences with mere ideas is always elusive, but hopefully, it is
not hopelessly elusive.
In writing this site, I have been worried about sounding old-fashioned, as the
writings of Alexander Lowen and Wilhelm Reich may also sound old-fashioned to
twenty-first century ears. I have come to realize that that is because 'modern'
discussions of human functioning have become chemical- and molecule-centric to
the detriment of understanding! A human is not a large collection of molecules but a
functional person. Observing persons and families and societies was just as possible
in previous decades and centuries as today, and so the less atomized terminology of
previous decades is also adequate or perhaps superior for real understanding.
I take responsibility for all statements written here, unless otherwise attributed. I
also take responsibility for all my own ideas that I have knowingly or unknowingly
mixed with the ideas of others. It is not my intention to borrow credibility from
others for my own views, nor to distort or dilute the views of others with my own.
Rather my intention has been to make sense by placing many powerful ideas from
different sources in a common and commonsense context. This may, I admit, obscure
the origin and lineage of many concepts.
Michael Samsel
Growth and Therapy
In the Reich and Lowen Tradition
Some Basic Presumptions

(How the Reich and Lowen Tradition Differs from Other Schools of Change and
Psychotherapy)
Attention to the Pleasure Function More than the Reality Function

Most therapy traditions take it for granted that if a person's circumstances and
thoughts, are "right," a person will experience pleasure automatically. The emphasis
is on repairing the reality function, so that a client may 'bring about" pleasure
successfully. True, in 'neurosis' a great deal of unrealistic behavior or unrealistic
expectation and thinking may be seen and uncovered. However, Reich and Lowen
saw that unrealistic behavior may be absolutely the best attempt to bring pleasure
when the pleasure function has been impaired by early experience. They believed,
that rather than combat endless variations of indirect behavior by interpretation and
analysis, if the facility to experience pleasure, that is the pleasure function, was
restored, reality took care of itself nicely. However, if the capacity for pleasure is not
restored, maladaptive and ultimately unsatisfying behavior returns, even if the
person "knows better." Overwhelmingly, our belief is: "if we make it, we will feel
good," but actually the formula is: "if we feel good, we will make it."
Acceptance of Instinctual and Natural Forces, and Emphasis on Selfregulation

Sigmund Freud famously wrote "Where Id is, Ego shall be." This is really an
expression of the doctrine of original sin in which it is believed that humans are born
bad and have to be 'civilized' or redeemed by outside intervention. To this end
psycho-analysis and most of its descendents have thought of the role of therapy as
one of adjusting the person to his circumstance, which in the modern era, for a
middle class person, means rarely if ever doing what one really wants to do. Most
humanistic therapy is based on the same premise. There is an assumption that while
the client may be unfortunately "oversocialized," it is still necessary to be socialized a
great deal to be good and happy. At most, it is believed, deliberate social behavior is
only to be informed by natural desires leading to an acceptably 'enlightened' form of

self-control.
But there is also often an individual, if widespread, reason for this: the fear of loss of
control. People often feel that the body and natural forces will betray them. Perhaps
this comes from attitudes of parenting--parents who feel they must control the child
at all costs are particularly antagonistic to instinctual and natural behavior because
they know it follows feeling and life and not the dictates of the parent.
In the Reich and Lowen tradition, on the other hand, leaks of instinctive behavior
such as anger or disgust are seen not as symptoms but as signs of life. The work is not
to eliminate the anger, but to possess it honestly so it may be expressed in an
undistorted and contact-full way. Seen this way, a person can never eliminate the
possibility of being surprised by their feelings and desires, but they and others should
not be damaged by them. This is the principle of self-regulation. True, even in the
Reich and Lowen tradition, examples are easily found of excesses undertaken in the
name of liberation, (even from Reich's close entourage), but these are examples of
secondary drives. This self-regulation premise is more than a philosophical idea-without some faith in it, full surrender cannot take place.
Goals are Outside Consciousness

Psychodynamic, humanist, cognitive, gestalt, and Buddhist-inspired approaches
have one thing in common: The overall approach is to widen awareness (increase
consciousness) to include thenceforward all relevant elements of emotional issues so
that life can be lived well on a deliberate basis. The Reich and Lowen tradition on the
other hand seeks to bring vitality and re-regulation to the life via vibration,
breathing, grounding, impulses, emotions, sensation and vegetative states. The goals
are outside consciousness. A healthy person should live a good life naturally without
deliberation, and this is the state that is hopefully being restored. In therapeutic
efforts, it becomes necessary to bring issues into consciousness but this is an artifact
of a corrective process. This one area, the Reich and Lowen tradition shares with the
traditions inspired by Milton Erickson, but without the mysteriousness. And needless
to say, mainstream therapy's goal of 'expanded consciousness' plays very easily into
narcissism.
Emphasis on Correction Rather than Exploration

The Reich and Lowen tradition asserts that some ways of being are healthier than
others, and that work in this tradition means getting oneself and others to these ways
of being. The humanistic tradition (which arose somewhat from a rebellion from the
Freudian tradition of correction) by contrast asserts that no one can say what is good
for another, and a therapist's role is one of companion, not expert. But Reich and
Lowen felt that therapy was often futile just for the reason that a exploratory
approach keeps the client always within the orbit of his or her character.
Even humanists, however, accept 'correction' from general medicine physicians. No

one seriously asserts that biology varies greatly from one person to another. Reich
and Lowen therapy is essentially a biological intervention. That is, if traumatic
experience affects biology negatively and thereby affects experience negatively, then
therapeutic experience (body work and character analysis) affects biology positively
and experience positively.
Emphasis on Re-association:
Whenever we act contrary to our feelings, the ego is dissociating from them, and
from our bodies. This is necessary from time to time in modern life, and the ability to
do this judiciously is a mark of a healthy ego. However, to make a lifestyle or ego
ideal out of this is to produce a more or less permanent state of dissociation. Long
standing dissociation leads to deadness. It also produces an inability to mourn losses.
However, dissociation avoids some pain in the short-run, and can at times permit
enough freedom of action to either permit survival or bring about pleasure
elsewhere, which is healing.
More or less all the traditions of therapy arising from the work of Milton Erickson,
(family therapy, hypnotic therapy, neuro-linguistic programming, other tricky
therapies developed in the 1970's, etc...) are based on dissociation (although hypnotic
trance itself may be re-associating with the body). True, many associations that
develop traumatically in life are limiting and defeating. It makes sense to want to
break bad associations. Dissociation, while it can remove bad feelings, it cannot bring
good feelings
Cognitive behavioral therapy is based on dissociating cognitions (the ego) from

feelings and the body even more. In the cognitive tradition, thoughts are believed to
give rise to feelings just as readily as the other way around. As every therapist and
almost all clients know, however, under stress cognitive distortions tend to re-appear
with a strong compellingness, even when the holder recognizes very well the
illogicality and has memorized the countering thought. How often does someone
report they did something, 'even though they "knew" better'? Cognitive distortions
are the result of a cerebral cortex that is already largely dissociated from the body
and the brainstem, but still facing the 'leak' of powerful feelings. A contracted body
can not understand or possess these strong feelings, and cognition is distorted.
Cognitive strategies work for a time by producing elation or by detachment, but the
modest effect decays over time, and it cannot provide a foundation for serious
growth.
Reich and Lowen sought to have clients associate with their bodies, their sexuality,
and with the basic processes of life. This alone will allow accumulated bad feelings to
be worked through, making room for pleasure. Good feelings bring about balanced
thought much more than the other way around. Arthur Janov's Primal Therapy,
although not consistent with the Reich and Lowen tradition, is also based strongly
around re-association with painful feeling of early origin.
Emphasis on Drive versus Object

In the drive theory, basic human life force or energy is believed to transit from some
type of inside or center out toward the world and other people. When the drives are
working well, a person can succeed in a social, sexual and work sense. Drives move
the person toward objects, which can be people or things. A competing emphasis,
called object relations, is that those objects that happen to be people have a role in
eliciting and shaping drives in other people, and that the availability of good objects
cannot be taken for granted. Object relations emphasizes the appropriateness of the
engaging other to help a person heal. It is posited that the original failure of a 'good
enough other' was the hampering event in emotional development, and that in
psychotherapy with adults, the therapist must be an exquisitely good enough object
to allow the real self of the client to be freed.
The drive of course has always been a very common intuitive idea about human
functioning. Freud formalized it as an organizing idea for his work, but subsequently
mainstream psychoanalysis has de-emphasized it. The Reich and Lowen tradition of
therapy has found the drive theory a useful organizing idea, and has retained it.
Wilhelm Reich and Alexander Lowen believed it was more important for a therapist
to be a coach to get drives going again, than it was for the therapist to be any
particular object except warm, honest, and straight-forward. In their work, almost
the entire emphasis was on 'repair' of the drive of the individual. It was assumed that
when the drive was ready, appropriate others (objects) would appear.
This is a controversy in ideas that is not possible to settle definitely. It seems that
perhaps there has always been a movement between the two poles of drive and
object. Later followers of Freud (except Wilhelm Reich) tended to reject the drive
emphasis in favor object emphasis, and in reaction Alexander Lowen strongly
renewed the drive emphasis, while his later followers in bio-energetics tended back
toward object emphasis. It is useful to note that 'drive' is more of a biological idea,
and that object relations is more of a psychological idea. The Reich and Lowen
tradition is more tied to ideas of biology (as was Freud, especially the early Freud)
than is modern psychoanalysis. Perhaps the following is a useful synthesis: driveoriented work is necessary to 'deconstruct' restraints of character, and at that point
(a very painful point), relational availability and work is helpful for the
'reconstruction.' Another way to state this: object relations tend to revolve within an
orbit prescribed by the basic health of the organism, and working to change object
relations without affecting the basic 'energetic' health of the person is slow or futile.
Once the basic emotional economy is improved, then of course a developmental

process of object relating needs to mature, and perhaps this can be best done in
therapy. These two stages, of course, will be mostly overlapping.
Emphasis More on Unstructuring Than Structuring

The Reich and Lowen tradition emphasizes overcoming restrictions and says very
little about re-structuring. It as if the belief is that since the job of freeing the self
never gets quite finished, most time and effort should be devoted to it. As for
integration of healthy developments, it is believed that the interplay of healthy drives
and reality in one's life will guide development. Still, this has at times been a concern
of onlookers about the Reich and Lowen tradition. Besides the unjustified fear that
antisocial behavior will arise (which is covered under secondary drives) there are two
main fears: 1) an individual is left in a disorganized state without a 'compass' and
remains lost, and 2) without help restructuring, the individual perhaps 'falls back'
into old patterns.
Each person must make a life for her- or himself. this really cannot and should not be
done under the direction of another. Rather the corrective efforts of this tradition are
about regaining the capacity to make a life. This is consistent with the stated aims of
all humanistic and psychodynamic traditions. Perhaps the actual fact is however, that
most other therapy and healing traditions leave room for the temptation of telling
others how to live to creep in. The final products of work in this tradition are physical
and emotion states, not behaviors.
'Cracking' character is a monumental task to do if it ever gets done at all. Lowen

himself described therapy as a long process in which opening was required many
times, but he seems to imply that at a certain threshold, the process becomes selfsustaining. It is true that at times previous 'rules' for living may seem inadequate or
wrong but there is nothing yet to replace them. One is more likely to meet existential
anxiety. Anxiety can be strong once character defenses are loosened, but anxiety can
be made manageable if there is trust and support.
Emphasis on Developing Good Feelings More than Removing Bad

Feelings
Reassurance, empathy, sympathy, cognitive reframing, insight, and comforting are
all ways of removing bad feelings. They are necessary to some extent in any healing
process. Most mainstream therapy concentrates on these methods. But in the
absence of good feelings, removing bad feelings leads to little or no feeling which is
the malaise of our time. Numbing is part of the original problem not part of the
solution. Mainstream therapy has a very difficult time with depression, which is a
state of deep suffering and anxiety arising from a lack of feeling. The Reich and
Lowen tradition concentrates on developing good feelings, the reliable and sufficient
appearance of which both automatically makes bad feelings manageable and treats
despair. An implication of this is that anxiety is seen not as a random aberration to
be squelched, but a sign of life to be developed into pleasure.
Emphasis on Robust Emotional Interaction

Many traditions (psychoanalytic, cognitive, humanist) strive to ultimately provide
peace of mind and security through frictionless deportment in one's relationships.
The idea is the client can 'withstand' rougher patches in relationships by drawing on
inner resources and 'weathering the storm'. The Reich and Lowen tradition though,
sees conflict as a building block of life, not a misstep. Good feelings and security are
to be had by fighting in a constructive and self-defining way. It is demonstrated and
made explicit to clients that there is nothing wrong with taking a position in a
conflict as long as it is pursued non-destructively. As an off-shoot of that, the
tradition does not hesitate to point out specific types of interactions that are
diminishing. That is, emotional trauma doesn't come out of no where but is
generated by some styles of life and prevented (and healed) by other styles of living.
Transactional Analysis and Gestalt are in agreement with this point (and also
definitely out of fashion at the moment!)
Emphasis on Loving versus Being Lovable:

This is partly related to the emphasis on drive described above. People are rightly
concerned with the problem of love. Though it is not easy to define love, one thing
seems clear: 'solving' the problem of love is a matter of being loving, not of being
lovable.
It must quickly be made clear, that by "loving" is not meant compulsive self-sacrifice,
unnatural patience, submission, blind loyalty, etc These will-based, self-negating
practices are really attempts at being lovable. They are based on the feeling of
scarcity. They derive from an early experience of rejection. If a child feels that they
are even potentially a burden to the parent, the natural act of receiving love and
feeling it back is interrupted. In it's place arises the need to draw the love of the
parent and others by being lovable. The child grows to try to conform to an image.
The image is often one provided by the parent but it may be the opposite.
A great deal of achievement in our culture is spurred by the hope to be lovable.

Satisfaction is erroneously believed to be the product of achievement, and when
achievement does not provide satisfaction, more achievement is sought after. The 'rat
race' is the race to be lovable. The hope to become lovable leads to endless types of
indirect behavior. Most of the unsatisfying drama in life arises from indirect
behavior.
Loving by contrast is a felt thing. It has a biological aspect--people often remark how
someone in love looks more alive. Love naturally grows between people who share
pleasure together, if the capacity for loving has not been squashed. A person with
loving capacity may genuinely love a stranger because of that stranger's humanity.
Love cannot be forced by ethical precept, however. It arises involuntarily and
effortlessly, if the openness is there.
By contrast, most casual, humanistic psychotherapy is oriented toward three

processes 1) re-assuring the client that he or she already is lovable, or 2) coaching
some type of behavior that will bring a positive response from others, or 3) helping
the client attain his or her life goals. Any of these processes keeps the emphasis on
achieving an image, and does not develop feeling or purpose. Therapy and lifestyle
practices in the Reich and Lowen tradition are directed at restoring and increasing
the capacity for love and the capacity for pleasure (the two of which are closely
related).
Emphasis on Social Results and the Body as a Guide

Modern people are led to believe that they are their ideas and ideals, and that the
body is an unfortunately necessary conveyance, the condition of which is a random
event unrelated to a person's "true self" . The Reich and Lowen tradition stresses, by
contrast, that not only does the body reflect the self, it is a large part of the self.
Also many believe (conscious) intentions and ideas are more important than results
in the world and in relationships. This is true of the general culture but also the
general therapist culture. However, intentions and ideas miss character, miss the
unconscious,and miss the 'shadow'. Results, on the other hand, over time include the
effects of those parts of a person of which he or she is otherwise unaware. That is not
to say that results are always just or fair, often they are not. However, results, and the
state of the body, are not an aberration. The Reich and Lowen tradition, in general,
strongly affirms folk wisdom, which is a great disappointment to many who feel too
sophisticated for that.
Also this guiding reference to matters outside therapy is a strong protection from
abuse. There have been in the history of therapy cultish pockets, where embracing a
particular ideology or performing a certain way in a therapy session was seen as a
criterion of health. However in the tradition of Alexander Lowen, interpretations and
explanations should be mappable onto and testable in a person's everyday life. That
is, there is an insistence that one does not to take the therapist's word for it, but
rather tries it out for oneself.
Focus on the Character Rather than the Symptom or Concern

At the time of seeking change, a person will conceive of some parts of his or her life
as a problem, and other parts, even if not presently satisfying, as a success. Both
categories contain aspects of character. Most people want to leave alone what seems
to be an asset and build on it. What presents as an unwanted symptom may also be
seen as a sign of life breaking through a character defense.
Alexander Lowen came to believe that resistance to change ultimately resided not
just in the body and not just in the psyche but actually in character itself, intangible
as it may be. That is, body work alone, or psychological work alone, or even perhaps
both done in parallel, could not really unseat the limiting effects of character. Rather
overall global character attitudes had to be confronted. This is called character focus.
Lowen, like Reich before him, believed that only by showing the client how his or her
resistance fit a constellation of character, could the nucleus of resistance be
overcome. An implication of this is that egalitarian and exploratory approaches to
therapy and change, even one's including bodywork, if they fail to 'characterize' the
problem, tended to only produce modest change in quality of life.
If new 'issues' are taken up as they arise, issues may seem to multiply with no real
sense of direction. Dissatisfaction seems to be able to jump from manifestation to
manifestation.
There is also a benefit to character focus in the larger context of change. Most goaldirected, self-initiated programs of change ('self-help') have some benefit, but the
benefit is limited again by the filter of character. It really can require another person
at times, not necessarily a therapist and not necessarily 'character-saavy', but honest,
to point out 'blind spots'. A focus on character may call into question an entire
lifestyle. It seems, that intangible as it is, character is the ultimate repository of

resistance to happiness. Bodywork alone will stall without attention to character, and
supportive conversational therapy with neither attention to character nor bodywork
will generally really stall.
Emphasis on Good Feeling and Emotional Health Rather than Meaning.

The Reich and Lowen tradition is interested in restoring the capacity for feeling and
purpose, not the content of feeling and purpose. The good life perhaps includes more
than good feeling, like meaning, spirituality, etc. However, these are best built on top
of health and good feeling. Trying to construct meaning, prematurely, out of despair
and pleasurelessness, is like a weak consolation prize when one believes betterment
is not possible. While past history is worked through, this is done in the service of
harmonizing the sense of self with accumulated feelings, not in order to 'solve' a
narrative
Our theories, as well as those of Freud, Reich and Lowen, can function as a
narcissistic defense against the feelings of shame, humiliation and impotence. To
have our theories challenged or to have them fall on deaf ears may be to open up
the wounds from which these theories sprang.
Robert Hilton
Psychotherapy: an unidentified technique, applied to unspecified circumstances,
with unpredictable outcomes requiring rigorous training.
Anonymous
Functionalism
Functionalism (or functional thinking) is a concept developed by Wilhelm

Reich. It is not a belief, but a philosophy of understanding. Functionalism is
best explained first by describing what it is not. Two dominant modes of
understanding today are mechanistic thinking (employed during work hours by
science and most academic disciplines) and mystical thinking (common in 'selfimprovement' or 'growth' circles).
Domains of Effect
The goal of understanding for humans is to know how things come about--the force
behind effects. Effects can conceptualized as being brought about in three
domains: natural, supernatural, and man-made. The naturalincludes all effects
brought about by chemical, physical, and biological laws. The supernatural is a
concept that natural laws can be suspended only occasionally for the will or desire of
sentient entities to be effected by unknown means. The meaning of supernatural
derives from its contrast from the natural.
Man-made is the domain in which humans use some natural laws to interrupt other
natural laws to bring about the effects they prefer. This the realm of technology.
Because of their seeming opposition to natural laws, some man-made effects weaken
belief in the ultimate determination by the natural, and this can boost mysticism as
described below. The supernatural and the man-made share the core element of
being will-driven
Because biological effects are sometimes affected by interaction between organisms,
or the vitality of an organism, they may be expressed in a way which does not seem
consistent and so are dismissed as adventitious. When these natural effects are
spoken about by discerning individuals, less sensitive individuals may take it as talk
about the supernatural. The Reich and Lowen tradition has nothing to say
about the supernatural; it is all about the natural
The sections below are based on the work of Reich, Lowen, and Charles Kelley*
*Mysticism and Mechanism, 1970, http://www.kelley-radix.org/downloads/mysticism_and_mechanism.pdf
Mechanistic Thinking
Mechanistic thinking (or mechanization) is the belief that life is only one
long string of causes and effects based on physical and chemical laws,
and that the purpose of human life is to become the 'prime mover' or
'ultimate cause' of results by managing causes to one's will. A goal is to
optimize existence through the man-made. There is a premise that physical laws
operate everywhere and always, and there are no additional natural laws that apply
to living organisms (there are no unique biological laws)
Problems in the world , including the problem of suffering, are approached
mechanically. That is, a single 'real' cause is looked for, and combated directly
according to the laws of physics and chemistry. Physics and chemistry are
mechanical sciences, that is they seek to explain everything building up from the
supposition of cause and effect. Biology is different because it must explain
the phenomenon of life 'downwards' toward simpler processes.
Investigations are undertaken only to uncover a static truth or reality which is
believed to have always been there. This static truth is believed to settle all questions
once and for all. At bottom, a state of permanence is sought. All change is considered
either a perturbation, or a correction, never a legitimate process of its own.
Mechanistic thinking always has a problem with the concept of energy, because
energy is only known by change.
The unit of interest is the effect, which is seen as the final 'result' of a chain of
causation. In human affairs, only the intended effect is of interest (although
it is understood that mere intention is not effective.) The process itself, and
adventitious results are disregarded or denied. Importantly, the observer is believed
to be uninvolved and to have no effect.
Related to this, all interest is in 'why' and not in 'how,' so for instance,
competition develops to explain the 'real' cause of schizophrenia, but there is no
interest in understanding how that person is functioning. There is a dominant

premise that any given effect has one and only one true cause, and 'subtle' influences,
because they do not 'explain' anything completely (do not 'force' any single result),
are dismissed as irrelevant. This dismissiveness is reinforced because a armored and
deadened body is 'numb' to many subtle sensations and effects.
Mechanistic thinking leads to determinism, but strangely, the mechanistic thinker
will always believe he or she has free will unlike everyone else! This paradox pervades
the pronouncement of most scientists about human functioning. Mechanism does
not deny consciousness but disputes its role in what happens. Inanimate
phenomenon is well characterized but the events surrounding living things
constantly require the excuse of aberrancy
There is in fact a belief that humans can choose not to be affected by other living
organisms, and in fact this is believed to be an optimal way of being. We have
developed a culture of mechanical explanations that include many minute details but
little understanding of the overall context of life. Mechanization is the inevitable
result of a deadened body, but the deadening of a partly alive body can be completed
under its auspices. From the mechanical point of view, the body is either a tool or a
burden of the mind, but never the seat of the person or the self.
Mechanistic thinking perhaps arises because: 1) We live in a culture and time in
which man uses immense amounts of fossil fuels to do what the ego imagines.
Adapting to the natural order and understanding mutual influence is considered,
weak unnecessary, or even mystical (as described below). 2) Some of us struggle for
material security in a competitive society, and so the role of planning and will in the
good life seems paramount. 3) Many of us are not properly introduced as children to
the wonders of life, so figuring out how to achieve a good life becomes an analytic
procedure, which however close it comes to key concepts, can never really capture
the experience.
The temptation to describe events in society solely in terms of cause and effect is
understandable, because after all, conscious human will is part of the mix, and very
salient in consciousness. However, the mechanical view tends to explain even events
inside a person (phenomenology) entirely by cause and effect, as though the
conscious will of a human had designed it! Yet we know that a consciously
designed being is a robot! Other traits include:
Believes it is matter over mind
Overcomplicates
Scientific bias
Fears subjective reality, the spontaneous, the unpredictable. Retreats outward

to the purely physical
Fears life
Model of reality and man a machine (no need for mind (but brain is okay))
A slight distinction needs to be made between the mechanistic thinking Reich was
writing about which was based on Marxism, and modern day mechanism which has
replaced the body with the brain. This modern 'neuroscientific' materialism opposes
the instinctual actualities of humans, that is, it tries to make the body below the neck
unnecessary. This may seem to have elements of mysticism, and in fact it can attract
mystically minded followers in the therapeutic community, but it is just an even
more impoverished form of mechanistic thinking.
Mysticism
As a general world view, mysticism is the tendency to consider effects as
arising primarily out of intentions, one's own intentions, or the intentions of
others. Even moreso than mechanization, mysticism is a deification of human will,
and a denial of the general 'fitness' of natural forces. Unlike mechanization, which is
an over-involvement with cause and effect, mysticism is a loosening of cause and
effect. Mysticism does not get rid of cause and effect but rather just the reliance of
cause and effect on uniform natural laws. Physical laws are believed to operate most
places and most of the time, but are sometimes suspended, or tailored to individual
situations if the 'need' is compelling enough. Effects can come before causes, time is
no more sacrosanct than any other physical law. Mysticism allows for 'teleological'
thinking, in which the effect is deemed so 'fit' or appropriate that it is, in fact, its own
cause.
As in mechanistic thinking, the unit of interest is the 'result', only in mysticism
adventitious events are often retroactively endowed with a prior cause. Processes get
little real attention because it is not felt that results have to be limited by or loyal to
discernable processes. Investigations are hampered by the inability to form any
principles. Opposite to mechanistic thinking, the observer is everything. From his or
her point of view derives the direction of events.
This is the realm of ghosts and spirits, but also of Jungian ideas of synchronicity and
collective unconscious.
Mysticism does therefore seem to make room for inter-relationship but not in any
consistent way because, again, the wishes of one entity or another predominates.
Mysticism can be a lazy way of thinking, because there is no need to achieve any
consensus with others and no 'reality check' at all. Moreover, many in our culture
(especially 'alternative health') mix mystical and mechanical thinking. That is, they
claim understanding from mystical sources but choose to implement the knowledge
in a routinized or mechanical way.
The following are ideas about how mysticism comes about: 1) Some have had
privilege in their upbringing, and so wish and result seem directly related, or 2) Some
were misled frequently about other people's true role in matters (ie what parents
were actually doing), so that 'how things come about' is never straight-forward but of
course not random either. 3) Alienation from the body make physical sensations
unrecognizable as the self, and mechanical explanations being inadequate, extranatural explanations are created. This point was emphasized by Wilhelm Reich in the
third part of Character Analysis. Other traits:
Believes it mind over matter (this is also the psychopathic position, via
different dynamics)
Oversimplifies
Religious bias
Fears subjective reality, the existing, the factual, retreats inward to fantasy
Fears death
Model of reality and man a ghost (no need for physical body)
Functional Thinking
The functional point of view, by contrast with mechanical or mystical
thinking, accepts the role of natural forces in human life, and
understands that human choices interact with these natural forces but
do not escape them. Nor is there any tragedy in not escaping them. Functional
thinking seeks to understand human functioning and culture within a larger context
of life. Folk wisdom, often conveyed in stories or jests, is a declining example of
functional understanding. Folk wisdom is often dismissed as too simple. This is
perhaps because the mechanical explanations we have become used to puts up a
smoke screen of detail.
In functionalism the unit of interest is the process. Results are generally viewed as
just 'snapshots' of ongoing processes. In human affairs processes and adventitious
events are termed 'life' and not disregarded. Investigations are not meant to find a
final truth for all people and all time, but a present truth. Things are described not so
much in terms of what they are, but in terms of what they do. The observer is
understood to have some impact but not to determine what happens entirely.
A key understanding of functional thinking is that two apparently opposite
phenomena often arise from the same stem. Famously this describes body and mind
phenomena as being parallel and from the same origin. More pragmatically it
explains splits in personality and polarization in relationships.
Functionalism can also accept randomness, which both mechanization and
mysticism have a hard time accepting. Randomness is not meaninglessness but just
the incomplete correlation between events in the world and human will. Below are
some aspects of functional thinking:
Life includes some essential element that is not explained by conventional

physics or chemistry. This used to be studied by biology, but biology has
reverted to bio-chemistry and bio-physics.
Mind and body are the same, and neither can dominate and run the other.
(Why humans cannot seem to bridge the separation of mind experiencing and
body experiencing has not been worked out, however.)
Life includes movement, and the energy that is necessary for that movement
Focuses on what almost always actually happens, not what is desired or

approved
Living organisms affect each other simultaneously. Joint experience is

possible which cannot be predicted by describing the sum of inputs of the
individuals involved (for example, love.)
All life tends naturally toward harmony. (This can imply some challenge to the
dominance of entropy.)
Wilhelm Reich (1897-1957)
To give a quick biographical sketch of Wilhelm Reich is

daunting, because his life is so complicated and unique, that it
is not possible to summarize it briefly without seeming to miss
the whole point.
One thing seems indisputable: Reich thought like no one else.
However unique his ideas, they make amazing sense of
everyday human dilemmas. Many have pointed out that Reich's ideas have strongly
influenced the dominant culture (and many subcultures) without being attributed to
Reich. What has been attributed to Reich is often taken out of context and distorted.
It is interesting that Alexander Lowen took a publisher's advance to write a
biography of Reich, and despite his proven ability to write with nuance about
sensitive subjects, he was unable to write it.
It is far better for a reader truly interested to go ahead and read his biographies, one
by Myron Sharaf, and one by Ilse Ollendorf, his second legal and third emotional
wife. It seems that while both Sharaf and Ollendorf are attempting to be completely
open and truthful, they both seem to be not describing the entirety of their
experience with Reich. More than Sharaf, Ollendorf describes a personal and
unglamorous side of Reich that is absent from his own autobiographical materials.
What about the role of Reich's work on present day efforts to lessen suffering, such as
this website? Reich spent much of his career trying to prove in a laboratory sense
what he understood intuitively in a clinical psychotherapy sense. Clues are that his
laboratory work was not as convincing (for whatever reason) as his clinical work,
which has clouded the handling of his ideas unnecessarily. Reich tended to open new
ideas brilliantly, but perhaps had less patience for systematically analyzing all the
aspects, at least in print. This lends an 'unfinished' quality to his legacy. He also had
a tendency to devote a large portion of his writing to a polemical rebuttal of his
critics, which is confusing to a reader who hasn't yet had a chance to nail down the
original idea.
From Reich's own autobiographical materials, one point does seem to suggest itself.
Reich's first, main and guiding interest was always sexuality. He did not 'start' with
psychoanalysis, his own studies were well underway at that time. Rather he
sojourned for a while with the psychoanalysts because they were the only ones
talking seriously about sex at that time.
Every great advance in natural knowledge has involved the absolute rejection of
authority.
Thomas H. Huxley
There is no greater importance in all the world like knowing you are right and that
the wave of the world is wrong, yet the wave crashes upon you.
Norman Mailer
You cannot make a man by standing a sheep on its hind legs. But by standing a
flock of sheep in that position you can make a crowd of men.
Max Beerbohm
Alexander Lowen (1910-2008)
This website was originally conceived as a resource for anyone

interested in the ideas and practices of Alexander Lowen. It
then became clear that it would be misleading to leave
out Wilhelm Reich. Lowen received many of his basic
concepts from Reich, but he added grounding, both as a
concept within the theory, and as an actual grounding of the
tradition in common sense. Lowen seemed to always have
been guided by the practical usefulness of these ideas and exercises.
Alexander Lowen's life spanned from the end of the Victorian era into the 21st
century. His life and career spanned several wars, the depression, the coming and
going of the 'sexual revolution', the ascendancy of greed from the 80's on, and the
ascendancy of technology from the 90's on. Like Reich, he addressed not only the
effects of the family and individual situation on development, but also the effects of
social forces.
Unlike Reich, however, he did not come to the conclusion that the first order of
business was to change society. He came rather to the conclusion (the same as
Abraham Maslow) that the task of a healthy individual was to live within a society
without necessarily being formed by the values of that society. The basic elements of
human happiness have not changed for millennia, but the way in which a person
obtains those elements are affected by the culture in which he lives.
Lowen also was a much more systematic thinker and writer than Reich, and so his
work has a feel of completeness or sufficiency about it. It also functions more easily
as source book for actual men or women seeking practical steps in changing a life.
Though Lowen doubtless responded to criticisms by refining and sharpening his
theory, in his writing he avoids distracting polemical digressions and stays on the
topic in a positive way.
Lowen first started working in therapy about 1942. He attended medical school from
1946-1951. As mentioned above, he developed his ideas and practices from Reichian
roots, adding a great deal of common sense, everyday observation, and trial and error
with expressive techniques. In the late 1960's his worked ballooned in popularity, but
the popularity receded in the early 1980s as the culture turned away from freedom
back toward money, fame, and power and control. One of the many things that stand
out in his biography is how little the popularity of a notion alone swayed him.
It's one thing to understand the heart, and another to commit to its rhythms
Paul Dennison
Mediocrity knows nothing higher than itself, but talent instantly recognizes genius.
Arthur Conan Doyle
Pilates and Other Traditions
There are numerous other bodywork traditions, besides the Reich and Lowen one,
that are also intended to increase feeling and purpose. All these traditions are like the
Zen metaphor of fingers pointing (to the moon). That is, despite some differences,
they all aim at the same way of being. Because actually getting to the moon is
not easy, there is always a temptation to accumulate more fingers
instead. What is beneficial, however, usually, is just to actually, patiently, honestly,
without forcing things, and without prematurely convincing others, follow one
tradition without mistaking the finger for the moon.
Many traditions come to mind that are doubtless pointing to the same arrival as
Reich and Lowen: Qi Gong, Feldenkreis, Alexander method, yoga, Rolfing, Tai Chi,
Trager, Hellerwork, dance therapy, chiropractic, cranio-sacral work, osteopathy, etc
Reich and Lowen bodywork has this unique aspect: personal emotional expression is
considered necessary and central. For instance crying is considered bodywork, the
deeper the better! This is unique as far as I know. (In conversational psychotherapy,
crying is somehow expected but not encouraged, and immediate re-assurance is
almost always given to stop it short.)
There is one tradition of which I am aware that is particularly consistent with the
Reich and Lowen tradition-- Pilates. All bodywork traditions can be roughly divided
into two types: corrective and exploratory. The Reich and Lowen tradition is clearly
corrective, that is, the therapist is supposed to know of a form or way of being that if
not perfect, is very good, and good for everybody. The therapist is trying to get clients
to eventually approximate that form (but not by imitating it). There is room for
individuality, but the basic premise of the therapy is to achieve a satisfying
commonality first, then let 'true' individuality be built on top. This is a fundamental
underlying belief of the Reich and Lowen tradition, and also a fundamental
underlying belief of Pilates.
Nobody explains the need, the role, and the ultimate effect of bodywork better than
Lowen. However, both Reich and Lowen provide a limited amount of physical
practices. These physical practices are varied and it is an oversimplification but

perhaps useful to think of them meant to 'crack' or 'blow the top' off of armoring.
Pilates was aware of the emotional implications of body misalignment and rigidity,
but he did not think of himself as working with psychological forces, but rather as
working with a functional body that has gone 'off track'. From this point of view, the
concepts of disassembly and re-assembly seem fitting. Moreover, it is an active
therapy, in which the client must participate willingly. Also Pilates, which is
presently niched with physical fitness, has had no trouble staying with touch and
physical focus. It is neither afraid of it, nor has to fear condemnation for it.
Psychotherapy, even based on Reich and Lowen, has had a hard time staying with
physical work. This is probably based on the body alienation of most therapists, but
is also reinforced by the present regulatory climate.
Yoga and Chi Gung (Qigong)

Nobody who does Lowenian bodywork will miss the similarity with yoga (yogasana)
and Chi Gung, both in the form and the paradigm of 'moving energy" These asian
traditions are clearly systems of re-balancing and re-harmonizing body and mind.
They work. Done in large groups, the format is much more affordable. Two practical
differences seem to become evident among participants in the United States.
First, yoga and Chi Gung, in the teaching traditions, seem to assume only a modest
alienation from the body. Our truly unfit, depersonalized Western bodies are
addressed at too high a level, and it is almost impossible to do the movements as
intended. Just repetition does not help. Instead, an almost aerobic struggle ensues,
which is a good workout, but the intended experience can be elusive. Yogasana seems
a method of neuro-muscular 'reset' more than a complete re-wiring. Neuro-muscular
redevelopment requires a very remedial approach, at least with adults.
Second, yoga and Chi Gung deal with restoring basic health and developing
spirituality simultaneously. This can tempt many people to try to leap-frog from say
depression to enlightenment, skipping basic emotional repair. This is especially true
when the participant is dabbling and has no teacher.
Yogasanas are final positions. The emphasis can be on arrival not the journey. This
contrasts with Pilates, which prescribes movements not positions (except for some
'starting positions which are not extreme). While both Pilates and Yogasana seem to
aim for the same bodily state, this training difference is very important, especially for
over-achieving Western egos. Endgaining and injury possibly is a greater
possibility with yoga.
Nobody can prove what I am about to say, but I think it is so: every energy in
which we live is a nourishment to us. It is something that is literally contributing
food to the individual. If you are living in a field of light, your eyes probably are
good, as you deprive yourself of light consistently, the eyes starve and eventually
you can't see. If you are living within a field of sound, the same is true of your ears.
Now it would be absolutely ridiculous if we lived in a field of gravity and it had no
effect on us, yet down through the ages, this has been our assumption, that it didn't
make any difference. This assumption is still held among a lot of people. They think
it doesn't make any difference how you carry yourself, because you are a spirit, an
immortal an superior something, which is in charge of the situation. Well, a spirit is
in charge of the situation, but not in the way many think. The spirit is in charge to
tell the individual that he can so organize his body that he is now in line with a
supporting force
Ida Rolf
Principles for Change

Basic Values and Principles
The Reich and Lowen tradition makes very different assumptions than the present
mainstream culture about what underlies a life worth living. It is implied in this
tradition, as with many others, that what a person needs to do is get back on track
with human development. However, what is different is the conception of what
components of a human life are true and solid. These we might call principles of the
tradition. Understanding the principles does not bring about any change, but growth
as it does occur may be much better understood and consolidated by these principles.
Functional Models: Drives, Layers, Segments, and Character

Armor
There are several fundamental models in the Reich and Lowen tradition that meld
biology with emotion and interpersonal functioning. These are neither mechanical
and conclusionless like many bio-chemical models popular in science, nor are they
based on magical thinking and wish fulfillment like some mystical healing models
made available to the hopeful. Rather they are functional models. That is, they
do not see human life as determined solely by biology, but they do not see human life
as something that can 'rise above' natural forces merely by wish or sentiment.
Drive versus Object

The drive theory was an organizing idea started by Freud, although mainstream
psychoanalysis has de-emphasized it.
The Reich and Lowen tradition of therapy has found the drive theory a useful
organizing idea, and has retained it. Basic human life force or energy is believed to
transit from some type of inside or center out toward the world and other people.
When the drives are working well, a person can succeed in a social, sexual and work
sense. Drives move the person toward objects, which can be people or things. A
competing emphasis, called object relations, is that those objects that happen to be
people have a role in eliciting and shaping drives in other people, and that the
availability of good objects cannot be taken for granted. Object relations emphasizes
the appropriateness of the engaging other to help a person heal. It is posited that the
original failure of a 'good enough other' was the hampering event in emotional
development, and that in psychotherapy with adults, the therapist must be an
exquisitely good enough object to allow the real self of the client to be freed.
Wilhelm Reich and Alexander Lowen believed it was more important for a therapist
to be a coach to get drives going again, than it was for the therapist to be any
particular object except warm, honest, and straight-forward. In their work, almost
the entire emphasis was on 'repair' of the drive of the individual. It was assumed that
when the drive was ready, appropriate others would appear.
This is a controversy in ideas that is not possible to settle. It is useful to note that
'drive' is more of a biological idea, and that object relations is more of a psychological
idea. The Reich and Lowen tradition is more tied to ideas of biology (as was Freud)
than is modern psychoanalysis. Perhaps the following is a useful synthesis: driveoriented work is necessary to 'deconstruct' restraints of character, and at that point
(a very painful point), relational availability and work is helpful for the
'reconstruction.'
The Organizing Idea of Layers

The layer model goes along with the drive theory. In the three layer model, a core
of pure wholesome life force is posited, corresponding to the viscera. This is
surrounded by a muscular second layer. Under less than good emotional
development, the muscular layer develops armor and pure impulses are distorted
into secondary drives. The third or surface layer contains intellect and ego.
Sometimes four layers are described, the additional layer being an affective layer
between the core and muscular layer.
While the surface layer is where pleasure and contact takes place, ironically to
develop feeling and purpose, it is necessary to work with deeper layers. Pleasure
succeeds when impulses from the core come to fruition at the surface.
Many of us think of our deeper part being our private thoughts and fantasies.
However, these are part of mind and belong to the surface layer. The core is
neglected almost universally in our culture. There is sometimes a ideology against
superficiality (really cosmetic efforts) toward 'higher' things, but generally this leads
to intellectualization of life
The layer model may at first be taken as more conceptual and not too biological,
however, it has been compared to the three types of embryonic tissue: endoderm
(viscera) mesoderm (muscle, bone, connective tissue) and ectoderm (skin, brain, and
nerves)
*Here Sheldon's three character types are relevant: endomorph, mesomorph, and ectomorph. They
are named for the layer in which the 'self' of these types reside. Though less detailed, Sheldon's
typology is basically consistent with Lowen's idea of character. Usually, when Sheldon is mentioned in
science classes, the psychological correlates of the body types are left out or greatly abbreviated--the
cultural mind body split at work.
Segments
Most medical thinking about human functioning is based on will. To that end, the
brain, the voluntary motor system, and especially the nerves carrying the
impulse from the brain to the motor system is seen as paramount. The
distribution of these nerves does not follow segments from top to bottom neatly.
However, certain 'neurotic' behavior, such as conversion reactions like 'glove'

paraesthesias, do follow segments. For this reason mainstream medicine has
dismissed this as faking, either conscious or unconscious. However, the vegetative
systems, especially the autonomic control of circulation, does follow segments
because the blood circulation is more uniformly segmental.
That is how the neck can said to have an 'energy block' when in fact there are many
nerves and blood vessels that provide for and transit through the neck. The
segmental model is so important not because it is a precise map of where to do
bodywork (although Reich partly thought so) but rather it is a way to think of human
functioning and the limits on that functioning not in terms of will but rather in terms
of vegetative functioning. This is the same pattern as for 'hysterical' paralysis or
'hysterical' numbness that is well documented in the psychiatric literature completely

independent of Reich.
'Character' Armor
Although the term armor is meant to refer to a demonstrable situation in the body, it
is slightly more abstract than layers or segments. Armor is a metaphor referring to
the muscular spasms, decreased motility, postural misalignments, and character
attitudes which an individual develops that act as a defense against the breakthrough
of unwanted or intolerable feelings, sensations, emotions, or experience. Muscular
armor functions, mostly, as a defense against anxiety, anger, fear, and sexual
excitation. Interpersonally, this armor leads to emotional rigidity, poor contact with
others, and a feeling of deadness. Unlike layers and segments, which are in
between parts of the body, armor is in between the person and certain
experiences. The forces producing armor can be described as three types:
Premature Containment.
Very small children naturally act upon strong feeling without thinking. Civilization
of any type is not possible on that basis. Adults are expected to incorporate thought
and belief into final action. For that to happen, feelings need some temporary
containment. Alexander Lowen referred to this capacity as self-posession. Selfpossession allows feelings to inform and motivate cohesive, humane, creative action
in the world. However, self-posession is not neurologically possible for a
child under six, and only gradually becomes available after
that. Caretakers eager to give children a head-start to success often push children to
'control themselves' so they may 'learn' and behave in a way that pleases others. In
this situation however, the containment can only be produced with massive muscle
tension and breath holding. An example is premature toilet training before the
sphincter is myelinated. It must happen with massive tightening of the gluteal and
hip muscles. This tension will usually become life-long and certainly
undermine the very security that precociousness is supposed to provide!
Traditional cultures make no demands on children under six, but rather control the
environment so that the child can come to no harm and do no real harm. Our
culture's emphasis on attainment first has made it a temptation and eventually a
social norm to hurry children. The ego of the parent may want the child to be special.
Because children develop cognitively rapidly at certain points, a small precociousness
from being pushed can seem like giftedness when compared to others the exact same
age. But as children reach maturity the difference flattens, while the opportunity
for self-knowledge has been lost, and an insecurity has been instilled.
Horror.
Some experiences simply cannot be emotionally processed because they are so
contrary to the conditions of nurturing. A small child witnessing parents fighting
may be in this situation. Addiction, abuse, violence, manipulation, are all common in
families with young children. Abuse of the child by someone who should be taking
care of the child is the height of horror. Even an angry look from a parent is horrific
to a small child that depends on the parent. A child's body will feel something is very
wrong, but the adults will indicate that they accept the situation so the child is torn
and must leave his or her body behind by muscle tension, shallow breathing,
diminishment of the senses, and dissociation.
Environmental Negation.
The environment here is almost always human caretakers. The aliveness of a child is
not accepted because it reminds the caretaker of his or her own deadness. The child
learns that certain types of movement or expression brings on the wrath of others.
The child learns to avoid some behaviors at all costs. Innocence may be negated with
abuse. The adults may act like the child is in competition, and the child senses he
cannot 'survive' the competition and so must find a way to not compete.
There are two ways to think of armoring phenomenon, as arrested neuromuscular

development with some compensatory distortions, or as a imposed change on an
already developed function. The former is probably true of 'early' character aspects,
especially before age two, and the latter is probably true of armoring that happens at
age four and five. That is why bodywork for 'early' problems may best be
methodical and developmental, while bodywork for later problems may
best be explosive and 'releasing'. It is probably fair to say that both Reich and
Lowen emphasized releasing type bodywork.
Limitations based on developmental arrest are unconscious of course--the individual

has no way of knowing what they are missing. Limitations based on imposed changes
(holding) becomes unconscious. With armor in place, the conscious control no longer
has to actively defend against certain impulses or desires. As tenacious as
psychological defenses tend to be, they can still slip or be overwhelmed at times, but
armor tends to be 'always on.' When armor is fully in play, it it said that a person is
exhibiting a 'character defense' and anxiety is fairly low. When armor has been
weakened, either through therapy or chance experience, a person is said to be in an
'anxiety defense' An anxiety defense generally will seem more irrational than an
armored character defense but within this model may also be thought of as more
healthy because problems are closer to awareness even if distorted. It is important to
understand that bodywork can precipitate much anxiety, and this is not necessarily a
step back.
The word armor of course has a connotation of something that resists penetration.
Wilhelm Reich developed the concept because he felt that some psychoanalytic
patients were unaffected by in-session interpretations and out-of-session events that
'should' have affected them strongly. It was as if things 'bounced off' them. The name
armor implies that the phenomenon comes into existence to fulfill this purpose. That
is a teleological explanation, which for biological phenomena, may be misleading. If
the purpose is no longer relevant, then the phenomenon should disappear right? This
is in fact how many therapist approach the problem--trying to convince the client to
'just drop' the defense, it is no longer needed. That is not how biology works. A more
physiologically sound model is allostasis below.
The Amoeba
The amoeba is a one-celled animal, that is, a protozoa. Under a microscope, it can be
seen that an amoeba naturally reaches out into its environment. If poked however,
the amoeba contracts. What is interesting is that having contracted from the first
poke, the amoeba will contract more readily and longer to a second noxious stimulus.
The comparison to humans (metazoa) that have been hurt almost makes itself. What
is clear with the amoeba, is that this is not a cognitive problem, the amoeba has no
brain "to erroneously overgeneralize," or otherwise form a cognitive distortion.
Contraction is a biological reaction, not a mental mistake.
Supporting the Life Process

One approach to treating suffering is to try to block the mechanism of pain or of the
symptom. Mainstream medicine for the most part uses either surgery to remove or
block a process, or medication to block a process. Blocking or removing can be life
saving on occasion, but because it is crude relative to the complexity of human
functioning, in the long-run it leads to greater dysregulation. Over time, more and
more treatment is added to combat the increasing dysregulation. Lesser-skilled
psychotherapy often follows similar lines, using reassurance to block anxiety, or
friendliness to block loneliness. Interpersonal dysregulation may increase.
The Reich and Lowen tradition posits that most suffering (and the psychology that
explains it) is a phenomenon of "frozen and terrorized protoplasm*". Reich and
Lowen therapy seeks to enliven the person. Work is not necessarily
targeted at specific problems in a cause and effect way.
This may seem out of place in our goal-directed society. Often clients may ask, how a
action like the expression of anger toward a very powerful person will help their
'symptom', and often the answer is that it supports the living process. The belief is,
that once a good level of vibrancy is reached, most symptoms either will have
disappeared, become manageable, or become unimportant. Work in the Reich and
Lowen tradition is not so much an attempted cure of specific suffering as it is an
initiation into a new way of life.
*This phrase is adapted from Robert Hilton. I do not know if Reich or Lowen ever said it quite this way
One Health for All vs Unique Individual Paths

Claiming to increase vitality suggests the concept of 'health.' Without actually
defining health here (the 'Goals'section attempts to do that), it is possible to state
that in the Reich and Lowen tradition, there is clearly the premise that 'health' is 1)
pleasureable, 2) recognizable in all healthy people by common features, 3) is

responsible for attractiveness, and 4) a common similar goal for all clients. A
therapist or participant then, can have in mind a general healthy state independent
of any individual.
The implication of this is that therapy in this tradition is 'corrective'

more than exploratory. Unlike the humanistic tradition in psychology, the
premise is that exploring meaning without confronting character leads to little
change. This is very controversial. It opens the door to a therapist suggesting to a
client participant that he or she is wrong or unaware about something. This has to be
handled in a non-dominating, non-dogmatic way that admits fallibility.
Results vs Intentions
First a few definitions:
Intentions the ego's understanding of what it is trying to do in life or a

particular situation.
Results the effects overall of one's action on other people and in the world.
Principles a mixture of ideas, memory, and experience that guides action
Outcome a very specific result that arises from the mixture of one's actions
with the many independent variables operating in the world. A particular
outcome may not reflect results generally.
Many people in our culture believe that the key to 'being good' and having a 'good
life' is to have the right intentions and the right ideas. This is not cause for criticism if
results in relationships and in the world are generally in line with intentions or ideas.
However, in life, and in therapy, it is common to meet people who are able to
complain (accurately) of poor results in relationships despite the best intentions and
abundant well-meant ideas.. However, there is a tendency to attribute this to either
the ideas needing only a bit of a tweak, or to having uncommonly bad luck in never
having found others who respond "as they should" to the intentions.
What is important, is that intentions and conscious ideas leave out many aspects
of character, such as the unconscious, 'the shadow' (disowned traits), and very often,
the body. Results, on the other hand, over time include the effects, on others, of those
parts of a person of which he or she is otherwise unaware. That is not to say that
results are always just or fair, often they are not. However, results, and
the state of the body, are also not an aberration. Overall, results 'say'
something.
The Defense of Splitting

The psychological defense of splitting consists of seeing ourselves or others as all
good or all bad. All people employ this defense sometimes, to decrease
anxiety. At it's strongest, splitting leads to the firm denial of actual behavior of
ourselves or others that does not fit into the picture of all good or all bad. This
distortion of reality testing can be impressive and demonstrates splitting at its most
visible.
However, most people keep reality testing intact but still employ splitting
by attributing intentions to the actions of ourselves or others. In general,
others are seen as entirely good-intentioned or entirely badly-intentioned. Any action
or result that is not in line with this image is negated in importance by describing the
result as contrary to intention. People that are deemed (split) bad are avoided or
confronted indignantly in a way that stops communication. People that are deemed
(split) good are not confronted.
But intentions are never clear cut, and rarely 'pure', and often not really knowable.
Speculating upon or judging the intentions of others can be a mental device to make
splitting seem rational. The defense of splitting decreases anxiety, but it
decreases contact as well. What paying attention to results does is to bring people
and things into real relationship.
The Role of Principles

There is the possibility of being too outcome oriented. This arises when
anxiety makes it seem that a particular result must happen, even if other people, or
chance, have a role. Attention to results is not the same as a willingness to pursue
results at all costs and by all means. For an adult, pursuing something usually means
following principles that have been developed from experience--that is from feeling
and past results. Principles are meant to be firm but not rigid. Unlike 'rules',
principles are applied with some feeling for the situation. Principled behavior
provides a feeling of integrity and consistency even when the outcome in a particular
situation is not typical. Principles however must conform to overall results or they
lose their reality. Chasing a particular outcome results in unprincipled behavior. So
result primacy does not mean obtaining a particular outcome at any cost.
Some work in the helping professions does a disservice by re-assuring clients that: 1)
they have indeed been injured by being among others more receptive to results than
intentions, and that 2) the helping professional will respond to the client's intentions,
not the client's whole actuality. The second is in fact an impossibility--the helping
professional will respond to the client's whole, whether he or she is aware of it or not.
The belief that any relationship can be a cocoon--totally protected and different from
the ways of the world-- is an illusion. When self-concepts develop contrary to results,
it results in illusion. Illusions buffer suffering somewhat, but they also prolong and
mystify the suffering.
The Reich and Lowen tradition encourages squarely facing repetitive results. Only
this can dispel illusions and expose unconscious and armored attitudes. Of course, all
good psychotherapy traditions do this. But Reich and Lowen, by bringing the body
into therapy, gave results a concrete and felt anchor. The state of the body tells a
story in which intention has had only a minor role.
The Ego, the Body, and the Self
The term ego is used in many ways in psychology. In the work of Wilhelm Reich
and Alexander Lowen the ego is used roughly to designate
the mind and will together. Another way to say it is that the ego is all the parts of
a person that are not just natural functioning. The body is a term often used to
designate not just the flesh, but all the rest of a person, all that is natural, including a
natural spirituality. The 'self' is personal 'sense' that encompasses both the
ego and the body. This is perhaps a gross simplification but hopefully a useful one.
However, it is the ego that perceives the self, and also perceives for the self through
self-perception.
The ego, the self, and the body must work together for a cohesive sense of self and a
satisfying life. 'Listening' to the body does not weaken the ego, it strengthens it. The
ego may dislike or be unable to stand aspects of the body, which unlike the mind
always tells the truth. When this happens, the ego will weaken or shut off selfperception, or try to change the body in accordance with an image. When the ego
is at odds with the body, the sense of self suffers, and the ego alone has to
stand in as the self in interpersonal affairs. This brings to life a bias
toward image and away from feeling.
The sense of self never disappears in a person but can lose cohesion, or operate only
in the deep background, or both. The ego may become inflated to fill the void, but
insecurity is constant. Many try intellectual development (insight) or dis-embodied
spiritual development to 'fix' the ego, but this only leads to greater confusion. Even
bodywork can be done in an image-driven ego-pleasing way, and thereby fail. The
self has to emerge, it cannot be made.
In the Freudian tradition, a strong distinction is made between the super-ego and the
non-super-ego parts of the ego, and emphasis is focused on righting the conflict
between them. To Alexander Lowen, the ego is considered 'in one piece' as a
construct that is subject to many influences, self-negating and otherwise. Focus is
on whether the ego can be guided by pleasure and a healthy body, in
which case it becomes 'self-cleansing' of negating aspects.
It may seem at times that when the concepts of the Reich and Lowen tradition are
discussed, the ego is 'bad' and the body is 'good'. That of course is not true. It is an
'artifact of trying to bring balance to a 'disembodied', ego-heavy culture. In lessening
the suffering of the present day, often the ego needs some trimming, and the body
needs some freeing, only because in our culture, the ego has overgrown itself and
done damage to the body which, after all, is its foundation.
For many of us, in developing feeling and purpose, limiting aspects of character must
be made ego-dystonic. That is, these limitations must come to be seen by the
individual not as who he or she is, but rather as something he or she does or has
done. For some of us, in developing joy, suffering must become self-dystonic. That is,
suffering must come to be seen by the individual as not who he or she is, or the price
of admission to life, but rather as something that happens. This latter point is
particularly relevant where negating experience has occurred very early in life.
Where character defenses are alloyed with the ego, there is a lack of flexibility. Where
suffering or deprivation is alloyed with the self, there is a pervasive feeling of
defectiveness.
Though it is tempting to align the concepts of ego and conscious together, and align
the concepts of body and unconscious together, it does not quite work that way. The
ego functions unconsciously also-- that is often the most problematic part. The
unconscious as a concept encompasses two very different types of things, one
physiological functioning, and two, emotion, desire, and memory that a person
'cannot recognize at the moment.'
A major understanding of both Wilhelm Reich and Alexander Lowen is that these
two types of unconscious things affect each other immensely. That is why, in their
perspective, conflict is more often framed along the lines of ego versus body than it is
along the Freudian lines of conscious versus unconscious.
Growth versus Change
People coming to therapy are hoping that their experience of life can be different.
They expect the therapist will tell or show them a way to change their life. That is, a
way to exercise their will on their actions or thoughts that will bring different results.
Sometimes this type of change is possible and helpful.
But the will is a limiter. It cannot bring essentially new qualities into a life. Use of the
will upon oneself results in actual muscular contraction and behavioral constriction.
The starting character is reinforced rather than changed. Transformation is a concept
that a change can be brought about by settling on a design for the self and achieving
it by direct action. It is often discontinuous with the life that has gone before. With
an attempt at transformation, one part of the person becomes at war with another
part. For instance the ego-ideal of being skinny becomes at war with the part of the
person that craves comfort or pleasure in food. This produces a yo yo effect, not a
change that is durable and satisfying. Of course body weight can become better
regulated if that is a problem, but by harmonizing through growth and increased
awareness, not will power.
New abilities come about by a process called growth. A goal of bodywork is to remove
restrictions to growth. Growth cannot be forcefully willed or tightly managed.
Growth can be intended and supported. Information is necessary to understand what
supports and what inhibits growth. However too much emphasis on the idea or
information itself leads away from growth because it sets the framework of the will
deciding to 'act' on information, and act on the person. Attempting to deliberately
change oneself is always a limiter. It leads to some skills but an overall decrease of
liveliness.
A better use for the decisional capacity of a person is to surround her- or himself with
the conditions of growth. For most people, growth requires some surrender. Certain
practices that enhance growth such as bodywork can be undertaken but the results
require an openness of expectation. There is an expression that "life [ or some worthy
pursuit] is a marathon, not a sprint". This touches on the idea of allowing some time
for growth ( although the metaphor is weakened by the very punishing, will-based
way people train for marathons these days).
Growth is a search for balance, imbalance a search for growth
Paul Dennison
Being versus Doing
The following is liberally adapted from Fear of Life by Alexander Lowen

All animals except man just exist. Most people are not content just to be, they have to
do something or achieve something. This drive produces much of the material
culture, but it can also be destructive, for instance in producing nuclear weapons.
Using the will against the feelings may be necessary in the face of real danger, in
which case it is healthy. It becomes unhealthy when the maneuver persists apart
from real danger. Many people are always trying to change themselves by using
willpower, but this only serves to deepen the split. The ego works by setting a goal
and controlling the actions to achieve it. If the goal is secondary to the action, the
activity is more being than doing. All productive activities such as a car assembly line
or plowing a field, are aspects of doing. But when pleasure is the dominant
motivation, as in dancing or listening to music, the activity is an aspect of being.
Doing does not involve or lead to feelings. In fact urgent doing usually blocks or
inhibit feelings, and this numbing quite commonly becomes the real motivation
behind much frenetic activity. All movements are dominated by the goal, and feelings
are considered irrelevant. In fact, in the short run, feelings can hamper performance.
For the sake of efficiency, people try to transform themselves into machines until the
goal is achieved. They believe that this will produce the most goods, or the most
merit, and therefore lead to happiness eventually. However, a long period of doing
without any being usually leads to the inability to enjoy the fruits of doing.
However, if we pay at least as much attention to the process as the goal, taking action
becomes creative or self-expressive, and increases the sense of being. In being, what
counts is not what one does, but how one does it. The reverse is true for doing.
Doing something is not letting it be. Doing represents an attempt to change a

situation, which can be constructive when the situation is an external one. However,
when the situation is internal, that is, a state of being, trying to change this state by
doing reduces one's being. To act upon the self, one part of the personality must turn
against another part. The ego or the I turns against the body by using the will against
the feelings of the body. In this way, the being is split, and thereby reduced.
Change produced by the application of force from without is the product of doing and
affects the being adversely. There is a process of change that takes place from within
and requires no conscious effort. It is called growth, and it enhances being. It is not
something one can do, and it is not therefore, a function of the ego but of the body.
Therapeutic change is similar to growth in that it is an inner process that cannot be

accomplished by conscious effort. This is not to say that doing plays no role in the
growth process. In acquiring a skill it is necessary to perform certain actions
consciously, so that learning can occur, but the learning itself takes place on an
unconscious, or body level.
Being is equated with feeling. One cannot make or produce a feeling anymore than
than one can make being. Genuine feelings arise spontaneously, otherwise one is
pretending. Further, feelings do not produce or accomplish anything. There is
neither goal nor purpose to feelings. We can give reasons for our feelings, but our
feelings do not arise in response to the dictates of reason. they often occur in
opposition to reason. They are spontaneous bodily responses to the world around us,
and there function is to promote the living process.
Doing can be superimposed on being, but it cannot substitute for being. If one is a
person, one can do and produce as a self-expression. The doing doesn't define the
self, but only enhances it. But if one is not a person, the doing will not fill in the lack.
One cannot become a person by doing.
I arise in the morning torn between a desire to improve the world and a desire to
enjoy the world. This makes it hard to plan the day.
E.B. White
Life happens in the balance point between making it happen and taking it as it
comes.
Paul Dennison
There are only the pursued, the pursuing, the busy and the tired
F. Scott Fitzgerald
Pleasure Primacy
In the Reich and Lowen tradition, it is considered more relevant to restore

the pleasure principle to good working order than the reality principle Most
therapies assume that the pleasure principle is in good working order and they
assume that the reality principle is broken in some way leading to suffering.
Certainly, with neurosis, ample unrealistic behavior is seen.
Reich and Lowen insisted, however, that such behavior results from a faulty pleasure
function, and that without repair of this, self-defeating and other types of distorted
behavior will nonetheless remain compelling. Cognitive and rational approaches will
only train the client to try to hide his or her inclination for such behavior.
Feelings versus Cognitions
Often in our culture, when a decision is hard to make, we tend to seek even more
factual information. We seek to make the 'right' decision by determining in advance
the results. People believe that they should come to 'want to do' what is 'best to do.'
However, satisfying decisions are only makeable on the basis of feelings. Said
another way, the heart should lead and the brain should follow a half-step behind,
working out the details. Just as in infants, in adults, the reality function (based in the
brain and cognitions) should serve (and serve well) the pleasure function (based in
the heart, gut, and pelvis.)
The phrase 'feeling primacy' describes the concept that even realistic cognitions
should serve the direction set by feelings. The phrase 'somatic primacy' describes the
concept that cognitions tend to be distorted or unrealistic if body processes or
feelings are ignored or overruled.
The Present, Real, and Somatic Basis of Emotional Suffering
Most emotional distress has a present real and somatic basis, that is, it is
not just a mental 'mistake'. For instance, a very shy person may withdraw from
close contact with other adults. Knowing that a history of very early rejection is
likely, it is tempting to conclude that the adult behavior comes from a 'mistaken, and
oddly preserved overgeneralization that others will harm. This can lead to an
enthusiastic attempt to get rapidly closer to the shy person, in an attempt to provide
an experience of non-harm.
However, if instead, it is understood, that even unsatisfying behavior has a logical

and actual present basis in the body, a different conceptualization is possible. In
the above example, if the periphery is very diffuse or thin, as in the Creator character,
than closeness is a real intrusion. For the time being, other people do cause
hurt, somatically and actually. Given this understanding, bodywork that
strengthens the periphery and increases the capacity to hold emotion and energy is
indicated. Trying to establish closeness first might be intellectually accepted by the
client, but energetically, it just strengthens the defense (interior withdrawal)
Similar examples can be described for all character structures. If a friend, family
member, or therapist merely redoubles conversational efforts to convince the client
that he or she can have type of relationship or experience they have been unable to
form, if only they would choose it, they are frustrating the person who almost surely
has been trying self-help of that sort already.
Even though the present basis of suffering tends to have roots in childhood
experience, even an accurate explanation of those roots does not remove the present
basis. Such an explanation may, however, provide a useful organizing idea for work
on removing the present basis however.
Everyday observation shows that when a situation changes, even a long-standing

situation, beliefs can change rapidly. Only in psychology is it considered the norm for
false beliefs to persist groundlessly. As a general rule, when persistent behavior is
treated like 'it makes sense', change is experienced as a much more manageable and
less mysterious process.
Body Primacy
Emotions arise first in the body and are perceived by the mind. The mind's
role is to 'make sense' of emotion and determine a path of conduct that is both
realistic and honors the feeling. True, good thoughts and good feelings usually occur
together, as do bad thoughts and bad feelings. What is cause and what is effect is not
easy to determine. This has lead some to declare that thoughts and feeling influence
each other equally. The thinly veiled implication of this is, since thoughts are subject
to ego control, is that a well-regulated person will use thoughts to bring inconvenient
feelings 'into line.'
However, many decades of practical efforts attempting to change feelings

by changing thoughts with cognitive therapy has shown only a very brief
effectiveness which is more akin a dissociation from bad feelings than a
change in feeling. Also, an attempt to change feelings by
changing thoughts about feelings with psychodynamic therapy has shown longer
lasting but still rather meager results. However, Wilhelm Reichdemonstrated that by
changing body feeling directly, psychological outlook changed concurrently, even
without much analysis.
Cognitive distortions can be challenged logically and seemingly effectively, but in the
absence of a change in body feeling, they re-emerge persistently with an 'irrational'
compellingness. Lowen attributed some of the effectiveness of early psychoanalysis
to the shocking nature of Freudian ideas. Shock works completely apart from logic
because it is a strong activation of the autonomic nervous system.
The phrase 'body primacy' describes the concept that cognitions tend to be distorted
or unrealistic if body processes or feelings are ignored or overruled. The phrase
'feeling primacy' describes the concept that even realistic cognitions should serve the
direction set by feelings. That is, body primacy asserts that the body will have its say
eventually, and feeling primacy asserts that there is a fitness to this.
Body Values versus Ego Values

Humans have two parts to their nature--they are conscious actors and they are
unconscious responders. Another way to say this is that humans are voluntary actors
and also involuntary responders. A philosophical view that emphasizes only the
involuntary is 'determinism'. An opposite view is 'free will' which dismisses the

involuntary.
What the psychodynamic point of view established by Freud asserted, was that if the
involuntary and voluntary are not in harmony, a distorted involuntary ruled
the person, with ill effect. The basic approach of Freud was to increase the voluntary
and make the involuntary negligible. (As in his dictum " Where the Id was, the Ego
shall be.") Modern cognitive therapy has the same agenda. True, cognitive therapy
does not use the concept of the id or the unconscious, but it has an analogous role of
the 'bad' involuntary in the concepts 'behavioral dysregulation', 'cognitive
distortions', and 'irrational thought'.
The Reich and Lowen tradition, on the other hand seeks, to harmonize the voluntary
with the involuntary. Since the involuntary can be seen most clearly in the body, and
the voluntary is seen most clearly in the ego, this can be restated that the tradition
seeks to harmonize the body and the go. Because in our time, the role of the ego in
one's life has grown enormously, work in the Reich and Lowen tradition emphasizes
the life of the body strongly. This is not in the cause of bringing about an instinctual
anarchy as some fear, but rather in the cause of bringing about balance and harmony.
However, as the body and ego are very split in our culture, so are our values. Ego
values are those motives that bring about action in the world, or self-definition. Body
values are those motives which bring about self-posession and satisfaction. In
general, the ego wants to 'get somewhere' or 'do something', while the
body wants to be somewhere or feel something. Of course it is very possible
to think in terms of 'person' or personal values that combine the propensities of ego
and body--this is a creative response to life..
Below in tabular form is some ideas about the possible opposition of

complementariness of body and ego values. In looking it over, I perceive an overall
bias on my part toward 'body values': some of the values listed in that column might
in fact result only when body and ego are working together well. It is clear though,
that our present culture focuses on 'feeding' the ego values, and to achieve balance,
an individual usually needs to concentrate on feeding the body. Sincere work in the
Reich and Lowen tradition will often nudge one toward body values.
Ego Values
Body Values
Thinking
Feeling
Individuality
Community
Culture
Nature
Adult
Child
Superiority
Excellence
Immortality
Fullness of Life
Achievement
Pleasure
Power
Cooperation
Performance
Spontaneity
Production
Creation
Efficiency
Effortlessness
Security
Comfort
Doing
Being
Novelty
Familiarity
Formation
Nurture
Accumulation
Enough
Purity
Cleanliness
Specialness
Belonging
Tool
Object
Child Primacy
Most discussions of a society's responsibility to its children are premised on

the Doctrine of Original Sin. Although original sin is a formal doctrine of some
religions it is also a unconscious belief of traumatized (most) adults. It is the idea
that children are born 'bad' or at least with a strong trajectory toward the bad, and
that strong intervention must be initiated to 'break' the nature of the child and instill
'civilization from the outside.
The opposing belief is that children are born good and with a strong trajectory
toward the good. Children only need to be supported and gently guided. This is the
premise of the Reich and Lowen tradition and fortunately, many parents. One
implication of this, is that society should look to the natural strivings of
children to set social priorities.
Breast Feeding: Another implication of child-primacy is a priority on breastfeeding. Children clearly prefer breast to bottle if the mother is comfortable. The
breast is a source of pleasure, grounding, and security to the infant and toddler.
Children should be allowed to wean themselves, and when so allowed will almost
always nurse to three to five years old, at least at night.
The benefits of breast-feeding have been partly recognized by mainstream culture,

but mostly in a chemical way. That is the ingredients of breast milk are admitted to
be superior, but women are encouraged to go to work and pump their breasts. The
baby suckling the breast is almost surely the most valuable aspect for mother and
child but it is not recognized. Also breast milk 'banks' are a barely tolerable idea in
our culture, but employing a wet-nurse, even for those who could easily afford it, is a
taboo idea. On a recent trip to Sierra Leone, Salma Hayek nursed a sick infant from
her breast. I believe this was not just a very admirable impulse but a natural and
healthy one. One imagines that only the immunity of great celebrity or wealth
allowed her to do that in public without repercussion.
Expressive Shift and Discovery
There are three modes of action: reaction, performance, and expression. Reaction
includes muscular reflexes, certain instinctual reactions and defensive behaviors.
Those reactions that are not purely physiological tend to be future oriented, that is
they address fears or fantasies of what will happen. Although reactions and reactivity
might make a compelling discussion, for purposes of this topic suffice it say that in
interpersonal behavior, the less mere reaction the better.
Performance is seeking to imitate an idea or mental picture of what

should happen. Our complex culture rewards performance and so from a young
age, most of us are coached and encouraged to perform. It becomes the dominant
mode of doing. Performance puts all the emphasis on the state of having done
something, not the actual doing of it (endgaining). Performance implies seeking
approval from others. Performance ignores present feeling and uses the body as a
tool.
Expression is acting or moving from the perception of what is happening

now, inside oneself, and in the immediate environment. Expression is
spontaneous and unique, although, humans having much in common, expression
tends to be similar in similar situations. Unlike reaction, expression tends to the
present moment.
When bodywork is done intentionally, the goal is increasing the capacity for
expression. However, the drive to perform is very strong and almost unavoidable at
first. The result is concentrating on the shell of a movement and missing the 'guts'.
Many strains of body work, such as the Alexander Technique, are deliberately vague
in what is wanted in order to avoid this rush to perform. Somewhat differently,
the Pilates Method gives a 'shell' but constantly de-emphasizes or restrains
completion, and instead emphasizes 'guts' or form. This mysterious target is just an
inevitable part of regaining feeling and purpose.
A Buddhist saying captures an element of expressive shift: "Find where you are
and work from there. Do not try to work from where you want to be."
A related experience is discovery. In bodywork, it is a given that participants are

becoming aware of feelings, capacities, and sensations previously unknown. For
people coming back to their bodies, discovery is a two part process: the discovery
itself and (re)learning the process of discovery. Discovery is necessary to change old
patterns.
The expressive shift is increasing the capacity, inclination, and tendency for
expression. Of course there is a paradox here. In a 'corrective' tradition, change is
desired, not expression within the same old limits. However, it is very difficult to
perform a movement in a new way as an adult. This is because the already
strongest muscle and already strongest nerve will 'hijack' the movement
again and again. Imbalance seems to perpetuate imbalance. This is true of
expression alone and performance alone. For neuro-muscular change both
expression and training must interact. That is, a participant can neither be told
exactly what to do, nor left to just "do his or her thing." This reality explains the
ambiguity or seeming vagueness of most skilled bodywork traditions. It can be
frustrating for the participant, but it is necessary.
There are two avenues of progress, and both are necessary. One is skilled help from
someone that can 'block' old patterns and coach and insist on new patterns. This of
course will involve some performance. Generally large classes in gyms cannot really
provide this, because even if the instructor is capable, he or she simply cannot
supervise any one person enough to stop the enactment of old patterns. By the way,
no amount of theoretical knowledge will change the body. Aha! experiences can
provide spurts of insight, but not spurts of real change. Insight can have role in
change, probably as a consolidator of change, or leading one to engage in some
growth stimulating undertaking. Trying to perform an insight is always
hollow.
The second avenue is growth. As nervous systems change and alignment improves
and certain things are attempted, new capacities arise and new actions and
movements are spontaneously expressed. This requires patience because growth is
slower than the speed of thought or the decision of will. That is, it is necessary to be
patient and not to try to force things by trying too hard. Almost surely, at some
point it will seem that almost nothing is happening. That is because
almost nothing is happening. But almost nothing and actually nothing are
completely different! Very small but actual change is cumulative. In fact real change
is usually noticed by other people rather than the participant, because growth is so
very gradual. If one perceives change is happening rapidly, that is probably an
illusion.
Mastery is a hybrid between expression and performance. If there is

difficulty mastering something, it is often a limitation in basic neuro-muscular
development, which of course is improvable with the right body work, or it is
incapacity for expression.
Most physical fitness training these days is based on practices useful for the already
athletically adept or graceful, and therefore 'starts too high' and does not remediate
basic neuromuscular patterns. The usual result is great effort at the beginning, with
some change but quick plateauing. There is no real pleasure, but most people quit
not because of that but because of discouragement.
The Games People Play

In relationships, reaction and performance combine to create 'games' or futile
patterns of relating. Whenever a person acts not out his or her own feeling and belief
but entirely in anticipation of the reactions of the other (perhaps even several 'moves
ahead') he or she is playing a game. This can be mostly unconscious, but the lack of
self-focus is so conspicuous that it should be discernable with some introspection. Of
course all good people consider how the other person "will take it," but that should be
a secondary process not the main one, as in a game.
Receptive Shift
A key polarity in human functioning is between instrumental mode (acting upon),

and receptive mode (being acted upon.) There is an overlap but not an identity
between this polarity and the polarities of being and doing, masculine and feminine,
and sympathetic and parasympathetic. Below is a table summarizing differences in
the two modes.
Adapted liberally from Deikman, The Observing Self
Instrumental Mode
Receptive Mode
To act on the environment
To receive the environment
Understanding in terms of objects and

manipulation of objects
Understanding in terms of processes and

participation in them
Mobility
Motility
Focal attention
Diffuse attention
Sharp perceptual and cognitive boundaries
Blurred boundaries
Interest in forms more than sensory
Sensory more than an interest in forms
Linear casualty
Simultaneity
Logical thought
Intuition
Language
Music, art, poetry
Left hemisphere dominates
Right hemisphere dominates
EEG: increased beta waves, decreased alpha and

theta waves
EEG: decreased beta waves, increased alpha and

theta waves
Past/Future
Now
Sympathetic nervous system
Parasympathetic nervous system
Survival and accomplishment both dictate the instrumental mode, at least part of the
time. However, pleasure and contact require the receptive mode. Our culture more
and more repudiates the receptive mode. Instead the attitude toward nourishment
and renewal is to take and take--which of course is the the instrumental mode. Power
and control require a constant dedication to the instrumental mode. Continuous
existence in the instrumental mode may allow accumulation of material
goods and power, but because of the lack of receiving anything into the
body, literal energetic and emotional starvation results.
The instrumental mode at its extreme leads to objectification. To simplify, this is

when everything the ego perceives is known by its function for that ego. This extends
even to the body in which the ego resides. Most people today have a double obstacle
to receptivity, character armor and a cultural bias toward power and control.
Passivity is not receptivity. Receptivity is an active process. 'Withstanding' or
'enduring' something is an instrumental act not a receptive one. Clearly today a
strong receptive shift is needed by most people in our culture to achieve well-being.
Vacations used to have this purpose
Objectlessness
Because receptivity does not require objectification of the world, objectlessness is the
extreme end of the receptive pole. It is the opposite of objectification. It is perhaps
what Krishnamurti means by 'choiceless awareness.' At this point a quantitative
change may also become a qualitative one. The phrase 'one with the world' is often
employed. Alexander Lowen called this joy. Subjectively the experience is
blissful. There is a certain defenselessness inherent in objectlessness, so it
should not be undertaken in a predatory environment.
Enlightenment, Liberation, Nirvana

There is a universally reported feeling of sufficiency that goes a long with
objectlessness. Some traditions describe this as supra-natural and qualitatively
different than mere health. The Reich and Lowen tradition does not speak to actual
enlightenment or anything other than the natural. With attaining mind so strong in
our culture, there is always the worry that enlightenment can be treated as an object
and pursued as an illusion of superiority, or an illusion of over-coming the body.
Also, enlightenment as an aspiration may serve as a rationalization to side-step adult
responsibility--normal daily concerns might be considered petty.
Meditation
A goal and benefit of meditation is a strong receptive shift that can balance the
enormous instrumental bias of our culture. Meditation is a strong measure, that
changes brain waves patterns as well as autonomic balance. It has the potential to
produce strong objectlessness. As suggested above, experience has shown many
instances where communities that emphasize meditation have turned abusive. Also,
suppressed feeling and anxiety can be released precipitously before the development
of bodily self-possession. (The yoga tradition developed yogasana and pranayama to
prepare the body for meditation.) Meditation is not the only practice to provide a
receptive shift but it is the most direct. Because the lack of inherent safeguards in the
practice, a safe 'container' for the practitioner is usually indicated. Traditionally this
container has been a wise knowledgeable teacher. However in this arena, as
mentioned above, commitment to a teacher or a teacher's organization has on
occasion led to exploitation. Yet solo practice may not be without some danger. The
practice of meditation in our modern society seems to call for care and prudence
Perceptual Ceiling
First, this is the inability to perceive chronic holding and misalignment in one's own
body. Perception requires movement, and so holding and decreased motility tends to
fall out of consciousness. Second, it is the tendency for the senses not to directly
perceive in others, what one cannot perceive in oneself.
For instance, if ones back is holding a lot of tension chronically, it will be hard to
notice the tension that others are carrying. Likewise, if one is not vibrating much,
there is an inability to perceive the vibration of others. If one's own voice is
monotone, it will be hard to perceive subtle inflections in someone else's voice.
The combination of decreased body awareness and perceptual ceiling can make
bodywork a bit of an act of faith in the beginning. It can be difficult to
understand what is being asked, and also doubts can arise about whether
anything is actually happening, or whether goals of bodywork are real.
This contrasts to complex volitional behaviors, which are discernable in others even
to those of us who do not act that way. For instance, a shy person sees outgoing
behaviors in others and does not doubt they occur. It is much more graspable to try
to imitate such behaviors. This falls short in the end because the behavior is not
natural.
Discharge versus Release
In the Reich and Lowen tradition, the basic guiding format for a 'session'
is charge then discharge. This is simply a straightforward way to re-establish
the pleasure cycle. Charging can only be commensurate to discharge. While it is
possible in some ways to be stuck in the 'charged' position, in general difficulty
discharging results in an undercharged condition. Charging is generally upward in
the body or in the upper body. Discharge is downward through the body, or in the
lower body. As suggested above, discharge is usually more blocked than charging.
Screaming, hitting, biting, reaching are all actually charging activities, as is

hyperventilation. Kicking, crying, belly laughing, and grounding measures are
discharging activities
Because of Lowen's emphasis on expression and undoing emotional suppression,

another element got added in the tradition that is confusing, and that is release.
Unlike discharge, which is a biological and energetic concept, release is an emotional
or psychological concept. It is possible to experience an emotional release
without an energetic discharge, they are not the same. If properly
understood in emotional terms, a release can lessen blocks to discharge and can
harmonize the body. A clear example is a couple having an honest fight, and then
having passionate 'make-up' sex. The fight is the release that 'clears' the situation but
the sex is the discharge that resolves the tension between them.
A release that does not lead to a discharge, however, is just a catharsis. A hazard of
emphasizing expressive work too early is setting a pattern of brief charging followed
by emotional release which only provides a brief mental comforting without change
in the body. This type of release work may be an advance where feeling and energy
has been quite low, but it can become a 'racket.' that actually side-steps deeper
feeling. While many people start Reich and Lowen work with both inadequate release
and inadequate discharge, the benefit of release only (which is available also through
conversational traditions) is limited.
Both release and discharge involve emotion since emotion is both a biological and
psychological phenomenon. Durable healing can rarely happen on a psychological
level only, and so discharge is needed for emotional healing, If grounding and neuromuscular development is properly attended to (in therapy or in one's own selfdesigned program,) discharge becomes possible and usually spontaneous. Discharge
is very hard to force through willed action, rather it is a matter of choosing to develop
the conditions of discharge, including a loose flexible body, visceral awareness, a
ventral shift, and sound opportunities for pleasure in one's life.
Re-Regulation
Restoring the capacity for feeling and purpose in the stressed twenty-first century
requires re-regulation of dysregulated vegetative systems. Re-regulation is a different
undertaking than other types of changes. Alexander Lowen consistently wrote about
the increasing barrier modern social conditions posed to living with
pleasure and feeling. My own opinion is now in the second decade of the 21st
century, re-regulation and decreasing baseline arousal almost always has to be
undertaken as a pre-requisite to the more classic Reich and Lowen 'release work.'
First, growth and development of arrested functioning cannot restart under

stress. Stressed systems do not develop, either in strength or
discrimination. Under stress, behavioral repertoire my increase, but that is
defensive and not really growth, except maybe growth in defensive tendencies.
Nietzsche may have said what doesn't kill a person makes them stronger, but he was
only thinking of survival, a fundamentally defensive stance. No pleasure arises from
defensive tendencies. However, our mainstream culture mistakes this behavioral
complexity (in academia, business, social relations), as human development, missing
its defensive nature, and not seeing the cost in biological and emotional terms.
Behavioral therapy, while body-based in part, often misses this distinction, and
cognitive therapy (especially along the lines of Albert Ellis) absolutely misses it.. It is
possible to increase determination and tolerance for 'withstanding' a situation
without increasing real satisfaction. Unless there is a strong independent reason for
persisting in the behavior (like earning a living) the change will not be sustained.
Adaptive Band: Trauma therapists have long-recognized that healing arises in the
middle range of arousal--that too little arousal is avoidance and too much arousal is
re-traumatizing. Judith Bluestone working with the autistic spectrum recognized the
same thing and coined the term 'gentle enhancement' This concept that there is
a middle band of adaptation is applicable to all human growth work. The threshold
is reached much more quickly than most of us realize. Even the 'classic' application of
Reich and Lowen therapy in the 60s and 70s, with its emphasis on 'breakthroughs,
may have erred in the direction of strong stimulus that produces an adaptation that
is subtly defensive and consists of 'performing' openness. Staying with the work
steadily may be more efficacious than 'hitting it hard'
Allostasis: The human body has a thermostat-like function to maintain internal

conditions at an optimal level for functioning. This is usually referred to
as homeostasis. With external challenges (stress) the set-points are often shifted in
what is meant to be a temporary compromise. If stress is prolonged however, these

shifts become fixed and this is known as allostasis, which is not wholesome
adaptation but a semi-emergency action. The most common of these shifts
are sympathetic shift, dorsal shift, and high arousal. Allostasis leads to
physical burnout and emotional depletion.
The conditions of industrialization largely obliterated the boundaries of growth and

respected only the boundaries of survival. Present social norms actually expect all
people to function under a level of stress that make real growth difficult. The
dominant cultures of the last few centuries have had a distaste for indigenous, folk,
or sub-cultures that did not prioritize production, but these cultures largely were
seeking to remain humane.
Re-regulation often requires slowing down and simplifying life, not for its own sake
but to regain contact with the body and the self, and to conserve energy for growth.
In re-regulation, gentle and subtotal effects are not only allowable, they are
preferable. Our culture and our healthcare system certainly is uncomfortable with
'mere' enhancement, and with skill based interventions. Far too much we look
for a 'fix' that obliterates symptoms quickly. But 'fixes' are necessarily
dysregulating. 'Holistic' is an under-defined term, but I suggest a treatment is holistic
when moves the organism toward re-regulation.
Capture: For remediation of a dysregulated vegetative system many things have to

happen at once. Only addressing one element of a dysregulated system may in fact
increase the dysregulation, and this is the hole that allopathy often finds itself in
increasingly with this era's epidemic of auto-immune and inflammatory diseases.
Trying things sequentially and discarding them quickly seems scientific but it is
faulty from a holistic point of view. In practice, several approaches may have to be
slowly added and continued together for anything to start to improve. For
instance, nutrition, psychological work, neuro-muscular retraining, increasing
vitality, increasing expression, touch, and sensory work may all have to be
undertaken simultaneously. Only with capturing the many manifestations of
imbalance at the same time can balance be slowly regained.
This requires some faith in folk wisdom (and the wisdom of mothering, and the
wisdom of the body) because the extremely reductionistic process that currently
dominates science will be confused by the concurrent and uncontrolled nature of
this. However all life, and certainly all life worth living is an uncontrolled and
concurrent undertaking. It is important to start approaches one at a time, with the
most promising or 'lowest hanging fruit.' As a practice seems to have some benefit,
others are added. It is important not to dabble but rather to have some fidelity
because every beneficial approach is in its partial way meant to be a complete capture
of the homeostatic issue it addresses and picking and choosing very casually may
negate the possible benefit.
Saturation and Unpacking
In emotional healing, a somewhat discouraging thing often occurs. When the

outermost layers of limitation are dealt with, more 'stuff' comes up. One begins to
worry about, or suffer from, what one never worried about before. This is
called unpacking. Like a densely packed closet, there is unprocessed hurt that one
has not really forgotten, but which has been dulled. So even with real change,
subjectively suffering remains high for a time. It may even temporarily increase
somewhat, from a numbed out purgatory to a true maximum. Also areas of life
previously thought okay will be de-stabilized, and quite a bit of interpersonal friction
will be revealed. As an individual becomes less shut down, the expectations and
hopes from others may renew.
This is saturation. At a point (perhaps an early point) suffering reached a maximum,

and though hurts were accumulating they could not be appreciated. Unpacking is not
an endless process but it can be a long one. The criteria for whether one is on
the right path is not necessarily whether one is feeling better (though
that will eventually happen) but whether things are feeling more real.
The Concept of Character
The Concept of Character in the Reich and Lowen Tradition
Therapists working in the Freudian tradition in the twenties described two trends.
One, psycho-analysis did not seem to be working as well as it should, given the
demonstrated validity of many of its elements. Second, certain patterns of presenting
problems seemed to go together with certain patterns of resisting interpretations,
spurring the development of the concept of character. The question also arose, did
the first trend have something to do with the second?
Wilhelm Reich also noticed that the patterns of character extended to physical
appearance and posture. At a standstill in some cases, Reich resorted to having
clients move seemingly-fixed areas like the jaw, to loosen things up. Often a flow of
feeling and memories arose and progress started again. Reich came to believe that
the question of character was central to psychotherapy. The physical manifestations
he called armor. While Reich emphasized character, he neither created nor
emphasized a thorough typology of character. Reich believed it was important to
'corner' the armor in a client, segment by segment.
Alexander Lowen however, made the concept of character more conspicuous in the
thinking about change. Whereas Reich thought of character more as 'thematic' of
early injury, Lowen thought of it more as a consistent, predictable set of alternative
developmental pathways instigated by negative or inadequate environmental
responses at critical junctures in early life. From extensive natural and clinical
observation, he did create a 'tight' typology of character that included physical,
psychological, familial and social aspects. It is that system that underlies how
character is thought of in this tradition. Lowen defined character this way
... character structure is not a conglomeration of injuries and defenses which can be
analyzed one by one, nor is it a series of scattered muscular tensions-a tense neck, a
rigid jaw, contracted shoulders, etc.-- which block the flow of excitation and feeling
in the body. True, each tense muscle or muscle group is the result of traumatic
experiences which block the expression of feeling. But the character structure is an
organized system of defenses aimed to promote the survival and security of the
individual. And these defenses are integrated and coordinated to promote the
maximum security which the individual feels necessary and yet provide an
opportunity for the individual to try to find some fulfillment in life. It was not built
in a day but over a period of years--six to be exact--during which the child strove to
find some positive meaning in its life. It is a walled city or a fortress depending on
the degree of fear.' It cannot be analyzed away, nor can it be demolished by force. It
is part of the individual's nature, second nature to be exact, and therefore beyond
the will of the individual to change.*
This defensive character is, perhaps, a way to provide a consistency of
experience that provides a stop-gap consistency in the sense of self. As a
stronger sense of self develops, a broader range of experience can be allowed.

However, in natural development, it is the broader experiences that precede and
develop the sense of self. Hence arises the tough, but not insurmountable, 'bootstrapping' problem of 'character-analytic' work in therapy and in lifestyle. For an
adult, character works like a filter that screens out just those experiences that might
broaden interpersonal awareness. Character becomes self-perpetuating and selfreinforcing.
Character is what seems to give life meaning and create an identity. A person tends
not to see it as a handicap but rather an asset. In many ways, separating one's sense
of self from a formed character seems like death. Character then, in this tradition,
refers not only to a set of blocks and limitations, but also, and this is its dynamic
quality, to an adaptive self that seeks love through conforming to an image of
lovability and acceptability. The person does not usually realize they are conforming,
rather he or she believes they are pursuing goodness. Character, however, differs
from a 'false self.' A false self is a compensatory mental product that often is meant to
refute the physical and biographical reality of the person. The prevalence of false
selves is one reason that self-diagnosis of character often fails. It is the actual body,
not the conscious aspirations that defines character.
Lowen defined five characters: Schizoid, Oral, Psychopathic, Masochist, and
Rigid. He stated that this was not a classification of people but rather
defensive positions. In his writings, Lowen 'defined' how characters are defined.
His system works as a 'forced choice' --everyone one sees walking on the street for
instance, can placed in one of the five characters. I have followed the forced-choice'
tradition, but added one non-Lowenian characters (the Swollen Character of
Stanley Keleman), because it seems useful. For a time, I had taken into the list the
Symbiotic Character of Stephen M. Johnson. However, I have removed it as a distinct
character and added Johnson's construct in the form of 'borderline narcissist' to
the discussion of narcissism as a condition also in this section.
Lowen named the characters from psychoanalytic roots. The resulting names,
unfortunately, seem pejorative, and, unless the derivation is understood quite well,
confusing. And since bioenergetic therapy usually includes some part of an
educational approach, the names are downright embarrassing to use with clients.
Ronald Robbins came up with much needed alternative names that are evocative and
address strengths as well as limitations. Robbins renamed Lowen's basic five
character types; I have attempted (or rather I am attempting) to rename Keleman's
character. The names 'stack up' this way: Creator (Schizoid), Communicator
(Oral), Includer (Swollen), Inspirer (Psychopathic), Consolidator (Masochist),
and Achiever (Rigid). In the Achiever or Rigid character, genitality is established
and gender differences are strong, based on gender identification. This caused Lowen
to define four subtypes that are essentially four separate characters: Phallic Male,
Passive-Feminine Male, Hysterical Woman, and Masculine-Aggressive Woman. One
could therefore speak in terms of the 'rigid group' of characters. The 'phallic male'
and 'masculine aggressive women' can be renamed the Male Achiever and
the female achiever, but the passive-feminine male and hysterical character
have no easy name substitute that has come to mind. Also, it has been a question in
this tradition where to map the 'old-fashioned compulsive' character onto the
Lowenian typology. Lowen felt this presentation was very rare in the latter half of the
twentieth century, but that the compulsive character could best be understood as
an Achiever.
Characters are believed to arise from deviations from optimal child emotional
development at different times starting from pregnancy until five years of age. Some
characters are 'earlier' and some 'later'. Therefore Lowen's typology can be said to
constitute a 'horizontal model.' Stephen Johnson believed it was useful, especially in
psychotherapy, to map character not only according to the Lowenian horizontal
model of character type, but also according to a simultaneous 'vertical model' of ego
strength, which could be super-imposed on the horizontal model. The horizontal
model, as will be explained later, is not really a continuum, but rather a depiction of
five (or seven) final developmental pathways. However, the horizontal model does
imply a quantitative gradient of 'selfness.'
Within the horizontal model are two 'lines' indicating qualitative changes. The first is
between the schizoid or creator character and the rest. This is sometimes referred to
as the 'schizoid condition' which differs from the 'neurotic condition' of the other
characters. The second 'line' is between the earliest four (or six) characters and
the Achiever or rigid, which is actually a group of characters, differentiating along
sexual and gender lines, all of whom who share the features of 1) lesser only meshlike armor, 2) energy flow from head to genitals and back, and 3) good reality testing.
This group is increasingly a rarity in clinical samples, and, Lowen thought,
increasingly a rarity in society.
A small controversy on the horizontal model is where to place the psychopathic
or inspirer character: before or after the masochistic or consolidator character.
Placing the inspirer after the consolidator has much bioenergetic basis-the inspirer, like the achiever, can displace energy outward well and can contact
others on an energetic basis even if distorted. The overall disruptive and erratic social
performance of the inspirer character is, on the other hand, cited as evidence of less
mature development. This sounds more like a moral argument, however, and
Lowen's horizontal model is a model of energetic, not moral development. The
originating childhood injuries postulated for the inspirer character are usually
placed at 18 months, before the origin of the masochistic or consolidator character,
however the origin of the inspirer seems the least understood, and it is possible that
in speculating, many may be working backwards from where they believe
the inspirer belongs on the horizontal model.
Gender affects the expression of character greatly. The chromosomal and hormonal
effects are very strong. Generally females are more empathetic and men more
instrumentally oriented or systematizing. This dimensional difference is
present in all characters, causing attenuation of some aspects and accentuation of

others, but not really 'breaking' the character. Of course in the rigid group, the effects
of gender are strong, but that is based on adult genitality, not just the
empathizing/systematizing difference. Because biological gender is not
environmentally-mediated, its effects on character are noted in the Reich and Lowen
traditional only for purposes of recognition, not for purposes of change.
Character description is approached three main ways: 1) How the person looks and
moves-- muscle tensions and restrictions being most definitional, 2) The typical realtime interactions and attitudes with others, say a therapist or a love interest, and 3)
the typical biography that a character lays down on his or her course through life.
In the descriptions of character, body fat percentages and body fat distribution are
relevant but not central. In our day, body fat has become an issue that draws
judgment, but it is partly a red-herring as far as Lowenian character.
Character Focus and Character Analysis

Alexander Lowen came to believe that resistance to change ultimately resided not
just in the body and not just in beliefs, but actually in character itself, intangible as it
may be. That is, body work alone, or psychological work alone, or even perhaps both
done in parallel, could not really unseat the limiting effects of character. Rather
overall global character attitudes had to be confronted. This is called character
focus.
Most therapy has followed Freud's cue in being led by free association. This is true
also for practitioners that eschew or little understand Freud. Free association, of
course, is somewhat of a misnomer in that it leads to material not completely
random. It leads to 'what is really on the mind' of the client, and therefore,
presumably led, eventually, to all that is necessary. However, long experience led to
the conclusion that this was insufficient, especially as clients became more
sophisticated. If resistances are 'analyzed and dissolved as they arise', then it seems
that endless creative new resistances arise. The nucleus of resistance seems to
be able to jump from manifestation to manifestation. This brings to mind
Karen Horney's quip that the patient [client] comes to therapy to "perfect the
neurosis". After enough work with the therapist around resistance, new resistances
may be 'slicker' and even look somewhat like insight.
Lowen, like Wilhelm Reich before him, believed that only by helping the client see
how his or her resistance fit a constellation of character, could the nucleus of
resistance be overcome. An implication of this is that egalitarian and
exploratory approaches to therapy and change, even one's including
bodywork, if they fail to 'characterize' the problem, tended to only
produce modest change in quality of life. From this arises the emphasis on
'tight' definitions of the character such as Lowen's basic five. Looser, 'Mr Potato
Head' approaches in which character is described by an impromptu amalgamation of

traits are prone to self-deception if done by the subject, and projection if done by
another.
To Lowen, character was body and energy. Behavioral traits were seen as
epiphenomena of the body. That is why targeted bodyworkand character analysis
could happen at the same time--to him, character analysis was body analysis, and a
strictly conversational format was rarely necessary.
The Use and Misuse of Character Typologies

It can be stipulated at the outset, and a priori, that there are no 'pure characters'.
This is because character types are ideas or concepts, and people are not ideas.
However, a good question is: "as ideas, how real, and how discrete, can these
character types be considered?"
First, 'character' in the Reich and Lowen tradition, refers not to personality per se,
but rather to the body's mature structure (phenotype) and energy characteristics.
Learned behavior can be thought of as a layer ('social layer') existing on top of
character and shaping the final personality. The effect of character is so strong
however that overwhelmingly, the person rejects whatever learning is characterdystonic, and accepts whatever learning is character-syntonic. That is why, in a
discussion of behavior patterns, character makes an easy stand in for the concept of
personality. It is also why psychotherapy with the learned layer (ideology) usually
has such modest results.
Some very devoted Lowenian therapists state that character was over-emphasized in
past decades. Certainly, using character simply to sort or pigeonhole people, or to
rationalize interpersonal difficulties, is not legitimate. But clearly, an emphasis on
character makes Reich and Lowen therapy a therapy of 'characterlogical
transformation'. Character analysis is a way of 'cornering' resistance once and for all.
But for adults, that transformation will probably never completely overwrite the
'starting character. As the hold of a particular character diminishes, one perhaps
becomes an individual more or less, but never a model.
It is easy for those doing this work personally and professionally for a long time, to
feel like failures if their own 'starting' character is quickly recognizable. But character
is by definition unhidable, so to an experienced and compassionate practitioner,
starting character is always visible. Reich and Lowen therapy is not about achieving
an ideal and concealing final form. It is about acquiring flexibility in feeling and
action.
It is natural to not want to be typecast. Everyone is unique. Lowen stated that there
are many instances of clients being in between or at the "borderline" of
categories. Character analysis is not a function of the purity of character
but of the dominant mode of functioning. However, speaking in terms of

widely mixed--(e.g. 'Heinz 57')-- character seems invalid. To do so requires believing
often, that one can be high energy and low energy, overaggressive and unable to
express aggression. If a balanced character is being thought of, than there is a
character idea for that, the "true genital" character or the rigid character at the
asymptote of armoring. This of course is an idea, not a description of an actual
person that has ever been located.
If the overall picture of character is unclear, it could also be that deliberate
compensatory styles ('scripts') are being lived out. Character is clearer sometimes if
basic functioning is studied rather than stated goals or ideology. That is, what the
person does is sometimes more relevant to understanding character than what the
person says. If a student of character accepts his or her true starting character,
accepting and understanding the characterology is much simpler.
Another question that arises is whether it is necessary to recapitulate all the 'later'
characters in Lowen's horizontal (developmental) model to arrive at satisfying living.
The nice guy in all of us wants to quickly assert the contrary, because it doesn't seem
fair for the 'earlier' characters. Of course, no client needs to actually become later
characters because after all, they do not represent normal development, but rather
defensive positions. However, it is probably dishonest to pretend that some people
do not have 'longer to go' More postponed developmental struggles have to be lived
out. And this 'longer' lines up with how the person's starting character lines up in
Lowen's horizontal model. It is a developmental model.
Overall the concept of character remains controversial, even among
'somatic therapists'. Since 'Lowenian' character is a concept of malfunction, a
focus on character becomes a focus on what not to do, rather than what to do. This
'pathology' focus can itself become limiting. Reich moved away from an emphasis on
character later, it is true, because he got away from treating individuals and treating
adults. He felt prevention during infancy and childhood was the answer. Lowen is
said to have emphasized character less in his later career. From reading his
autobiography, this seems to be because he got away from lifestyle analysis, which
tends to be character specific, and gravitated more toward essential core bodywork,
which tends to include more 'multi-character' or 'pan-character' interventions, such
as grounding or reaching. That is, he got away from 'what not to do' and starting
emphasizing more 'what to do'. Nowhere in his writings does he indicate that he
came to believe characterlogical assessment or characterological change were invalid
concepts.
*Newsletter of The International Institute for Bioenergetic Analysis Volume 18, No 2
Fundamental Trends of Character
Trends are basic ways of getting needs met. Some character structures are named for
their basic trends. The same trend can exist in other characters, in which case it can
be confusing to speak about, because it seems to be mixing characters up. At times, a
trend can be striven toward by effort and decision, perhaps as an effort to deny or
overcome the results of innate character. All energy structures can partially show
these basic trends depending on 1) how well issues were satisfied in development, 2)
family needs as a whole, and 3) social influences. Trends as concepts of their own can
also be used to 'detach' the essence of a character from the energy structure in order
to compare and contrast character goals from functional ideas of health-- for
instance orality can be contrasted to desire for contact, or rigidity contrasted
with aggression. below are four major trends:
Abstraction: This is organizing life around ideas and concepts. The basic
hope is that if life is understood, love and good feelings follow. It is basically,
trying to figure life out. This can lead to intellectualism, but also mysticism. A
partner's upset, for instance, becomes not a felt experience but a problem to
be solved. Solutions are not actions but rather ideas about addressing
problems. Social betterment is sought through understanding. Most benefits
of culture have come through abstraction of course but when an existence is
based on it, love, pleasure, and contact become strangers. Connection is
sought through sharing ideas. Sometimes psychotherapy falls into this trend,
where a client's life becomes a set of 'issues.' Excessive abstraction derives
from a fear of living as a physical individual (existential insecurity)
Orality: This is organizing life around needs. At bottom this is about one's
own need but is usually projected into the needs of others. The basic hope is
that an ideal nourishing and accepting person will answer the call and bring
love and good feeling. A subtrend is austerity in which one tries to reduce
one's needs, which is an attempt to fend off disappointment. The liberal
political point of view stems largely from this focus on needs. Needs exist of
course but so does the opportunity for their reasonable fulfillment as an adult.
Orality is not so much the recognition of needs but rather 1) others are felt to
hold the key to need fulfillment for oneself or needy others, (dependency), 2) a
pervasive climate of unfulfillment (deprivation).
Dominance: This is organizing life around the practice of getting others to

do what one sees fit. The hope is that if one controls the situation, love and
good feelings are secured. Dominance easily lends itself to an interest in
power, but can also lend itself to an interest in seduction. The need to
dominate may extend to other people, but it at least incorporates one person
the significant other. Dominated people need not be treated badly, but their
autonomy is undermined. Dominance used to be the sole providence of

the psychopathic character or Inspirer, but it has become more of a
cultural norm now. The cult of celebrity, glamorized professional sports are
about dominance. The concept "American Exceptionalism" is undisguisedly
about dominance. Business used to be about rigidity (and probably still is in
developing economies) but more and more corporations are geared toward
dominance including 'regulatory capture.'
Rigidity: This is organizing life around accomplishing goals. The hope is

that if one is effective in the world, love and good feeling follow. The 'Horatio
Alger theme of 'rags to riches' is about rigidity. So is the concept of the 'selfmade man'. It is not about the ultimate success but about persistence,
consistency, and 'grit.' The historical concept of the ideal housewife with the
perfect home is about rigidity. A career and one's worth can be the same. The
conservative political point of view stems largely from this focus on concrete
personal accomplishment. Alexander Lowen wrote many times that in
the achiever or rigid character, rigidity is over-determined (by both
energy structure and this trend). With rigidity, others can be misused
somewhat in the drive to the goal but this is not the main purpose of the trend.
Genitality: This is organizing life around satisfaction, loving, and creative

work. Genitality then, becomes the 'holy grail' or mark of healthiness. Reich
spoke of the 'genital character,' but Lowen, perhaps more realistic, dropped it.
As a trend, however, it is a necessary construct as it refers to a type of
functioning that is the goal of the entire tradition.
Character Scripts
A script arises when a person makes a somewhat or totally conscious commitment to
one or more trends. There is an element of 'performing.' This is a later development
than the formation of character, often occurring in a few years before or after
puberty. Unlike character it may have a cognitive component. Sometimes a 'pivotal
event' is cited as being formative. A young person then starts to pursue this as a goal,
even when it does not arise from feeling, and even when they are not very good at it.
Sometimes scripts are a family product. Scripts can be thought of as ideologies that
justify trends. They are a useful idea to describe a type of striving that may actually
not be suited to the underlying character and energy structure. It can contribute to
confusion about character in general and in a specific instance. Scripts contrary to
character do not alter character, though, because they are really mental
ideas, and do not change the underlying body or energy structure.
Redemption Script: If one's family of origin is felt to be unsuccessful, then

life can be dedicated to being successful, not for oneself, but for the family, so
that love can be 'unlocked' This is based on orality as one is organized around
the unfilled need of others for dignity.
Power Script This is becoming a very popular script. At times it is called the
'psychopathic defense' if displayed by people who really do not have that
energy structure. It is an attempt to feel secure by dominating or controlling
people not so much by charisma but by external accomplishments. The power
is projected less in a smooth way, more by persistence and effort and
vigilance. We live in a 'civilized culture' where power is supposed to accrue not
from physical capacity to take it, but from 'correctness.' That is why in the
power script, there is a tendency to criticize, pick fights, argue, and assert
what is correct. Our culture is based on power. Originally it was based on
power over nature, but very quickly it became also based on power over
others. Power is natural to the inspirer and achiever characters. To be seen
as powerful becomes a goal of non-energy projecting characters,
especially communicators. Communicators tend to believe that overcoming resistance is a matter of information and will.
Communicators however, really want others to take care of them, so there
success with the power script is often self-undermined--they really don't want
to displease anybody.
Masochistic Script Characters that lack aggression often develop a

pleasing nice-guy or nice-girl persona. Creator and
communicator characters however do not develop the thick powerful
structure of the consolidator. Rather, for them, the social masochism
develops as adult responsibilities start to arise in early adolescence. Persons
with a masochistic script often enter the the non-authority helping
professions--special education, nursing, ministry, social work, psychology, etc
where they can bear the unsolvable problems of others. Creator characters
are likelier to enter solitary professions, but are very capable of never
complaining.
Narcissism
Narcissism is not associated with any one Lowenian character but rather with a style
of life based on not feeling. Narcissism is not a character (neuro-muscular) defense
but an ego defense. However, it is so deeply structured into most modern people's
functioning, that any character analytic work requires addressing narcissism as a
first layer --that is why Alexander Lowen wrote a book by that name. Narcissism has
a particularly potent interaction with the inspirer character, which is why that
character is sometimes called the 'narcissistic character', but in my opinion there is
not a narcissistic character but rather a narcissistic condition.
Narcissism describes both an individual and a social condition. For an individual, it
means putting the self-image ahead of the self. The term 'image' comes from
imagination. The actual use of imagination supports creativity and growth. In its
psychological sense, however, 'image' refers to a static idea of what is successful or
desirable. An image is not necessarily visual but is any ego-based standard of how
things should be or standard that is believed to be special or lovable.The image will
be be influenced by the underlying energetic character. When one is trying to live up
to an image, imagination is not being used at all. Rather one is trying to conform to
rules or expectations from the outside that have been taken inside. This type of
striving may provide some motivation to achieve, but in the long run it is detrimental
to the person.
At some point, the person has to choose image over his or her self. Since
the self is known by feelings, in the operation of narcissism, feelings which in any
way seem inconsistent with the image, are denied, suppressed, deadened or
compensated. Narcissists are more concerned with how they look than with how they
feel. Narcissism brings people into war with feelings, their own feelings and the
feelings of other people that challenge the denial. And it can happen the other way
round, absence of feeling for any reason will tend toward narcissism. Narcissism
leads to an interest in power and control, over people and situations,
both to avoid unwanted feelings, and to provide motivation in the
absence of strong feelings. Along with this comes seduction and manipulation
which well may be unconscious.
Low feeling is not the same as low affect. Where suppression of feeling is severe,
such as the creator character, affect and expression does tend to be low and flat.
Denial is an ego function in which what one refuses to deal with will be blocked from
consciousness but still present in the body. Denial of feelings in narcissism can allow
for a more lively appearance overall than with suppression or deadening of feelings
but any actions or responses lack feeling. Still there is a background affect and
vitality that can verge on charming. Denial of feeling can be somewhat selective. For
instance in narcissism, feelings of fear or longing are usually strongly denied, while
feelings of triumph are not.
However, in any undertaking, a definite lack of conviction, passion, or true desire is

evident. Principles may be espoused to fit an occasion, and violated casually or
actually reversed shortly thereafter. The image is considered the ultimate
truth. There is a hollowness and superficiality to the feeling. Denial is less
impervious than suppression, there will always be 'sore-spots' which, when touched
on, elicit 'narcissistic rage.' As a result of that, there is usually considerable
behavioral adaptation in the service of bypassing sore-spots and manipulating others
to do the same. Group and family 'norms' often arise to protect narcissists within
them.
In narcissism, recognition is a key problem. Recognition not just in the weak sense of
being able to name something, but recognition in the diplomatic language sense-taking a person to be a fully legitimate, separate, and recognized member of the
community and family. A narcissistic injury is a failure to fully recognize
the 'otherness' and the legitimacy of a child at a critical time in emotional
development. Such injuries initiate what can be a life-long problem with
recognition. It is known that lack of unconditional acceptance is damaging to a
child, but the conditional acceptance (really disapproval) that fills the void at least is
a type of recognition. Conditional recognition is even more damaging. Even
disapproval will be withheld, it is as if the target did not exist. Narcissistic injuries
lead to narcissistic functioning as described below, including in turn, only
recognizing others conditionally upon their providing the desired type of mirroring.
Attention is a related concept but not the same as recognition. Attention may or may
not be craved and may or may not be monopolized, but recognition is always either
craved or rarely, phobically avoided. Conversely, attention gained by 'putting on as
show' will never feel like satisfying recognition. The affected person desires
recognition but also fears it, because the true self believes itself to be in danger if
recognized. Hence the over-involvement in images described in the paragraph above
that goes along with an obsession of the recognition of the image by others.
Evidence inevitably emerges that the person is not this chosen image. This is usually
so anxiety provoking that unconscious or or even conscious efforts are made to
destroy or ignore the evidence. In that way, narcissism brings people into war also
with the facts and with the positions of others. Ironically, the fragility of narcissistic
functioning make for a tendency to constantly experience a secondary-type of
narcissistic injury when the image is invalidated by people or events.
With narcissism, there may be recognition seeking, which in present day culture is
accepted or even considered virtuous, or there may be recognition demanding, which
is somewhat abrasive (for the time being), but the engine driving either is the same.
In past eras, there have been hero stories. In the present era, there are success
stories. A hero embodies an attribute, which is demonstrated by an adventure. The
hero doesn't seek recognition, but rather just to address, with integrity, obstacles that
arise. In a success story, the protagonist wants to excel and get results superior to
others in order to be recognized. There are 'status symbols' and conspicuous
consumption. Success is not succeeding in an achievement only, but being

recognized for it. Most recently success has been streamlined to celebrity. With
celebrity, the achievement is dropped in many cases leaving pure recognition. We no
longer have heroes, we have celebrities, and this is an aspect of social narcissism
which dovetails with personal narcissism.
Although equity with others is always a problem, narcissists do understand an
exchange. They do not understand sharing, however. Sharing is consciously
having the same experience as someone else at the same place and time. It can be a
good or a bad experience, but it requires mutual recognition. Since love is based on
pleasure shared, the capacity to love is devastated. A definite eeriness pervades most
joint occasions because of this inability to share experience
So in briefest terms, narcissism is organizing life around recognition and
power rather than pleasure. There is a tendency to confuse narcissism
with psychopathy. With each, there is a potential for others to be hurt. As
mentioned above, narcissism is an ego defense, while psychopathy is a character
defense. Moreover, The narcissistic position is against feeling (and via that against
reality.) The psychopathic position is against others. The two can co-exist of course
but each can exist by itself in a person.
It should be mentioned that almost all psychotherapists chose that profession
because they are consciously trying to overcome (or subconsciously trying to undo) a
narcissistic injury. Three results of this can be a real slowness in recognizing
narcissism, difficulty confronting it, and a tendency to act narcissistically toward
clients.
As for clients, the more pathological narcissists will rarely undergo therapy, but when
they do they view it merely as an opportunity to pick up a few tricks to control the
responses of others. Where narcissism is milder, the seemingly adaptive stance of
offering oneself up to be tweaked or perfected is still the problem and not the
solution. The task is not to become perfect but to become real, and allow
others to see oneself as such.
Where the developmental conditions of narcissism are present but ego strength and
aggression is less, an incomplete condition, referred to and described by Stephen
Johnson as the symbiotic character, and by Lowen (and many psychoanalytic
writers) as the 'borderline personality' seems to arise. More factors are involved in
the formation of the symbiotic character than just a narcissistic injury and
compensatory striving. However, due to an insufficient felt sense of self the symbiotic
gets a sense of identity only by merging with others. This leads to confusion about
boundaries and confusion about who is responsible for what. There is a danger or
tendency to take on the affects, thoughts and beliefs of others, but this is never a
stable situation. The blurring in the boundaries between self and others tends to lead
to two solutions: 1) externalizing all responsibility onto others. This solution
may have to do with 'less ego strength'. It leads to frequent conflict and perhaps the
label 'lower functioning' symbiotic (or borderline in the public mental health sense).
2) internalizing all responsibility onto the self. This may have to do with
relatively more ego strength. As ego strength varies from situation to situation, the
two solutions may alternate, providing an erratic presentation. While the 'successful'
narcissist shifts the basis of identity from self to image, the symbiotic disavows the
self but seeks others to project and instill images in them. It is common for a
narcissist and and a symbiotic to form an enmeshed relationship--this is the apex
challenge of couples' therapy.
On a cultural level, narcissism is evidenced by a loss of human values. The feeling
based values of dignity, integrity, and self-respect become replaced by
the ego values of power, performing, and productivity. What is valued is not
that which is human but what is superhuman or unusual. Success has become more
important than good-feeling. A human 'given' is the need to feel some potential or
promise in oneself (and this is part of humility). Quite tragically, with narcissism,
the urge is always to be complete or finished. The more severe the narcissism, the
harder it is to answer the question, "What are your hopes and dreams?" Hence there
is always tension with any long term formation process, or any formation process
which entails a great deal of correction from someone else. Compiling knowledge is
usually not much of a problem, but psycho-motor or sensori-motor skills often are.
Real creativity is undermined.
Alexander Lowen made the point that in Victorian times, behavior was strictly
controlled while strong feeling was idealized. This led to hysteria in the Freudian
sense in which feeling forced toward a different outlet than direct action. But in
modern times, Lowen asserted, behavior is much freer but feeling is often removed
from it. This leads to narcissism. In the present day, hysterical disorders are rare, but
narcissistic disorders are commonplace. Perhaps civilization has a hard time
permitting high feeling and free behavior at the same time. This is perhaps
sometimes a draw toward those fundamentalist communities that exist today-behavior is restricted but feeling, including sexual feeling, can be quite high.
From the foregoing we can discuss five patterns of narcissism, which I term narrow
narcissism, 'adhesive' narcissism, broad narcissism, powerlessness, and victim-role.
Narrow (or exhibitionist) narcissism is what, in lay terms, is usually meant by
the term narcissism. Sometimes the phrase 'pathological' narcissism is used. Feeling
is so blocked and ignored that there is a decided lack of empathy. Yet self-interest is
very active leading a tendency to exploit and use others. In this setting, self-images
tend to be grandiose, and due to impairment in reality testing, the person believes
they are the image. Others will be coerced or seduced in various ways to make them
affirm the image. Along with the belief that one is great is the belief that being great
should be easy, so there is an intolerance of learning and struggle.A narrow
narcissist has an internal locus of control but externalizes
responsibility. Stated another way, he or she internalizes credit and externalize
blame. This combination dominates relationships. There will be entitlement, which is
an expectation of favorable treatment that is divorced from what is happening in the

relationship or with the other person. A frequent format for entitlement is the
victim. The narrow narcissist will not style him- or herself a helpless victim, rather he
or she will imply that they are victimized by the incompetence or malfeasance of
others. Real accomplishment is sparse although the illusion of accomplishment is
strong among casual observers. There will be an intolerance for criticism--not just a
dislike or defensiveness about the content of the criticism, which is very common
among all people--but rather the act of criticizing them is seen as an intolerable
offense. Actually, moderately poor reality testing, coupled with robust aggression, in
a complicated culture can be an asset, because narrow narcissists can act contrary to
circumstances, which is inspiring to others and sometimes, the group 'pushes
through' to actual unexpected accomplishment, for which the narcissist takes the
credit. Failures, on the other hand, are shrugged off and the cleanup is left
for others. As mentioned above, the character of the inspirer is closely aligned
(but not identical) with narrow narcissism.
Broad (or closet) narcissism is the disorder of our age. This affects most modern
people and is now not only not outside social norms but is actually encouraged by
social norms. Grandiosity is always detectable if one is not confused by the
low self-esteemIn this setting feeling is limited but not completely blocked. It leads
often to a vague feeling of not being enough. Everything is about performance,
and in fact everything is about the last performance. Except, unlike narrow
narcissism, the person doesn't really believe he or she has yet become the image they
strive for. Also unlike the narrow narcissist, others are not coerced or seduced, rather
the broad narcissist works desperately to achieve the image 'honestly' but of course
this is unrealistic. Some manipulation and considerable pleasing of others will
happen. Life is organized around finding sets of expectations to live up to.
These expectations may be railed against as if they were foisted upon the broad
narcissist--the insight is often missing that these expectations are self imposed. The
broad narcissist is willing to work, which can lead to real accomplishment. Even with
external success, he or she often feels like an imposter. They can name but they
cannot feel the accomplishment. There is usually a conflict around receiving
recognition: recognition is sought out persistently but feels uncomfortable when
received. This obviously complicates relationships and puts others off. Broad
narcissists are very susceptible to suggestions of what they ought to do because they
seek acceptance. Considerable activity and actual good works are spurred by this, but
all to the naught as far as satisfaction goes. Broad narcissists often end up in
relationships with narrow narcissists because the narrow narcissist seems to have
exactly what the closet narcissist wants.
Adhesive Narcissism: This is sustained only with the help of a relationship.
Frequently it exists in a primary or romantic relationship, but it can also exist in a
parent-adult child relationship. Both partners have narcissistic injuries but one has
adapted with a false sense of self (narcissistic) while the other has had trouble
developing much of a solid sense of self (symbiotic condition) In a sense narrow
narcissism is similar in that a 'narcissistic supply' is constantly needed from others,

but in that pattern, the turnover of suppliers is fairly regular and painless to the
narrow narcissist. In adhesive narcissism strong symbiosis ensues and the
'supplying' partner cannot be disposed of without great upheaval. The adhesive
narcissist desires constant mirroring and idealization from the symbiotic partner,
while also projecting human limitations and problems onto him or her. The
symbiotic partner lives within the initiative and agenda of the narcissistic partner.
There is a shared belief that the narcissistic partner has the special ability to bring
both partners to a happy state. There is a strong shared belief that they are working
as a team toward shared life goals, but under the surface is a great deal of sabotage.
The symbiotic partner will start to become obsessed with the narcissist's
imperfections, and obsessed with getting him or her to 'own' them, but will be unable
to take initiative or unilateral action. The narcissist will both deflect criticism and
project problems back onto the symbiotic. These relationships tend to exclude other
people and influences, and more and more time is spent together even though the
time is strife-filled. Often a way is found for the partners to work closely together in a
business as well as live together. The enjoyment is low but the bonding is strong.
Ego-boundaries are blurred. If therapy is sought, there will be an insistence for
couples or family therapy rather than individual work. It is the relationship
makes it possible for a broad narcissist to function as a narrow one.
Powerlessness: This is a 'collapsed' or 'symptomatic' state of narcissism. .A
distinction must be made immediately between helplessness and powerlessness. A
person who is in a dire situation and cannot fix it her- or himself may need the
complete help and good will of others. This is helplessness, but it is not really a
common situation, however, in everyday life. More common is a situation in which
something is wanted from others, but not getting it should be survivable. In a mature
relationship, people influence each other, but the nature of that influence is always
uncertain. In narcissism, the relationship, that is, the tolerance and enjoyment of
uncertainty, is missing. Therefore narcissism leads to wanting to control the
responses of others. The stance of powerlessness comes from having,
simultaneously, enough reality testing to know that others' responses
can't be controlled, but also the compelling belief that one should be able
to control them. Powerlessness is demonstrated in sarcasm of others' responses,
harsh demands, entitlement, feelings of one's self being controlled, and complaints of
powerlessness. The problem is not the absence of this type of power, but the belief
one should have this type of effect. The desire for power stems from the desire never
to be humiliated again. However, like all compensatory mechanisms, the use of
power actually evokes the feeling of humiliation internally, and a vicious circle
ensues. The real antidote to humiliation is dignity not power. With the sense of
powerlessness, opportunities to cooperate, influence situations, or get help are often
ruined by a belligerence and resentment that turns others off. Powerlessness is like a
'decompensated' form of broad narcissism. Instead of being loyal to an image
of success, one is loyal to an image of failure.
Victim-Role Like powerlessness, this is a collapsed or decompensated form of

narcissism. This is a type of functioning in which the narcissist keeps others
involuntarily involved and pinned down by constantly returning the narrative to
injustice and injury. Because all people naturally respond to someone who has been
hurt by setting aside their own interests and point of view, this is a way of forcing
one-sided recognition. While presenting as a victim seems to be the opposite of
grandiose, the grandiosity is evident in the implied entitlement because normal
social friction or reasonable acts of self-interest by third parties will also be
complained about as injuries to the victim-narcissist. The narcissist demands
more than to be heard or acknowledged--they demand mergerwhere the
listener forgoes his or her own self. Occasionally episodic merger may be
appropriate and part of emotional intimacy. However, with the victim-narcissist
there is a demand, usually evident also in the tone of voice, that the listener merge
with his or her point-of-view. If the merger does not happen, the listener is labeled as
another victimizer and the victim-narcissist often breaks out.
To repeat, all narcissism comes from an early lack of recognition (which is
called a narcissistic injury and which is a specific type of rejection-- not all rejection
is a narcissistic injury). The person does not feel adequate in and of himself
or herself, and is always performing and exhibiting in an attempt to be
lovable. Attempting to obtain love of course is quite human. In narcissism, though,
there is an indirectness and often a deception. All indirect ways to get love are
includable in a very broad definition of narcissism.
The Role of the 'Hardbody' in Narcissism
In our time, a hardbody is an aesthetic ideal. In earlier times, a softer body was the
aesthetic ideal. Though this is thought to be a random change, it is not. It is due to
the rise of 'power' as an ideal. To use power successfully, it is often necessary to act
with disregard for feeling.
The connection between the ideal of the hardbody with narcissism is intuitive but it
can also be explained in functional terms. Narcissism, like the use of power, depends
on the suppression of emotion. Real emotion produces an impulse which is
translated to the muscles to prepare for movement. The person may or may not carry
out the movement but the readiness is there, in the supple but ready muscles. To
suppress emotion, the muscles are contracted against the feeling. Eventually this
becomes automatic.
Chronically tight muscles become hard. A person may have a large amount of body
fat but the muscles underneath may still be hard. In narcissism, however, a lean
appearance is usually part of the image because it represents control and self-control.
Muscles can be increased in size but still hard and contracted. The purpose of
exercise changes from feeling good to looking good (The endorphin high
during exercise is misleading in this regard--the belief arises that looking good in a
hardbody sense and feeling good are the same. Endorphins in the brain mask pain in
the body, that is their purpose.).
A lean hardbody is seen as someone that is powerful because they can act towards a
goal without interference from feeling. Women in general, have softer bodies, and in
general, are closer to feelings. However, since hardbodies are now associated with
success, both socially and in career, women understandably have become desirous of
hardbodies. It certainly is possible to be lean and healthy without being 'hard.' Both
yoga and pilates produce supple, ready muscles. This contrasts with aerobics and
weightlifting that produce hard muscles.
Characteristic Attitudes of the Creator (Schizoid)
The Creator is characterized by the dissociation of the ego from feeling and from the
body. Feelings may be expressed according to what one should feel in a given
situation, but there is no real spontaneity. What the person thinks seems to have
little connection to how the person feels or behaves. When feelings are asked about,
cognitions, general philosophical positions, and assessments of future prospects are
usually given as answers. For this reason it is often said of this character that there is
a dissociation between thought and feeling, and that is so. Almost more
importantly, there is a dissociation between perception and feeling. It is the
feeling that makes 'what happens' into an experience. The creator character can
describe what happened but not describe his or her experience. As a result, this
character often feels more like an observer of his or her own life rather than a
participant.
The link between desire and impulse is weak. This leaves the creator both short on
impulses, but also at a loss to understand his or her own desires. The will is used to
motivate action, which gives the behavior an "as if" quality. The will can be strong,
but it is used predominantly to withdraw from external reality and to freeze feelings
internally, so outward, assertive expressions have no energy and are weak and
scattered. Self-expression is mechanical and controlled. Aggression is expressed
through passive withdrawal, though explosions are a rare potential.
For a creator, existence seems tied to being separate or different from others. This
existence always seems tenuous, so involvement with others more than superficially
threatens existence. This can be called 'fear of engulfment.' Engulfment fears can
lead to the development of a 'secret self' which is not to disclosed to others and which
the Creator may consider her or his 'real' self.
Creators know the difference between idea and actuality, but seem to prefer idea to
actuality. Ideas are often not tested or implemented, almost as though ideas "are as
good as" actualities. The fear of engulfment makes actual accomplishment risky for
entanglement, and so accomplishment is often put off for a 'safe' future time that
never arrives. This is not a bluff covering an inability to accomplish so much as an
actual permanent postponement.
The creator is almost always in their mind. Mental faculties are usually highly
developed, frequently with a brilliant but abstract intellect. The mind is valued above
all else, and deduction, reasoning, calculating, and figuring things out logically are
the only modes of operating that are trusted. Gut feelings are usually unavailable and
not trusted when they are. Speech and writing can be very precise, partly because this
character does not trust the intention of others to understand. To this end language
can be highly developed but in the service of conveying ideas--not through the innate
love of words as in the Communicator character.
Creators often prize efficiency, utility, and frugality, which are cognitive or ego
values. Creators usually eschew comfort, taste, beauty which are sensual or body
goals. . Strategies of living oriented toward survival, such as rationing or saving are
particularly prized and provide both a purpose to living (because existence is never
taken for granted) and a mental pleasure. In fact, this style of life may be pursued
when material existence is actually quite secure, through self-deprivation and selfdenial. Often a philosophy develops that attempts to 'normalize' or glorify austerity
and pleasurelessness
Self-interest holds no interest for the creator. Others' pursuit of their selfinterest may be disparaged where it is recognized, but there is often a naivete or
blindspot about the role of self-interest in the actions of others.
Depersonalization is present to some extent. Sometimes the person will fail to
recognize him or herself in photos or mirror, or in the descriptions of others.
Sometimes extreme sports or situations, like un-roped rock climbing, are sought out
to 'force' strong feeling and contact with the body, and also perhaps to act out a
persistent 'hanging on to the edge of a cliff' feeling.
If they have an objective, creators are able to work long stretches without boredom
or without a break. They may actually work to the point of collapse without
recognizing tiredness. Creators work well without supervision, accomplish a lot,
and are often valued employees. They strongly avoid positions supervising others
however. Creators often do well dealing with things, technology, or information.
They may struggle dealing with people and social dilemmas. If involved in a team,
they usually like to have their part defined clearly.
Creator characters are often deemed to be passive. This relates to a need to look to
the outside for initiative in the absence of feeling. Creators are not passive in the
sense of being suggestible or often 'drug along" with a fad. In fact it is a strength of
the creator to see through or past mere enthusiasm. Creators are often the first to
that 'the emperor has no clothes.' However creators can be vulnerable to cults or
cultish undertakings. This is because having a purpose, style of life, structured
relationships, and plentiful tasks conveniently placed into one 'basket' can seem like
a dream come true. Moreover, most cults take a view of existence that is outside
place and time, which is familiar and understandable to most creators.
Creators avoid and control any feelings due to the subconscious presence of deepseated terror and intense rage, which leads to intense subconscious fears
of annihilation if feelings are expressed. This 'life and death' quality may later
become attached to any experiences of perceived rejection or failure. Crippling
anxiety, panic attacks and phobias often arise when feelings threaten to emerge into
consciousness.
Creators usually have a weak sense of self because of a lack of identification with
the body. Creators usually demonstrate hypersensitivity and hyperawareness to
threat or challenge because of weak ego boundaries. This correlates to the lack of
peripheral charge in the body, and is sometimes known as thin skin.
Because creators tend both not to be aware of their discomfort and not to
communicate discomfort straightforwardly, however, they may appear insensitive.
They may pride themselves on "not being easily upset." This hypersensitivity may
only be evident either through frequent withdrawal (ostensibly for logical,
impersonal, and external reasons) or through a pattern of under-achievement and
avoidance of challenges that involve other people.
Creators tend to intellectualize, philosophize, or spiritualize problems. Creators
may become interested in spiritual movements, but likelier the esoteric type and not
the social type. Creators are also spiritual in that they value ideas and intention
highly. However, in contrast to Communicators, they often have at least a strong
curiosity about results. This is the origin of 'creator'--this character often tries to
make a bridge between great ideas and the world. That is, they think about creating
in the world what is interesting or valuable in principle, but may have trouble taking
concrete steps to implement these ideas.
Both as readers and writers, Creators favor science fiction, or horror. Science
fiction is about ideas being purposefully implemented into the world. Horror is about
an omnipresent threat of annihilation that the protagonist senses but the other
characters do not.
Suspiciousness and distrust is usually present, but may be deep, and so it cannot be
felt or expressed, but is lived out over time, or shows up in a strong reluctance to get
involved more than superficially. There may also be projected rage, which is
experienced as living in a dangerous world. At times this may reach the level of
paranoia. Moreover, creators are very sensitive to the hostility in others, and less
sensitive to those things in others, such as good will, that make acting on the hostility
very unlikely. This can increase isolation.
Creators may have trouble both understanding and using social cues, and
recognizing faces, facial expressions, signs of mild distress in others, or non-verbal
subtleties. This arises from the estrangement from the body and from body feeling.
The social awkwardness that results has in recent years been popularly melded into
the increasingly popular construct of Asperger's Syndrome, which merits a
discussion of its own: Page on Asperger's Syndrome
Schizophrenia: It is with the creator or schizoid character that schizophrenia
occurs, however only a very small potion of creator characters develop schizophrenia.
There is clearly a qualitative difference between schizophrenia, and the creator or
schizoid condition, and so it is not adequate or satisfying to think of schizophrenia as
merely an intensification of the schizoid condition. In Character
Analysis, Wilhelm Reich illustrated many of his ideas through the description of
his work with a schizophrenic woman, but he did not describe what made for the
presence of schizophrenia. Schizophrenia emerges mostly at puberty or at
'launching'. It has been suggested strong ego strength prevents the development of
schizophrenia. R.D. Laing, who was sympathetic to Reichian ideas, proposed that
the schizoid condition arises from a basic split between a a minimal public self and a
private (real) self. Schizophrenia occurs, Laing believed when the private self split
again (secondary split) due to starvation of real contact. Just as a person with two
watches never really knows what time it is, a person with two selves never really
knows who or where he or she is, or with whom he or she is. Creators can be subject
to dissociation, depersonalization and fugue states.
Main psychological defenses: denial, projection, introjection, splitting,
disintegration, withdrawal, fragmentation, compartmentalization and
intellectualization.
Predominant negative core beliefs: I should not exist. There is something
essentially wrong with me. I am my mind. I think therefore I am." Life is
threatening to my life. I will survive by deadening myself. I must control my
feelings and others with my mind. If I feel, I will disintegrate. My rage will
annihilate others and me. The world is a dangerous place.
Characteristic Illusion: "I'll survive if I use my understanding to eliminate
needing."
Primary falling fear: falling apart
Primary holding pattern: holding together
Primary longing: for acceptance
Primary Struggle: the right to exist on a material plane
Illusion of Contraction: "My life is my mind, my thought, and my specialness. I
can live through them."
Illusion of Release: "I will be annihilated"
The Creator Character in Relationship
Creators often live alone for long periods. For this reason, others might conclude that
they do not want intimate relationships. However this is rarely true. Creators simply
have little idea how to initiate relationships. Moreover, desire and impulse are split.
Creators usually require the initiative to come from the other person to enter into a
relationship. This limits opportunities, more for males than females. For this reason,
even a poor relationship that does get started somehow is highly valued. Creators are
usually unable to end a relationship without a strong compelling logical external
reason--suffering from the relationship is not enough. Within a primary
relationship, creators create a void into which the partner usually becomes
dominant whether that is the partner's main tendency or not.
However, creators mitigate submissiveness with withdrawal and detachment.
Once in a relationship, creators will try to bond through the exchange of ideas and
'parallel play' (for instance two people reading different books but in the same room).
A deep fear in relationship for creators is being engulfed by the other. In a
sense, creators tend to make others into ideas and relate to these ideas rather than
the people. Overall there is a tendency to substitute non-human objects for human
objects.
Overall, creators tend to relate by 'being of use' to others or to abstract causes. That
is, with diminished impulses, there is a tendency to fulfill the expectations of others,
which become a purpose for living. Even though there may be considerable judgment
and selection about what or whose expectations to fulfill, in the long run, sheer lack
of 'selfishness' can lead to being exploited, even in good organizations and with good
people. This may appear similar to the 'social masochism' of
the consolidator character, but it is not done to gain the love of the other, but to
have a reason to live and function.
Sexuality
Because of deadened feeling in the body, creators may engage in sex to feel alive.
This may lead to promiscuousness or a large volume of sexual activity, and partners
may be chosen mechanically, as in a club, or chosen more on availability than
attraction. Alternately, creators may not have any sexual relationships, because the
impulse (not the same as desire) is weak, or the way of initiating relationships is
mysterious to them. In a monogamous relationship, sex may be frequent, but will
represent a weak release and may seem mechanical.
Physical Characteristics
The head often does not seem at ease with the body, often it is held at an angle. The
face is masklike. Sometimes there is myopia, as with the communicator character,
and the eyes appear pale and weak. Sometimes there is 'vision-sparing', but where
this occurs, the eyes are especially vacant and unalive, and do not make contact. This
'expressionlessness' is exactly that, nothing is coming out of the eyes, though the eyes
are taking in. Commonly also the eyelids are tense and retracted in a permanent look
of horror. The scalp tends to be tight. The skin is pale and there is usually little body
hair.
Usually, the body is narrowed side to side, and contracted. The arms
hang like appendages rather than extensions of the body. The arm movements may
look like a windmill because the scapulae (shoulder blades) stay fixed. The feet are
contracted and cold. The hips are very tight, and as a result, the feet are set wide
apart, 'splayed' into a 'v' stance,. The ankles are very tight and the metatarsal arch is
very weak Often the feet are inverted (collapsed arch) or everted (a compensation for
a collapsed arch.)
The main tension areas are the base of the skull, the shoulder joints, the leg joints,
the pelvic joints, and the diaphragm. The diaphragm tightness can be so severe in
this character that it splits the body in two. It can also result in a depressed sternum.
and flared out lower ribs. The diaphragm is dome shaped with the edges attached to
the lower ribs. Ideally when the diaphragm contracts, the lower ribs expand out but
also stay within their segment. This allows for the center of the diaphragm to pull
itself down and create a vacuum in the chest. If the diaphragm is tight however, the
center will not move, and the edges will instead be pulled up. Eventually these ribs
stay fixed in an up and flared out position and the diaphragm cannot move itself.
Also the flared ribs act like a lever prying the sternum back into a depressed position.
Respiration becomes paradoxical; that is, the abdomen is sucked up on inhalation,
and subsides down on exhalation. This requires most of the breathing to occur high
in the chest, using accessory mechanisms that are inefficient and that leave the
feeling of fear.
Muscular spasticity is mainly in the small muscles that surround the

joints ('intrinsics'), therefore there may be either a hyperflexibility or an inflexibility.
'Tone-deafness' is common with hearing. The voice is usually soft and unenergized,
but on occasion it may be "larger-than-life" and seem almost not to come from within
the person.
The sensory apparatus has an uneasy relationship with the environment. In general
senses are adequate to determine the bare facts of a situation, especially survival
aspects, but fine detail or sensual qualities are not taken in. There may be a
hypersensitivity, especially with touch. Eye contact is difficult, not only with the eyes
of others, but with any intense visual stimulus. Sometimes an intense perceptual
stimulus is sought out to penetrate deadness of feeling, but the stimulus is not
relaxing or pleasureable, and the person seems to 'fling' him- or herself toward
it. Creators may be found living and working in sensory impoverished
environments. Creative projects tend to organized around a ideational theme rather
than the effect the work may have on the senses of others.
The two pictures on the left are of the late chess champion Bobby Fischer. The upper
picture is unusual in that it shows movement, which is perhaps the most
'characteristic' aspect of the creator body. Note the narrow body, the unbending
knee of the right leg, and the windmilling of the arms. In the more characteristic
picture below it, notice the head cocked to the side, and the faraway look in the eyes.
Energy Characteristics
Respiration is markedly decreased. Paradoxical respiration is sometimes seen in
which the diaphragm actually rises during inspiration. Energy is reduced overall and
largely held in the core. Stuart Black, writing in the Core Energetics tradition, states
that with this character energy leaks out of the joints. There is little energy
accumulated at the surface. The person often will not sense their tiredness, and be
able to work "like a machine" right up to a point of collapse. Energy is withdrawn
from points of contact with the world: hands, feet, eyes. There can be a sense of
dense, explosive energy in the core, but it is not available for creative activities. The
apparent energy density comes from compression, overall this is a low-energy
character.
Origins of the Creator Character (Prenatal to Six Months)

Perinatal medical complications, or serious illness in the first year of life may have a
strong contribution to this character. Possibly, there is an early, even
prenatal, unconscious rejection by the mother which the infant experienced as a
threat to his or her existence. This rejection may only be evident to very discerning
observers because on a mechanical level the mothering is adequate. But at times the
rejection is accompanied by covert or even overt hostility. The rejection and hostility
creates a fear that reaching out, demanding, or self-assertion will result in
annihilation. The child will usually develop a habit of withdrawal and learn to avoid
notice. Often an intense fantasy life develops. There usually are not close
relationships with other children. Play is usually solitary and the social aspects of
play may not be understood. The child may develop a precocious interest in and
mastery of adult matters from an informational or factual standpoint. Childhood
history may include: frequent nightmares or sleep disturbances, withdrawn behavior
with occasional outbursts of rage, autism, pervasive fears, preference for fantasy over
reality, psychosomatic illnesses, head-banging or self-mutilation, or school phobia.
Possible Difficulties for the Creator Character
Because of the dissociation between ideas and feeling. the 'talking cure' which
involves affecting a person via the 'verbal intimacy' of personal topics is the least
likely to be effective for this character. More beneficial is a bodywork approach, and
coaching to increase sensory experience.
Partner complains of a lack of emotional investment in the relationship
Lack of advancement in work despite expertise and conscientiousness
Tendency to withdraw, literally or figuratively from conflict, opportunities, or

excitement.
Deep exhaustion
Pleasurelessness, meaninglessness, desperation
The Concept of 'Asperger's Syndrome in the Reich and Lowen

Continuum
The concept of Asperger's Syndrome has recently become very popular, because it
helps organize the experience of many people who are trying to understand a pattern
of interactional difficulty. In a sense, Asperger's Syndrome is a popular attempt at
defining a character. Remember that syndrome, as a medical term, is reserved for
groups of signs, the real relationship to each other is not understood.
In the diagnostic arena of mainstream psychiatry, Asperger's Syndrome has a
difficult time finding a settled place. This is often a problem with the purely
descriptive approach--it often seems that just a part of human functioning is being
labeled, or that several different things are being group together solely according to
their disruptive commonalities. In the psychiatric literature, the construct of
Asperger's does seem to be a mix of some aspects of autism, some aspects of the
schizoid condition, some prodromal signs of schizophrenia, and some aspects of
maleness.
However, in the counseling and layperson arena, a slight loosening of the criteria has
allowed the concept of Asperger's Syndrome to really taken hold, and this should not
be ignored. There is no question that this construct, even as popularly rendered,
represents a very real, fairly discrete syndrome of interpersonal difficulty that is
readily confirmed by everyday observation. Here is a link to a longer article on the
mind-body approach to the concept of Asperger's (pdf).
My opinion is that Asperger's Syndrome has four elements: 1) a subject with
awareness of sensation, feeling and emotion decreased below a threshold that causes
a persistent disruptive breakdown of communication with others that take
perception of sensation, feeling and emotion for granted, 2) a tendency to try to 'fit'
into life by understanding everything as a 'lawful' system. This may be accentuated
by the first element, or by the basic nature of the 'male' mind, 3) a positive feedback
escalation of the conflict (ie hostility, increased avoidance, outbursts.) due to an
inability to repair the rift or recognize it's nature (that is, rules and principles are
searched for where there are none) and, 3) some narrow 'obsessional' behavior that
naturally expands in the environment of low sensation, feeling, and emotion that
may seem bizarre to others that are differently constituted. If the first two elements
are present but mild, the second two elements may not ensue, and this is
called alexithymia.
In the Reich and Lowen tradition, the mechanism (some would say origin) of the
decreased feeling is muscle tension, especially in the smaller muscles around the
joints. That is, the basis is neuromuscular. That also explains the two noninteractional characteristics found in Asperger's Syndrome: clumsiness, and
hypersensitivity to a sensory stimulus. Males have greater muscle mass, and this is
one more possible reason they are more subject to this phenomenon. Also a brain
developing in the presence of testosterone is also likely a factor. It has been said that
Asperger's reflects the extreme male brain (systematizing valued over empathy) but I
think it represents the systemitizing male brain with both low aggression and low
feeling.
I believe there are two main reasons that Asperger's has been accepted by the public
in a way that other formulations of character have not. First, it concentrates
on surface life. Now by that I do not mean it is superficial, but rather it occurs in the
arena of contact between people. In Alexander's Lowen's typology, the emphasis is on
the core or deep phenomena. Second, Asperger's Syndrome as a construct is
organized around the point of view of the non-Asperger's person. In
saying this I in no way imply bias or inaccuracy-- the construct can be a valuable
mirror. Asperger's seems a very much more manageable idea or 'problem'
In sum, Asperger's seems to describe a male creator (or possibly communicator)
character, perhaps with some drivenness, as seen by others. The benefit of a parallel
body of understanding of the creator character is a very enriched and nuanced
second body of observation and systemization that aids recognition. It is simply fact
that once something is named it seems more manageable.
An immediate humanitarian benefit is also that the understanding becomes
widespread that the frequent interpersonal misunderstandings and
frictions are not based on ill will and punishable, but rather are neuromuscular in origin, and therefore not morally culpable.
It will be no surprise to the reader of this website that I believe the solution
is bodywork and character analysis to increase drive and aggression. This of course
is a long and arduous journey with no certainty of result. The mainstream suggestion
is teaching 'social rules' cognitively. This makes great sense for children who suffer
greatly in school and can use any partial help to avoid humiliation. But for an adult
this is essentially useless, because he (or perhaps she) has been trying to formulate
rules his whole life!. The truth is that while social interactions have some
generalities, there are no real rules. Each situation is slightly different, with
small discriminative cues that must be felt. Some people are really good at this, and
others passable, but below a certain level there is unfortunately real trouble. Some of
the biggest faux pas in this Syndrome get committed because some one is applying a
rule. An emphasis on rules just takes one away from nascent feelings, it is
dissociative-- a compensatory maneuver that helps perpetuate the very state it is
meant to address.
Characteristic Attitudes of the Communicator (Oral)
The communicator or oral character is so named because it possesses many traits

typical of the oral period of life, that is infancy, especially the period from 6-18
months. It should stated at the outset, that what psychodynamic psychology calls oral
needs are so critical that all character structures have developed indirect ways of
getting them met (seductions). Trying to satisfy oral needs indirectly does not by
itself define an oral character. It is the energy structure, and the attitudes that protect
the energy structure, that define character for this structure and others.
In 1959 Lowen stated that the communicator or oral character was not the most
common character. However 50 years later in the United States it seems that the oral
structure is the most common, and that the culture is largely 'comunicatorsyntonic.' Possibly this is due to at least two reasons. One, despite some resurgence
of breast feeding initially, the trend is to stop after a few months. While this briefer
window may benefit the baby nutritionally, it is possibly almost as devastating
emotionally to be weaned early. Second, in our complex achievement oriented
culture, there is great interest in children being precocious and 'enriched.' This hurry
may produce an informational sophistication in the children, but it limits emotional
and physical security.
The Communicator operates with a inner feeling of needing to be held, supported,
and taken care of, but these feelings are usually consciously denied and a reaction
formation espousing independence and responsibility is strongly in place. This can
lead to an exaggerated show of independence which does not hold up under stress.
Internally there is a weak sense of independence and a denied tendency to cling to
others. The underlying experience is being on the verge of deprivation and
abandonment, and independence is feared as it will occasion complete
abandonment. Deep crying and reaching out are suppressed, though a lot of
superficial bitter crying and may be manifested. Emotion is usually easily provoked
but cannot be sustained very long.
With the communicator character, the concept of compensated is very
important. This character often lives according to the will, and when the will is
active, the person may seem full of energy (but this is activity not energy) and may
seem well adapted to the demands of work, family and intimacy. This presentation is
called compensated. At other times, when the will is collapsed, the person may show
depression, dependency, and lack of direction. For this reason,
the Communicator character may seem to cover a broad spectrum, however,
essential functioning is the same.
Environments that are unfavorable are not really accepted. The complaints of
the communicator tend to be about the environment (the way the world is). What
is unwanted is deemed wrong, inappropropriate, and illegitimate, or differently (even
without evidence to this effect) it is deemed about to change or improve. As a result,

the communicator does not realistically participate in many arenas of life (ie sex,
business, sports, public safety, higher level public administration.) In the personal
narrative, there is often the theme of an early 'lost paradise' with an unstated goal to
re-attain it.
Communicators are deeply concerned with justice and fairness. He or she deeply
resents the inequity of the social system. Communicatorsoften enter the helping
professions-- teaching, social work, psychology, and nursing. This allows the the
desire for nurture to be acted out and at the same time denied. Anti-establishment
views often stem from subconscious anger directed at parental figures that are
deemed unfair and ungenerous. Large abstract global causes may be championed,
with no real demands on the ego, but smaller specific injustices to specific known
people closer to home may be unopposed because the ego strength is not present for
an actual fight. They often champion the cause of under-dogs and minorities,
idealizing those with little power. This comes from the feeling of having been
deprived and cheated, which is repressed and projected onto others. It is sometimes
said that Communicators dislike the people they know, and like the people they
don't know
Communicators are usually spiritual in the partial sense that intentions, images,
goals and sentiments are considered 'better' than results, physical sensation,
pleasure, and actions. Like Plato, the communicator considers the immaterial
superior to the material. This stems from a lack of feeling for and security in the
body. Art, especially literature or poetry, are often pursued. This can be out of
feeling, but also out of a sense of superiority. Also the arts, being entirely subjective,
avoids comparison with the results of others.
The inclination of the communicator is to find out 'the right thing to do' and do it.
Therefore the communicator is capable of greatly moral or pro-social acts. But
implementing good ideas may be difficult. There is a tendency
for communicators to focus intensely on their intentions and plans, past and
present, and treat results as fairly inconsequential or the responsibility of others.
Ideas are untested in the world, and while that idealism may sometimes bear fruit,
often naive and unrealistic positions remain. The 'way things should be' is much
more important than 'the way things almost always are.' This can lead
the communicator to be at odds with instinctual tendencies in others and society
that prevent 'things from being the way they should be'.
He or she may be deeply hurt if someone insists on talking about what actually
happened or what is actually happening, if it does not fit the communicator's selfimage. It is as though the communicator, having been made prematurely responsible
for results, retains a strain of magical thinking about results. To have intended is
believed to be the same as to have done, or even better. Because of this, there may be
a great difference between how communicators see themselves and how others see
them.
Aggressiveness is low. Fantasies of aggression don't count. Negativity and a critical

attitude don't count. Aggression is movement toward a constructive goal in the face
of some resistance. Mentally, there are strong intuitive and intellectual capacities,
but creative ideas are not charged or put into action. A difficulty reaching, literally
and figuratively, is seen. Since a spiritual attitude and aggression are antithetical to
some extent, the low aggression may provide the opportunity for greater spirituality.
Low aggression also seems related to low satisfaction. There is a reluctance to
accept the necessity of struggle in life, and so present struggles are experienced as
victimization.
Communicators usually eschew physical activity and sports, especially ones that
require explosive or graceful movement. They may take up endurance sports such as
marathoning, triathlons, or bicycling in which the the will drives the body and coordination is not essential. Likewise communicators often try to use will and
intellect to 'overcome the body'. Self-depriving behaviors, like poverty or selfstarvation, may be acted out, in part to punish the body, or prove its unimportance.
Communicators are often intellectuals, and they love words and talking. He or she
generally reads a lot and can state their case well. Words are often loved for
themselves apart from the function of expressing ideas. Talking is the way
communicators try to connect to others, and 'long talks' with others are highly
prized. Communicators often are bad listeners, however, because their 'ear' is tuned
to hear how other people's statements fit into their point of view, or fit into 'the way
things should be'.
Attention seeking behaviors are usually present. Often this is through voluble talking,
, music making, helplessness, clowning or humor. Sometimes the attention seeking is
partly disguised as social activism or helping others. The interest in the cause or task
can be quickly lost if the attention wanes. Communicators do not want to be
forgotten or overlooked.
For this character, getting his or her point of view across can take on survival
significance and also become a substitute for action, perhaps because the
communicator unknowingly expects other people (ie parental figures, more powerful
people, etc) to take the action for them. Communicators often speak in terms of
right and wrong, should's and shouldn't's. Rules are seen as very important. This is
because this character doesn't believe that direct requests or expressing wants on
their own behalf will be effective or well-received.
Work may pose a stressful situation. Communicators are very sensitive to any
unfair treatment, and may feel misused in any authority structure. Also at work the
coping mechanism of complaining may not be available or may lead to further
trouble. The suppressed inner feeling of deprivation engenders an unconscious belief
that the world owes them a living. This doesn't lead to laziness, since this character is
never lazy, but over time it will evince a hard-to-pinpoint air of entitlement that
others may come to resent. Communicators are often happier in non-profits,
government, academia, and education where competition is not a factor, and where
employee rights are well established.
In the communicator, emotional needs are frequently denied mentally but still
strongly felt, creating an inner emotional climate of grief, despair and bitterness,
which colors their interactions. Lowen employed the metaphor of the apple that is
picked too early and cannot ripen. Communicators frequently single out the
frustrating actions of others while overlooking or holding inconsequential the
gratifying actions of the same people.
This character is prone to depression. Lowen considered depression pathognomic for
this character. One explanation (psychodynamic) is that deep rage at unmet needs is
turned against the self. Another explanation (bioenergetic) is that will based,
essentially pleasureless living results in an energetic exhaustion. Alternate periods of
elation are also often seen. During elation, a sense of purpose is provided by a
'salvific' idea or goal. Depression usually follows a period of increased activity and
apparent well-being. Stated differently, illusion leads to an active phase, and the
inevitable disillusionment leads to collapse and depression.
Communicators can be very influenced in a way by the dominant values of their
environment, because they attempt to live from the surface, or learned layer. While
ideas expressed are often idealizing the under-dog, a wide variety of ideologies, even
character-dystonic, may be taken up. This is possible because there can be a
discrepancy between the ideas that are communicated, and how the person actually
carries on. What is most characteristically oral is the energy structure and the
behavior in relationships.
Dependency conflicts may manifest in addictions (in an effort to substitute for
genuine sustenance). Continuous smoking, eating, drinking, talking (often fast), may
be present. The communicator may have trouble biting or swallowing easily,
however. Digestive functions are often affected. There may be a preference for soft or
bland or slightly sweet foods--'comfort foods'. Crohn's disease or irritable bowel
syndrome are not uncommon.
Healing from injuries or illness is usually slow. Often chronic illnesses accumulate.
The sick role may become an acceptable way to act out dependency and hostility, and
the lifestyle may become structured around medical care.
At times it is difficult to distinguish a creator (schizoid) character from
a communicator (oral) character. The two structures often have a tightly
controlled appearance, a strong eye block, paleness, self-depriving habits,
intellectualism, and low aggression. One distinguishing behavioral aspect can be the
manner of complaining. Creators often complain "as if," that is, they can describe
injustices, but there is a detachment. Communicators, on the other hand, are clearly
bitter, even whiny, and seem strongly attached to their complaints. Creators tend to
impersonate a role, and the most compatible role is that of oral
critic. Creators often will spontaneously talk themselves out of complaints and
almost seem relieved if their complaints are challenged. Communicators usually feel
more deeply aggrieved if complaints are challenged without a strong relationship in
place.
Predominant Negative Core Beliefs: I must not need. If I need, I will be
abandoned. I am alone. No one will ever be there for me. If I connect with
another, I will lose myself. If I am independent, I must be alone. I cannot stand
on my own two feet. I must give to others in order to get. The needs of others will
devour or suffocate me. There is not enough. The world is a depriving place.
Characteristic Illusion: "If I give up my independence, I'll survive and be loved."
Primary falling fear: falling behind
Primary holding pattern: holding on
Primary longing: for independence
Primary Struggle: the right to need.
Illusion of Contraction: I am not needy. I am giving and needed
Illusion of Release: I will be abandoned and helpless
The Oral Character in Relationships
Trying to get love and support is the predominant motivation in relationships. The
intense fear of abandonment and loss of love, combined with an equal fear of losing
oneself in love, creates an ambivalent attitude towards surrendering to feelings.
Separation anxiety can be very strong, and communicators can hold on strongly to
unsatisfying situations, albeit with a great deal of complaining.
Often security in a relationship is attempted through insistent care-giving that is
experienced by the recipient as intrusive, controlling and demanding. Frequently,
communicators project their own needs and desires onto the recipient, and overlook
the wishes the recipient is actually expressing. What the communicator believes is
the giving of love is often experienced by others as a demand for love. For instance,
the communicator will promise a lot and believe they are delivering it (intention)
but recipients will experience that the communicator seems, for one plausible reason
or another not to follow through (results ). The communicator goes on to place many
requests which they feel entitled to as reciprocation..
Another way of obtaining support is through a helpless, deprived presentation of the
self. The need for rescue is acted out, if rescue is not directly requested. Since
ineffectiveness is the key to avoiding abandonment, the collapsed communicator is
never able to make it without help. Would be rescuers grow resentful.
Still another way of gaining support is by direct, self-righteous demanding. The

communicator may recite many injustices and demand someone does something
about it. The alienating effects on others of these behaviors will seem to reinforce the
experience of early abandonment, causing the person to give up on relationships at
times.
There is a genuine capacity to express love, but relationships often very romanticized
by the mind to an unattainable height, or easily given up. Relationships will go back
and forth between intense, totally lost-in-love involvement to sudden and absolute
endings as the symbiotic struggle is acted out (wanting to merge with the allpowerful, giving parent versus wanting to separate from her and individuate).
Relationships are frequently sought out with people who are extremely needy (Ill
take care of you as the needy me that Im not.)
Love is related to as both a long-awaited reward and as potentially suffocating or
devouring. Surrendering to the love feelings for another brings up intense fears of
abandonment and falling behind, losing oneself, and being left alone. It is very
difficult to establish a stable relationship, despite conscious efforts to do just that,
because the communicator is either denying needs or presenting needs that are so
great they are unmeetable. In either case, it is not possible to establish easy,
reciprocal, 'good enough' caregiving.
Sexuality
Sexual interactions may be used to avoid abandonment and loneliness and for some
sense of belongingness. Slow tender movements are preferred to more strong
passionate ones. Sexual activities may be used for oral gratification (downward
displacement) Orgasms may be frequent and easy but not particularly charged or
strong in women, and men may not have full erections or they may ejaculate easily
and prematurely without much charge. Being held or cuddled (oral need) is often
more desired than actual sex (genital need). There often is a desire to extend sexual
activities because oral gratification is fulfilled linearly over time, unlike more genital
activities in which a more explosive charge-discharge pattern is relevant.
Structural Characteristics
The body is generally child-like or 'young' in appearance. There may be very little
body hair. Often, linear growth is accentuated, resulting in a long lean body.
Sometimes, however, especially with women, there may be a very small body. A lack
of energy and strength is noticeable throughout the body but especially in the legs.
Posture is often one of tiredness and collapse. The neck is often long and reaching
forward (looking for nourishment and nurture). Overall movement appears
awkward.
Lips are often thin (holding against reaching out), jaw is clenched (against rage) and
there are frequent dental problems or other physical problems around the mouth and
throat. The chin may be pulled in (against swallowing) or jutting out (determined not
to need). Eyes are often myopic and/or have a longing, pleading look. Hair on the
head is usually very fine. There is often little body hair. Women will tend to cut hair
short, especially once in an established relationship. Occasionally it may be grown to
the waist. Men may grow hair long.
The chest is collapsed, the sternum is depressed and the diaphragm is tight, all of
which contributes to shallow breathing. Breasts in women tend to be either very large
(pillowy) or very small (collapsed). The shoulders are rolled forward, with tension
between the shoulder blades. Holding arms out does not happen spontaneously and
when cued, cannot be sustained. The lumbar lordosis is exaggerated and chronic
lower back problems are common
Hands, feet and pelvis (points of contact with the world) are immature-looking,
undercharged and often very small. The bottom of the pelvis is cocked backwards,
which exaggerates the lordosis in the lumbar spine. The arches in feet may be fallen.
The knees usually are locked (hyperextended) predisposing them to injury. The feet
and legs are not experienced as offering good support.
Body overall is often in pain, with frequent injuries or illnesses (lower back, knees,
respiratory) that take a long time to heal
The communicator may appear energetic because he or she is driven by the belief
that they must do something to be acceptable or lovable. This can lead to starting
many things, but it will be difficult to sustain effort, or sustain effort against
resistance. Communicators have many ideas and a lot to communicate verbally,
and this too may give the appearance of energy. However, energy is more a matter of
readiness and ease than of frenetic activity. The communicator's lower energy is
often seen when a substantial physical task is undertaken-- a communicator will
often stop fairly quickly for some ostensible reason, or characterize the task as
unreasonable. It is not that the communicator could not physically complete it, but
rather he or she perceives the task as too much. This contrasts with
the creator character who is also a low energy character, but one in which
sensitivity to the body is so blocked that he or she may persist mechanically a in a
task until exhaustion sets in.
The Origins of the Oral Character
(Developmental Period Three to Eighteen Months )
Development procedes in an infant from the head to the feet. Developing strongly
into the feet requires a feeling of security. The communicator character arises
when the parents are unable to provide the child with that feeling of security. It is
sometimes said that a communicator was not supported enough, but that statement
alone may unfairly color the parenting as neglectful. With this character, it is the case
that the child received some warmth and acceptance. A child that is really unwanted,
either consciously or unconsciously, is likelier to develop as a creator.
Sometimes the parenting of a communicator may be neglectful or inconsistently.
For instance the child may be left alone for long periods, and or cries are not heard or
answered. This could arise from a mother that is battling illness, has an abusive
partner, has many children or responsibilities, is prematurely taken away, needing to
go to work, another pregnancy, depression, illness or death, or mothers own oral
issues, for instance lack of energy, substance abuse, or emotional dependency.
However, sometimes the parenting is very ample in quantity, including a lot of
attention, a lot of toys and lessons and opportunities. Children are more affected by
how parents feel than what parents do. If parents feel insecure, they may try very
hard to provide the things to their children that they did not get. Unfortunately, the
feeling of insecurity seems to get transmitted directly from the parent's vegetative
system to the child's vegetative system.
Also, a very subtle unconscious desire to be done with the burdens of children can
manifest itself in a parents interest in the child's precocity and premature
independence (walking or talking early, or knowing where things are, etc). Ostensibly
this is for the child's benefit, but subconsciously it is due to the parents' resentment
at giving up their own chance at fulfilling oral needs. The parent may also project her
or his oral needs onto the child and give what the parent wants rather than what the
child wants.
Pushing children to be precocious can also come from a parent attempting to fulfill
her or his own narcissistic needs through the child. Precocity almost never leads to
ultimate giftedness, but it is one thing that a parent believes they can do to bring love
and attention to themselves and the child.
Childhood history may include: very early accomplishment of developmental tasks
(walking, talking, toilet training, getting dressed and other self-care tasks, reading,
writing, etc.), disturbances around eating, intense separation anxiety (i.e. - refusal to
go to school, unable to sleep over someone elses house or be with a babysitter),
frequent illnesses or injuries, collecting, clinging and holding onto objects
excessively, thumb-sucking well into later childhood, romanticized relationships with
teachers or others adults, wishing to be adopted by them.
Possible Difficulties for the Communicator Character
Inability to sustain relationships, projects, jobs or interests, often after a brief

period of intense involvement;
Lack of motivation and energy, chronic fatigue
Addictions, eating disorders, chronic money problems (underearning/compulsive spending);
Depression and/or chronic mood swings, manic-depressive disorder;
Inability to let go of relationships, or recover from loss
Intense fears of being alone or abandoned
Difficulty delaying gratification, impatience, chronic irritability
Frequent physical injuries with slow, drawn out recovery periods
Dependency on institutions, parents or others for basic survival needs well

into adulthood
Characteristic Attitudes of the Includer (Swollen Character)
The term swollen, and much of the concept comes from Stanley Keleman. Lowen
does not formally separate a swollen character from other oral characters. Ellsworth
Baker, however, distinguishes an 'oral-unsatisfied' character from an 'oral-repressed'
character. It is possibly useful to think of this as an 'in between character. That is, the
experience is still basically one of deprivation like the communicator, but there is
starting to be an ability to take in and hold. However, this is taking in leads not to
density as in the consolidator, but rather to an less stable inflated condition.
Overall, this character is not as well defined as the others
Psychological Characteristics this structure is a good imitator and identifies
with others easily. The includer can be very creative and giving of himself in a
search for an identity. He or she shows a tendency for expansive or grandiose ideas
or plans and bursts of activity that cannot be sustained. The includer often fails to
complete what they start, usually because they have started several other things in
the mean time. There is also a certain lack of discrimination about what is taken in.
Structural Characteristics Swelling is an attempt to achieve

expansion and influence by pushing a weak and diffuse surface away from the core or
towards others. The body often assumes a pear shape. Skin will still be thin with a
high sensitivity.
Energy Characteristics Basically the same energy structure as the oral character,
with somewhat more warmth. May at times verge on hypomania.
Relationship Characteristics Includers may tend to attempt superiority in
groups or relationships through ideas or goals. However they are never truly
dominant because, at bottom they are pre-occupied with pleasing others and being
what others want. Generally wants to be the center of attention
Possible Difficulties for the Includer Character
Eating disorders, weight fluctuations, tendency to excess.
Taking on too many projects at once, not finishing what is started.
Lack of discrimination about what is taken in. Can value quantity over quality.
Inclination to be the exciting or gratifying object for others ( perhaps this is

why 'Santa Claus' is depicted as this body type) , difficulty forming solid
reciprocal relationships.
The Inspirer (Psychopathic) Character
This is the most controversial character. Both the concept, and the embodiment
attracts strong interest from people with all the other character types. Many students
of character analysis want to claim a pinch of psychopathy, just like a tasty dish
benefits from a pinch of tabasco, but no one wants to be a 'pure psychopath.' In fact,
in the midst of learning character analysis, there can be a tendency to label someone
a psychopath when they oppose us, or do something we don't like, or gain more
influence than us, but this is surely a misuse of the concept.
An additional caveat is pertinent at this point. There is a tiny group of seriously
disturbed individuals that are capable of great harm and cruelty as to to seem
inhuman. This is probably the result of some types of complete disconnection
between pre-frontal cortex, amygdala, and the heart segment. In popular accounts
they are also called psychopathic. This rare disorder is not a template for the
character described her, and may be discontinuous from it completely. Confusion
between the two groups contributes to the controversy in the study of this character.
The psychopathic character is the only concept of character that has had much of a
life outside of Lowenian character analysis. (The DSM-IV has a few categories of
personality disorders that are faintly similar to the Lowen scheme, but they are based
not on any consistent concept of character, but rather on types of problem
transactions with health care providers. None of the DSM categories are can be
profitably mapped onto character analysis. This 'mainstreaming' of the idea of
psychopathic character comes from a compelling desire to understand, the type of
person that leaves such confusion, division, and havoc behind.
The first modern treatment of the psychopathic character was done by Clecky
in Mask of Sanity. Later Robert Hare developed a diagnostic check-list (which is
extremely consistent with Cleckly' description). Clecky organized his ideas around
the idea that the psychopathic character is self-sabotaging, while Hare leaned more
toward the idea of short-sighted. Both men where trying to explain the contradiction
of considerable talent, energy, and focus on the one-hand, and, on the other hand,
near inevitable impulsive actions that throw the fruits away. If in fact they had
examined the body and energy structure, as did Lowen, the contradiction would have
been more explainable.
Back to character analysis, when a psychopathic body structure is read, attention is
always drawn to the upward displacement. But upward displacement is common to
many characters. What really distinguishes the psychopathic character is outward
displacementof strong if ungrounded energy. The inspirer is able to project
power outward. This provides an ability to influence of which many intellectual
(purely upwardly displaced) individuals are envious. The extreme example would be
the magnetic personality.
Lowen also describes "image psychopathy." The body grows to conform to the
idealized image. This is a necessarily unconscious process! Otherwise, it
would conflict with a basic character analysis principle that conscious striving for
greatness is ultimate limiting to the body and unsuccessful. Conscious or semiconscious effort to achieve an image are never salutary to the body or the self, and
are discussed extensively in Lowen's book Narcissism.
There is an overlap between the occurrence of narcissism and psychopathy, but
they are not the same thing. Narcissism is an ego defense and psychopathy is a
character (neuro-muscular) defense. The narcissistic position is against feeling. The
psychopathic position is against others. Psychopathy does depend on lack of
feeling about the effects of actions on others. Any unfeeling state tends
naturally to images of power and grandiosity. This is true also in the schizoid
condition. But the absence of feeling also tends toward deadness. In the psychopath,
feeling is not absent, but denied in a perceptual sense while still available in a
biological sense to drive aggression. Narcissism is a much more broadly distributed
trait, it can 'fit' onto different energy structures although its expression is strongly
colored by the underlying character. It is possible to have some feeling and still be
narcissistic, but the narcissism tends to be more 'collapsed' and 'closeted' the more
that feeling is present. The less the feeling, the more narcissism can 'decloak' and
'flourish.' That is why the psychopathic character structure and narcissism meld
together so well in the 'pathological' or 'malignant' narcissist, who is grandiose,
dominating, and wholly unempathetic.
Characteristic Attitudes of the Inspirer (Psychopath)
In life, the Inspirer seeks power more than pleasure. The will is powerfully exerted
to control others and to control feelings. Feelings are alive in the body, however, but
denied recognition by the mind. Feelings, the body, and external senses are not
trusted, Therefore only whats in ones head, only ones own ideas in the moment, are
treated as valid and real. One story is as good as another, or actually a story that
elicits the desired response from others is superior--its relationship to what actually
happened in the world is secondary at best. This accounts for the often-given
impression that the inspirer believes his or her own lies.
The mind is the servant of the will in this structure, so reasoning can be dramatically
inconsistent, though capable of brilliance. Arguing both sides of a situation or mixing
lies with truth is common if it suits a manipulative purpose to gain power or be
right.
There is also a tendency to poor judgment and an inability to learn from
mistakes. The denial of feeling in this character leads to the denial of
experience. This leads to a denial of past suffering which is an additional obstacle
to change. Denial of experience also leads to an 'immunity' to learning from
experience. This is not a failure of consciousness, because consciously, the
psychopath wants to increase pleasure and decrease pain. Rather it is a failure of
implicit learning, because conditioning that produces implicit knowledge is based on

feelings, especially fear and danger.
In the inspirer pain is numbed, and genuine strong feelings are denied, but dramatic
emotionality and false feelings can be acted out to achieve some purpose, like
intimidation or seduction. Fear of being wrong or of submitting to the will of others
is extreme and is powerfully denied. The fear of being controlled or humiliated
underlies an extreme need to be in control of feelings, in control of others, and in
control of situations. Maintaining control whether it is real or illusory, fends off fears
of losing power, being defeated or helpless, and collapsing into desperate neediness.
There is seemingly no middle ground, either the inspirer is in control or he or she
believes others are in control.
The intuitive capacities of the Inspirer are formidable, with very strong abilities to
read what is going on inside of other people, although the understanding of the
meaning of what is going on is often very distorted. The inspirer is not hampered by
the self-doubt and self-absorption of most other pre-oedipal characters, and
therefore is able to better pay attention to others in real time. The basis of charm is
the ability to make someone feel they are the only one in the world at that moment.
Insincerity is saying something because the other person wants to hear it. The
insincerity of the inspirer increases the charm because they listen very intently (for
clues of what the other person wants to hear) rather than think distractedly about
what they want to say. This all contributes to the 'magnetic personality' that is often
noted.
Inspirers are very adept at the workings of power. They are often openly admired
for this, and bestowed a certain credibility and even immunity for it. That is, in parts
of society in which power is admired (entertainment, politics, corporate business,
academia, etc), they can disturb many things, but are often not held to the same
account as someone else might be, because they are seen as special, or as above
routine consequences.
Aggression is used as a defense against surrender to feelings, which are equated
with weakness, or to the will of others. Because aggression is readily
available, inspirers may easily lead or dominate groups. Inspirers are frequently
leading corporations, large religious congregations, non-profit organizations, and
political entities. Aggression tends toward competitiveness in any person. In
the Inspirer, the addition of denial of feeling can increase the tendency to violate
the rights of others.
This character is named for his or her ability to inspire groups, either as leader, or
simply as inspirational speaker. This arises mainly from the manner and energy of
delivery, rather than any intrinsic message. Inspirers tend not to have any
durable, coherent body of belief, but rather use an accumulation of
truisms and good, but unrelated insights to impress and lead
others. Clarifying or challenging questions about this inspirational content tend to
be answered with more interesting anecdotes or insights, not with actual

examination of the material questioned. This is why it is not possible for others to
master these 'systems', they are being made up 'on the go.' In this way, inspirers are
always needed and always special. Organizations led therefore, can drift toward
cultishness easily. The effect on others of bringing a feeling of readiness to act is
undeniable, however.
Their is a powerful investment in and identification with idealized and powerful
images and self-images. There is a need to be special, as with most pre-oedipal
characters, but in this case, the inspirer lives out the need by actually believing and
convincing others this has already occurred instead of being just on the verge.
Commonly noted with the inspirer over time is a lack of empathy or compassion and
a lack of conscious feelings of remorse or guilt. Others that are hurt are seen to be
'casualties of war' that is in the wrong place at the right time. Also commonly noted is
a craving for intensity and excessive stimulation to counteract numbness. Often there
is poor impulse control and an intolerance of boundaries and structure. One
mnemonic to remember the most disruptive traits of this character is the Five I's:
irritable, indifferent, insincere, impulsive, and irresponsible. The five i's of
course refer to traits that produce conflict with others, and ignore the inspirational
and path-finding abilities of this character.
It would not be legitimate to discuss the inspirer character in this context without
discussing some personal traits of Wilhelm Reich. Reich did not describe a
'psychopathic' character in his writings. However, a review of his biographies, letters,
and journals, suggests that Reich's character is best described as an Inspirer. Many
write unhesitatingly about his magnetic personality, strength to push forward and
ability to inspire. His ex-wife also writes, hesitatingly, about a 'shadow' side of
jealousy and controllingness. As the name inspirer suggests, this character affects
other people the most strongly. This along with the tendency to challenge limits
provides at time a springboard to 'jump the rails' of the beaten path. Reich clearly did
this, and he seems to have had a self-reflective process that kept him from exploiting
people for the most part.
Predominant negative core beliefs: "I must never surrender. Everything is a
lie, including love, including me. Whatever I believe in the moment is the truth. I
must never be wrong. If I am wrong, I will be humiliated. I must get others to
need me, so I can control them, in order to get what I need. - If I acknowledge my
feelings, I will be weak and get abused. The world is an abusive place.
Characteristic Illusion: "I'll get love if I have power over you and control my
needs"
Primary falling fear: falling down
Primary holding pattern: holding up
Primary longing: to have integrity

Primary Struggle: the right to trust
Illusion of Contraction: I can do anything myself if I so will it"
Illusion of Release: I will be used, manipulated, humiliated, and helpless.
The Inspirer Character in Relationship
The need to have followers is felt as an essential reason to engage with others. It is
through the needing to be needed that the person with this character structure
maintains his or her feeling of power, while denying dependency at the same time.
Creators always have at least one follower, which will usually be a relationship
partner. Inspirers will often engage in side relationships, to prove potency and to
'prove' he or she is not controlled by their partner.
Inspirers primarily relate to others as objects, as sources of narcissistic supply to
support images of power and specialness. Since others are objectified, anything can
be said or done to get what is wanted from another without concern for the others
feelings or well-being.
A divide and conquer approach is often taken to gain control of others, individually
and in groups, pitting people against each other, then sometimes taking the role of
mediator or peacemaker. Eccentric, radical, dramatic, unpredictable or extreme
behavior and appearance are often used to gain attention and/or to keep others off
balance
Sexual Functioning
Sex is seen as a means to an end, or a contest, often used to gain power, not pleasure,
or to express revenge feelings; sex is related to as a conquest of the other person and
as further proof of ones prowess
In men, maintaining an erection is more important than having an orgasm, and
extreme pride is taken in the penis; in women, likewise, being seen as sexually
powerful and technically skilled is more important than sensual or orgasmic
pleasure; feelings in the genitals are greatly diminished, so performances of great
endurance are possible, but genuine surrender to sexual feelings and orgasm is
experienced as humiliating or terrifying.
Physical Characteristics of the Inspirer Character
The body may be designed to serve the purposes of

dominating or seducing, and can take almost any form, following whatever main
image the person is primarily attached to -- for example athletic and powerful,
youthful and innocent, sexual and alluring. This is the 'image' psychopathy described
by Lowen and alluded to above. Generally, however, there are two types of body
formations typical of this character structure
1) The overpowering type which is inflated on top, blown-up looking, with a
barrel chest, broad shoulders, and large head, while rigid and small in the pelvis,
with small buttocks and thin legs, particularly the calves; or 2) The seductive type
which is inflated in the pelvis (but numb to feelings there), with broad hips and
hyperflexibility in the back, while deflated and immature in the chest area
The "V"-shape of classic bodybuilders (before anabolic steroids) depicts well one
common psychopathic structure. Armoring is particularly marked in the chest,
diaphragm, legs and shoulders. Eyes are highly charged, often large, and frequently
gleaming or sparkling. In the dominating type, the eyes are penetrating and
compelling. In the seductive type, they are soft and intriguing, cunning, dreamy or
sleepy looking. Often, there is a pronounced split between the head and the body
(mature body, with a small child-like face and head, or visa versa); this split is
facilitated by severe tension at the base of the skull and in the shoulder girdle, which
holds the head tightly in place. Arms tend to be immobilized and away from the body
(due to the inflated chest and severe shoulder girdle tensions).
This character often manages anxiety by movement, and confinement is usually very
distressing. Inspirers do very well in sports requiring episodic, spontaneous,
unique, explosive or wily movement of individuals, like basketball or
football. Inspirers often have less interest in sports where a limited range of
movement is practiced over and over, such as tennis or golf.
Feet tend to be pulled off the ground and may be small; calves and thighs may be
short and thin, even when the torso is heavy. Physical illnesses are often not felt or
manifested until late in life due to extreme willfulness and numbness (later life
problems may be in the hips, prostate, pelvis in general, or the heart). Spine may be
twisted or fused and immobile. Chronic areas of tension: base of the skull, shoulder
girdle, chest and rib cage, including the diaphragm, waist and abdominal muscles
(which are often hard and clenched to pull sexual energy away from genitals), pelvic
area in general, genitals specifically.
The structure is highly charged, with energy displaced and pulled upwards into the
top half of the body and away from the pelvis. The eyes are often strongly charged,
used to penetrate, intimidate and/or seduce. Energy is directed outwardly to
influence, lead, and control others, and directed inwardly to deny feelings in the self
by contracting all feeling centers. Energy is not allowed to flow downwards, cut off by
severe tensions in the pelvis, waist, diaphragm, shoulders and base of skull.
Origins of the Inspirer Character
(Developmental Period Birth to 4 Years)
While the validity of the adult inspirer or psychopathic character seems well
established by everyday observation and plentiful sources outside the Reich and
Lowen tradition, the childhood origins of the character have not been
explained as well as other pre-oedipal characters. One possibility could be
that this character in part represents biological resilience. That is, the same
detrimental experiences that produces an oral character in one person, if they
happen to a child that has a strong genotype toward upper body strength, may result
in the same weak grounding, but spare or even exaggerate upper body development
and lead to more of an inspirer character. That could also explain why there seems
to be a disproportionate number of male to females in this character. In any case, the
following situations have also been posited to play a role in the development of the
inspirer character.
One or both parents manipulated, seduced, sexualized, or otherwise used the

child (covertly or directly) for their own narcissistic purposes; parents instilled
in the child an image of how they wanted the child to be in order for the adults
to feel good about themselves
The parents used the child as a buffer or weapon against each other. The child
was overly involved in the marital relationship or parent of the same sex was
significantly absent from childs early life (due to work, illness, death or
divorce, etc.).
There was a role reversal in which the child was maneuvered, often with
sexual overtones and promises of love that were never delivered, into being
the pseudo-spouse or pseudo-parent to a parent (frequently of the opposite
sex); the child was expected to be more than he or she was to that parent
(Mommys little man; Daddys little princess). One or both parents
invested child with feelings of specialness and importance and then rejected
or ignored child, or otherwise became unavailable (frequently the parent of

the opposite sex). One or both parents competed with the child, feeling
threatened by the childs real or imagined accomplishments, and sadistically
exploited the childs weaknesses to humiliate, control and diminish the childs
self-confidence
Possibly, the child experienced horror from witnessing events that could not
be understood or integrated, such as verbal or physical abuse (either of a
violent or sexual nature); a major trauma occurred in the childs life, usually
after the second year, that could not be understood intellectually by the child
and was experienced as a betrayal; (i.e. hospitalization and surgery,
exposure to sex acts by adults, witnessing extreme violence, etc., while being
told that all was well by the adults, or blaming the child for the trauma)
The childhood history may include: restlessness and hyperactivity, dangerous

behavior (i.e. fire-setting), severe tantrums, spectacular achievements (in
school, sports or the arts) coupled with spectacular self-sabotage or
delinquency, cruelty to animals or other children, premature sexual behavior,
troublemaker persona, inappropriate lack of fear and a lack of crying when
hurt.
A Note About Therapy with the Inspirer

With this character, since problems are externalized, only external
solutions will make sense. This is more than saying that the responsibility for the
problem is externalized, the entirety of the problem is externalized. Should the
therapist land in the position of suggesting there are problems, the therapist and the
therapy can easily come to be experienced by the client as the problem. All characters
will bring a characteristic resistance maneuver into the relationship with the
therapist, but since the inspirer's maneuver is to dominate the therapist, it can be
particularly difficult to establish a working alliance. Although body work will be
initially appealing, it will difficult for this character to take ongoing feedback from
the therapist, since he will attempt to deny any serious problems exist.
Possible Difficulties for the Inspirer Character
Intense fears of being defeated, humiliated, controlled, or used
The incidence of addiction and substance abuse is higher, due in part to thrilland sensation-seeking and a craving for feelings of power and invincibility.
However, with this character, loss of control is very ego-dystonic, so that
durable will-based remissions are not uncommon
Feelings of falseness, insincerity, and a lack of integrity
Feelings of emptiness and boredom, counteracted by episodes of recklessness,

risk-taking and thrill-seeking behavior, addiction to intensity
Conflicts with authority (including employers, institutions and the legal

system)
Impulsive sexual acting out, promiscuity, many shallow relationships, but no

real intimacy or trusting friendships
Criminal, sociopathic behavior; domestic violence
Characteristic Attitudes of the Consolidator (Masochist)
To others, Consolidators tend to be kind, pleasant, pleasing, servile, initially selfsacrificing and ingratiating. They often volunteer to help and rarely assert their
desires directly. Consolidators have a very difficult time saying no, and may well end
up doing thankless tasks or things they don't want to do. This is called social
masochism (or formerly 'moral masochism'). It is, however, important to distinguish
the energetic masochism of this character from mere social masochism (being a
'doormat'). The latter is a common strategy also of
the creator and communicator characters also due to weak aggression.
The consolidator has, subjectively, a chronic sensation of suffering, and to others
who get to know them better, a tendency to complain. However, in this complaining,
unlike that of the communicator, both direct blaming and a broad swath is
avoided. Consolidators tend to accept the way the world is in general, and so their
complaints tend to be along the lines of how they have been misfortunate in their
particular circumstances and situations. There is tendency to call attention to their
burdened or misused state but usually indirectly and not in a way that can be
followed through by change either by themselves or others. Rather there is just the
underlying implication that others should fix the situation and they will not or
cannot. It seems consolidators take pride in their ability 'to take it' and
desire credit, not relief. In fact if straightforward effort is made to help
a consolidator change his or her circumstances, frustration often ensues and it has
been often felt that the consolidator is 'addicted' to humiliation, degradation,
defeat and pain.
Despite the usual calm or cheerful outside presentation, negative feelings are felt
intensely. However the direct or open expression of negative feelings is severely egodystonic. Any self-assertion produces powerful feelings of guilt, shame and
humiliation. There can be a fear of exploding violently. Negative feelings are
expressed mainly through passive-aggressive behavior or indirect provocations,
although sometimes a strong 'victim-role' is taken on, which is sometimes described
as 'whining.'
For consolidators, anxiety is present most of the time. Anxiety is already present
before something is undertaken, or in anticipation of an undertaking. This often
leads to rumination and anxiety about events that probably will not happen. The
anticipatory anxiety often leads the consolidator to avoid things, but the avoidance
does not dispense with the anxiety. This produces for the consolidator the experience
of constantly being under great pressure.
There is a constant search and preoccupation with approval. While with
the communicator character approval is sought for esteem, with
the consolidator approval is an act of submission--an attempt to format an
interpersonal relationship. This of course brings a submerged element of resentment

or resistance to approval which complicates encouragement and support from
others.
There is a tendency toward periods of inaction, brooding, and self-incriminating
rumination. This has been described as the 'masochistic bog or morass.' It may
appear to others as a depression. However it differs from depression in that it is
possible to fairly easily elicit emotion. Also, unlike depression it is not lack of energy
but rather a high energy system getting stuck between two conflicting impulses,
however, it should not be minimized because the stuckness is very real and very
difficult to change.
In whatever they do, consolidators give the impression of squeezing or forcing
something out with great effort. The tendency to procrastinate is
strong; Consolidators often cannot either do something or decide not to do it. They
often look to others for direction in what to do, but just as often find fault with this
direction. Moreover, they also quite commonly undermine others' plans with
slowness, stubbornness, perfectionism, or passive aggressive behavior.
There is a reliance on others to provide a means of release of pent-up feeling--hence
the tendency to provoke. Indecisiveness also contributes to tension and provocation
can be used 'to make something happen.' The anger and punishing attitudes that are
provoked in others seems to justify internal feelings of spite. Placing others in the
wrong allows an expression of feeling that is not possible otherwise.
There is a common misconception that masochism means that pain is pleasureable,
Actually however it means that moderately painful sensations enable a release of
feeling including pleasurable and sexual feelings.
The mind can be very orderly, but usually obsessively so, with much ruminating on
details, serving as a distraction from feelings.Consolidators may have valuable
knowledge but they hesitate to take leadership, sometimes being a loyal 'second-incommand' but often continuing to work below their abilities.
Childhood and adult history may include: clumsiness and many minor accidents.,
overeating (to stuff down feelings), chronic sore throats, acne, digestive problems, a
sensitive gag reflex and anxiety about vomiting, constipation, and excessive neatness
or sloppiness.
The will is weakened by the constant holding pattern, but it is strong enough to
express its resistance (to the parents crushing will) through stubbornness, defiance
and passive refusal (to move, to be successful or happy, etc.); the will is also often
directed to make the individual appear stupid or eccentric, or to dissimulate, so there
is much inner doubting about ones own intelligence or wisdom.
Predominant negative core beliefs: I will be loved as long as I submit to the
will of others. If I assert my independence, I will be crushed. - To get love, I must
please others. I can never say no. - I must never express my negativity. I will
hurt myself to prevent others from hurting me. - If I feel too much, I will explode. I am inferior and disgusting because of my negative feelings. - Life is hard and
suffering unavoidable.
Characteristic Illusion: "I'll get love if I submit myself to your wishes."
Primary falling fear: of the bottom falling out
Primary holding pattern: holding in
Primary longing: to be free/spontaneous
Primary Struggle: the right to be assertive.
Illusion of Contraction I'll be loved as long as I'm good
Illusion of Release I will be crushed and humiliated
Assets: Great capacities for pleasure, humor, optimism, playfulness and joy.
Genuine supportiveness, strength and desire to be of service to others. An expansive,
open heart with deep compassion, true kindness and understanding. When released
by a strong enough stimulus, there is positive assertiveness and healthy aggression
with substantial amounts of energy; - Ability to be spontaneously creative in the
moment, surrender ego control and trust the natural order in all things.
Relationship and Interpersonal Functioning
In relationships, consolidators are able to feel close and give and receive some
warmth, but the relationships still contains a feeling of tension and pressure.
Consciously or unconsciously trying to get appreciation and approval, permission to
feel, and relief from guilt are predominant motivations in relationships. This is
attempted either through exaggerated pleasing, servile and submissive behavior (that
may be experienced by the recipient as hostile, controlling and contemptuous),
through self-deprecating attitudes and self-damaging behavior, constant whining
and complaining, or through directly provocative behavior. Alternately
a consolidator may couple with a more verbally critical character structure (for
instance a communicator), so that the complaining can be "contracted out" to the
partner. If this is the case, the consolidator often can 'go along' with most things
and deny distress, even when it is obvious that they are being treated quite
disrespectfully or controllingly by his or her partner.
Sexuality
The Consolidator has a strong sexual drive. Intense preoccupation with sex and
frequent masturbation are common as this person continually seeks pleasure and
release, both of which are intensely desired and also inhibited. Commonly there is a
fascination with pornography. Sadomasochistic fantasy is common (seeking to turn
pain, submission and humiliation into a release or way to earn pleasure). Orgasms
are controlled by pushing and squeezing actions (of the buttocks, thighs and pelvis).
Surrendering to love is related to as both potentially liberating and potentially
crushing, with pain as a necessary ingredient and good feelings in love and sex as
too much.
Sexual Masochism and Consensual Power Exchange
Social masochism as expressed in this character has much less of an overlap with
traditionally defined sexual masochism than is commonly supposed. However, this is
the likeliest spot to address how the topic fits into the Reich and Lowen view of
sexual functioning. As pointed out elsewhere, pain, humiliation, and submission is
not pleasureable to anyone, but rather in certain settings, modest pain, dominance,
or humiliation can allow a release that is otherwise impeded. The intentional seeking
and employment of practices that provide this type of release has become known as
Bondage, Discipline, Dominance, Submission, Sadism, Masochism, telescoped into
the acronym BDSM.
Consensual power exchange, ironically, is a paradox usually quickly understood by
women, gay men, and minorities. It is less quickly understood by traditionally
privileged groups. Power exchange done consciously is an exercise in strong
boundaries rather than weak boundaries because both typical avoidant strategies and
symbiotic illusions are unavailable.
Like the Reich and Lowen tradition, BDSM consists of 1) experiential activities, 2)
organized around increasing pleasure, 3) deliberately employing sensation and
autonomic stimuli, 4) sex-positive, and at times, 5) meant to be healing.
Unlike the Reich and Lowen tradition, however, 1) the emphasis is on the erotic and
not the satisfying, 2) emphasis is on performance, 3) natural attraction is neglected,
4) fantasy is encouraged, and 5) 'servicing' is considered a sound interpersonal
stance.
Physical Aspects and Structure
The body is typically thick and muscular and gives an impression of chronic tension
in the body. Height is average to somewhat shortened. Expression in the eyes is one
of suffering. The face often has an invariable smiling. Hair tends to be coarse and
thick. There is usually a great deal of body hair. Women tend to wear hair about
shoulder length, or if kept longer, tie it back. The neck is short and thick (from
pulling in of the head). Shoulder muscles are bulky. Buttocks are pulled in and
squeezed together (to control the impulse to mess up and let out), which pushes the
pelvis forward; creating a "flat back" or 'tail tucked in' posture. Waist is short and
thick, encased, compressed and collapsed (from pulling in and down from the top
and up and in from the bottom to control impulses to let out); in women, hips and
thighs are often thick and heavy. In men, the abdomen often balloons. The
abdominal compression affects the whole diaphragmatic segment, making exhalation
difficult and hindering all of the organs in the area.
There is often an awkwardness or clumsiness in the persons gait and movements,
with frequent minor accidents along with a general uncomfortability in the body.
There is anal and genital tension and spasticity (causing acute suffering and inability
to freely experience pleasure) as the whole pelvic floor is contracted. The skin tends
to have a brownish hue due to held energy charge; there may be severe problems
with acne. Chronic areas of tension are the neck, shoulder girdle, pelvis and buttocks,
and most of the large ('extrinsic') muscles Chronic physical ailments of the throat and
colon/anal region, such as sore throats, colitis, constipation and hemorrhoids, and
digestive problems
The consolidator character is fully charged energetically, but energy is tightly held
in check (though not frozen), so this person is boiling inside. Energy moving
upward and downward is choked off at the neck and waist (causing compression)
and outlets for energy discharge are blocked (throat, anus, genitals) The highly
charged energy is stagnant in the skin
The Origins of the Masochistic Character
Developmental Period - 19th to 30th Months
Parents offered conditional love to the child based on compliance with their will (that
the child be a good boy or girl and control impulses). Attempts by child to assert its
own will or say No were overpowered by parents and greeted with threats of
abandonment or withdrawal of love. The child's strong pleasure and excitement may
have caused anxiety in the parents. Possibly parents were excessively involved in
childs eating and excretory functions (child may have been pushed to eat more than
it wanted, toilet training may have been severe, enemas given, etc.), and in general,
there was a strong focus on eating and defecating in the family.
Father may have been passive, submissive or absent while mother was dominating,
smothering, or harsh (often with a self-sacrificing, martyr-type mask), or father may
have been harsh, controlling or sadistic while mother was permissive and indulgent;
- Parents may have been excessively concerned about messing up (around personal
hygiene, household cleanliness, finances, order in general, etc.); - A sudden
interruption in the parent-child relationships may have occurred in the childs
second year of life (birth of a sibling, divorce, absent parent due to work, illness,
death, etc., or a physical illness of child).
Possible Difficulties for the Consolidator Character
Chronic feelings of suffering and chronic low-level anxiety, both emotionally

and physically
Submissive behavior, and lack of self-assertion (inability to say, No);
Intense feelings of shame and humiliation
Feeling trapped
Self-destructive behavior patterns (sabotaging success in jobs and

relationships, accidents, sexual acting out, etc.)
Obsessive/compulsive problems, particularly around sex, cleanliness and

orderliness
Preoccupations with sex, masturbation, pornography and/or excretory

functions, accompanied by intense guilt, shame and self-punishment
An inability to let go of or change repetitive patterns in abusive or ungratifying

relationships.
Inability to tolerate pleasure or success without guilt or anxiety.
Characteristic Attitudes of the Achiever (Phallic) Male
Because the rigid character achieves genitality, adult sexual feeling and biology
comes into play very strongly in character formation, and functioning differs strongly
along gender lines. This is consistent with folk wisdom and everyday observation of
rigid characters (as opposed to other 'pre-genital' characters). The men appear
manly and the women appear feminine. This view, that human sexual
dimorphism, where it exists, is natural, good, and a characteristic of maturation, is,
of course, inconsistent with the political correctness of the present day. The
male achiever or rigid character, is named the 'phallic' character, because he is
thought to exhibit 'male' aggression, perhaps a substitute for full sexual release and
satisfaction. The female rigid character is known as a 'hysteric', because strong
sexual feeling builds but can only find expression in outbursts or conversion
symptoms. Below is a description of the male character.
The male achiever copes effectively with the world. This character organizes his life
around accomplishing goals. In business this means increasing margins where
possible. Without being deceptive, the achiever tries to put as little into a situation or
association as possible while getting out as much as possible. This is not about
domination, however, the achiever assumes others can push back in their own selfinterest. He is not resentful when they do, and can relent at times, although the
achiever can also push back even more strongly and become very competitive and
aggressive. Pre-oedipal characters may consider achievers bullies.
The mind is developed, with an efficient, but unyielding intellect that is trusted much
more than feelings or impulses. Thinking tends to be very linear, with good
concentration, but little capacity for or interest in abstraction. Creativity is controlled
in favor of soundness. In large organizations, achievers often team
with creators or communicators. The achiever, as boss, provides the aggression
and reality contact to implement the creativity and abstraction of the latter
characters.
The ability to make decisions and take action is valued by others, and achievers often
assume leadership positions. Traditionally,achievers have been the heads of
industry, government and law enforcement. (Although, with trends in society moving
toward narcissism, these roles increasingly go to inspirer or psychopathic
characters).
Pride is the driving force in this structure and great efforts of the will are directed
towards performance and outer appearances (always being attractive and never
appearing vulnerable or foolish). There is stubbornness that is not in the service of
spiting others but rather in the service of avoiding looking foolish.
Achievers are often athletic due to graceful movements and intense competitiveness.
They often favor sports that combine face to face competition with controlled
movements, such as handball, tennis, or golf.
PREDOMINANT NEGATIVE CORE BELIEFS If I love, I will be vulnerable. I
will get love by appearing invulnerable and attractive. - If I desire sexually, I will be
rejected. I will get sexual gratification by controlling my sexual longings. No one
surrenders to another. I will survive by never surrendering. The world is a
rejecting, competitive place.
Characteristic Illusions: "If I hold back my heart, It will never be broken again"
"If I don't give you my heart, I can be sexual."
Primary falling fear: Falling forward or on one's face
Primary holding pattern: Holding back
Primary longing: to surrender in love.
Primary Struggle: the right to love sexually
Illusion of Contraction: I will be loved if I am attractive and accomplished.
Illusion of Release: "I will be rejected if I fully open my heart"
The Male Achiever Character in Relationship
Achievers tend to be very attractive to women, partly because of external features but
mostly because of the 'energy' they give off. Relationships are often treated the same
as a business, in that it is deemed rational to try to get the most out of it while putting
only the necessary minimum in. Having a relationship with an unmitigated
male achiever can be like constant re-negotiation with a hard-driving boss. This
means that in personal affairs, achievers often become dominant de facto. Love and
erotic feelings are strong, but are controlled by the mind and will. Achievers have
intense fears of having their heart broken in love Surrendering to another is
deemed unacceptable and collapse is unthinkable. Dificulty surrending of course may
support the work function but interferes with the love function. Achievers may have
a less than complete sense of self caused by the separation of love feelings from
sexual feelings. Male Achievers may become 'womanizers' to reinforce a sense of
virility without the need to commit to love. Achievers may marry several times, as
the intent is there to commit to one woman, but once in a committed relationship
there is holding back, and then a search for love elsewhere. Alternately, achievers
may be actually quite 'moral' about sex, because there is enough feeling to experience
modesty.
Sexual Functioning
The achiever is usually erectively potent. Premature ejaculation is often a problem.
Outlet of sexual discharge through the genital may be limited. This can lead to
several acts of sex in a single day, because a large amount of sexual excitement
remains in the pelvis after each act of sex. The achiever may identify with this as
being superior as a man, and develop 'Don Juan' behavior around
it. Inspirer characters often also develop Don Juan behavior due to incomplete
discharge, but in the case of that character, the pelvis as well as the genitals is
restricted. In any case, achievers often receive only ego and not body satisfaction
from sex. This lack of satisfaction is of translated into a dissatisfaction with the
feminine partner. The juxtaposition of high sexual drive and limited discharge may
be responsible for the drivenness of this character.
Structure
Overall, the body is well-formed and proportionate. There is a distinct aliveness:

bright eyes, good skin color, good skin turgor, graceful movement and gesture.
Movement may command attention. Facial features are very 'masculine' Hair tends
to be well groomed. There is frequently a receding hairline. There is a tendency to
hold the head high and the back straight. In fact, the back may appear 'overly
straight'. Alternately there may be a slight backward displacement of the torso, as if
to keep the heart from being captured ( as in the illustration to the left). There is a
stiffness not related to any one joint but overall muscular function. This stiffness can
be considered 'good bearing' and imitated by people who wish to thought important.
Overall this rigidity prevents the achiever from participating fully in love or work
Energy
The overall energy level is good. In movement, there is grace but also a certain bias in
maintaining a very vertical posture. There is a fairly strong charge at the surface,
which supports good reality testing. The holding back is at the surface (rather than at
the core or muscular layers as with other characters.) This allows energy to flow
within the body, but limits its expression in the world.
The rigidity of the body may cause the torso to function as a tube, forcing energy to
bounce from the head to the pelvis. In this instance the head and the pelvis may act
as reservoirs, holding expression back at the 'final step.' The charge in the pelvis plus
the tendency to hold the pelvis back sometimes leads to a 'charged bladder' and an
urethra that used at times to discharge energy and aggression (after sex, after
meetings, etc) This is possibly the origin of the term 'pissing contests' to describe
struggles to establish dominance.
Origins of the Achiever Character

(Developmental Period 4-6 Years)
This character is believed to have had 'good enough' nurture up to 4 years of age or
the start of the oedipal period. At that point, love feelings for the mother were
rejected, and or the father interfered with this relationships. This 'heart-break'
resulted in a stiffening against disappointment.
Possible Difficulties for the Achiever Character
Difficulties with monagamy that threaten a valued primary relationship
Being experienced by his family as a hard driving tyrant
Workaholism, inability to enjoy success
Inabilty to sustain a long term relationship
Characteristic Attitudes of the Rigid Hysterical Female
Because the rigid character achieves genitality, adult sexual feeling and biology
comes into play very strongly in character formation, and functioning differs strongly
along gender lines. This is consistent with folk wisdom and everyday observation of
rigid characters (as opposed to other 'pre-genital' characters). The men appear
manly and the women appear feminine. This view, that human sexual
dimorphism, where it exists, is natural, good, and a characteristic of maturation, is,
of course, inconsistent with the political correctness of the present day. The
male achiever or rigid character, is named the 'phallic' character, because he is
thought to exhibit 'male' aggression, perhaps a substitute for full sexual release and
satisfaction. The female rigid character is known as a 'hysteric', because strong
sexual feeling builds but can only find expression in outbursts or conversion
symptoms. Below is a description of the female character.
The hysteric character has a very impressionistic cognitive style, in which detail is
less important than mood and emotional nuance. There is strong attention
to surface and appearance, and clothing and furnishings will tend to be fashionable
and well kept. This may be seen by some as superficial, but if as Alexander Lowen
posits, pleasure, contact, and consciousness all happen on the surface, then this
can be seen as healthy, if limited. There is a mild suggestibility, because there is a
tendency to agree with what looks or sounds good. Reality testing is basically good,
though, and this character is rarely taken advantage of severely.
PREDOMINANT NEGATIVE CORE BELIEFS If I love, I will be vulnerable. I
will get love by appearing invulnerable and attractive. If I desire sexually, I will be
rejected. I will get sexual gratification by controlling my sexual longings. If I
surrender to the man, I will be abandoned"
Characteristic Illusions: "If I hold back my heart, It will never be broken again"
"If I don't give you my heart, I can be sexual."
Primary falling fear: Falling forward or on one's face
Primary holding pattern: Holding back
Primary longing: to surrender in love.
Primary Struggle: the right to love sexually
Illusion of Contraction: I will be loved if I am attractive and desirable.
Illusion of Release: "I will be rejected if I fully open my heart"
Relationships
For the hysteric, relationships often exhibit a push-pull quality, especially around
sexual contact, with a constant seeking out of sexual situations and simultaneous
flight from them Often one person is chosen as a sexual partner, while another is
chosen as a love partner. Relationships are often sought out with people who are seen
as having status in socially acceptable ways (the "checklist"); others are often related
to as either competitors (to be defeated) or suitors (to be seduced). There tends to be
a superficial or formal quality to interactions, though often with undertones of
intrigue (gossiping or a soap opera kind of drama as the style of communicating),
argumentativeness, or there may be an hysterical quality to self-expression.
Something is always held back in relationships to maintain interest and mystery and
an edge Sex is primarily sought after for validation of ones attractiveness and
prowess and secondarily for pleasure. Sexual desires are often experienced as
incestuous. Sexual pleasure and full orgasm are possible, but often avoided out of the
fear of surrendering and appearing vulnerable. Orgasms, when allowed, may take a
long time and a lot of effort.
Structure
This character is well-formed and attractive. Overall alignment is straight, with

possibly some pulling back in the upper body. Sometimes there is a split with a
girlish upper body and a fuller lower body. Movement is graceful. The eyes and the
skin tend to 'radiate' Hair tends to be kept longer than the shoulder, and worn down,
even in a long term relationship and even into middle age. The lips are full.
The pelvis is the most mobile of all character structures, although Lowen believed
that even the hysteric character was beginning to lose mobility of the pelvis in our
society. The belly has a gentle pleasing curve from the waist that flows into the hips
and the mons. (there is not a tight band of constriction above the iliac crests and
pubic bone as there is with most other characters).
Energy
Lowen believed that energy flowed well in this character, but not quite making it to
the very ends of the 'pendulum'. That is, if development is complete in the adult,
energy normally pulsates back and forth between the genitals and the cerebral
cortex. Lowen posited that in female achiever, that the energy made it into the pelvis
but not the genitals, and into the midbrain or limbic system but not the cerebral
cortex. With this energy model, he explained an impressionistic thinking style (not
deficient, but not cortically dominated) and orgasm difficulties despite great sexual
energy.
Another outlet for sexual feeling is in subtle movements, which in this character
often have a definite sexual nuance.
Origins of the Hysteric Character
Like the male counterpart, this character is believed to have had 'good enough'
nurture up to 4 years of age or the start of the oedipal period. At that point, love
feelings for the father were rejected, and or the mother interfered with this
relationships. This 'heart-break' resulted in a stiffening against disappointment.
Possible Difficulties for the Hysteric Character
Difficulties with sexual satisfaction
Not being taken seriously, despite considerable abilities
Relationships in which the hysteric invests much more than the partner, being
taken for granted.
Physical Characteristics of the Passive-Feminine Male
This character has reached the genital stage physically, but interpersonally a great
deal of masochistic function is lived out. The passive-aggressive male will have a
warmth and poised manner that is attractive to and attracted to strong females but
will have a strong castration anxiety that can only partially be alloyed by submissive
behavior. This makes relationships unstable despite great reasonableness and ability
to cooperate.
The name of this character from a slight physical aspect of femininity that exists
within a very mature physical development. This is very different from an immature
appearing male that looks in a general way like an immature female. The secondary
sexual characteristics only fully develop when a person has reached genitality.
Therefore ironically, a male that has reached the genital stage, such as the passive
feminine male, is more capable of a certain feminine qualities, such as sinuous
movement, than a pre-oedipal character, male or female. This is very different from a
pre-genital male imitating a women's movements. In this latter case the movements,
even if unconscious and certainly if conscious, will be exaggerated, hard, and a
caricature of femininity.
Origins of the Passive Feminine Male Character
Like all rigid subtypes, this character is believed to have had 'good enough' nurture
up to 4 years of age or the start of the oedipal period. At that point, it is possible that
the father was rejecting, and the mother was accepting of the child generally, and
accepting of most male characteristics but not of aggression or sexual initiative.
Masculine Aggressive Female
Clearly this character structure cannot be discussed, even in the body aspects,
without first addressing the idea of gender and sexism. Our modern culture
encourages women to be successful in 'traditionally male' pursuits. However, the
basics of character are formed by five years of age, and so social learning may reinforce but does not really explain this character.
This character encompasses the idea that a female rigid character may subconciously
identify with the father (seemingly a phallic rigid father) and develop not only the
behavioral competitiveness, but also some male secondary sexual characteristis such
as a lot of body hair. As a rigid subtype, she is attractive as a woman, but will tend to
use her looks in a power way. Mannerisms may be slightly mannish. Psychological
functioning is along the lines of the phallic male.
Origins of the Masculine Aggressive Female Character
Likeall rigid subtypes, this character is believed to have had 'good enough' nurture up
to 4 years of age or the start of the oedipal period. At that point, the mother was
rejecting and the father was accepting of the child generally, but was dismissive of
feminine traits.
Energy and Movement
Structure, Movement, and Energy
In any healing tradition that includes bodywork, the point has to be

made quickly that there is no exact dividing line between structure,
movement, and energy. All three are necesary to life. Unfortunately, despite
the obvious fact that all actual persons in our lives are readily observed to have all
three, discussing these areas can quickly sound ungrounded, fanciful, circular, even
made up. The best way to understand structure, movement and energy is by
experiencing all three. The second best way to understand them is looking at the
everyday phenomena of life which show their trace. Alexander Lowen led the way in
developing a way to give people both paths to understanding simultaneously. He
called this bio-energetics. I am choosing to call the study of structure, movement,
and energy just 'energetics' to avoid confusion with the entirety of Lowenian
principles.
The Concept of Energy in Psychotherapy
There is a difference between the way a physicist uses the term 'energy', and how a
lay person uses the term. To a physicist, energy is the capacity to do work. To a
physicist, energy doesn't move. Matter moves however, and energy is responsible for
that movement.
To a lay person, energy is the desire to do things, or the feeling that one could do
things with ease. It is also the sensation of something moving in the body. The Reich
and Lowen tradition uses the lay definitions when it speaks of energy. Alexander
Lowen writes:
Life may be viewed as an excitatory phenomenon. We are not ordinary pieces of clay but a
substance that has been infused with spirit or charged with energy. When we become more
excited, our energy level rises. When we become depressed it falls. If we become highly
excited, we light up or luminate and glow. These excitatory phenomena like sexual
excitement are energetic processes. And the lumination or glow that they produce can be
seen. (Depression and the Body Chapter 10, Paragraph 32)
Whenever something desireable is also invisible, there will be many charlatans, both
witting and unwitting. Any reference to energy has to be suspect, because many
charlatans do claim to be able to perceive and manipulate unseen energy. In this
tradition, however, no one is manipulating energy. Rather, individuals are shown
how to free restrictions in their bodies that are likely to result in pleasureable
sensations and ease of action. It is the perceiving individual who must judge for
themselves if what they are experiencing is 'real' and helpful.
Pleasure and Sensation
Often in casual conversation, the terms pleasure and enjoyment are used
interchangeably. However, there is great value in making some distinction. Pleasure
is a biological phenomenon. Enjoyment is a psychological phenomenon. Usually
pleasure is accompanied by enjoyment but not always. Other things besides pleasure
can be enjoyed. What is of interest in this article is pleasure and its role in human
functioning, which I call the pleasure economy.
The Pleasure Economy: The pleasure process was described by Wilhelm
Reich as having 'four beats': physical tension, energetic charge, energetic discharge,
and physical relaxation. Hold ups occur around charge and discharge. Physical
undertakings like sex and eating are obvious examples of the pleasure economy.
Tension and charge with anticipation of pleasureable discharge can be
calledexcitement. An excited state is usually associated with some movement but not
all movements enable discharge, and discharge is not merely a movement. Discharge
and relaxation after sufficient tension and charge brings a desirable state of
experience described under the goal of satisfaction. It is also important
to distinguish discharge from 'release'.
The form of the discharge may be temporally but not logically linked to the
excitement. For instance, play at recess has been long understood to make the
tension of sitting still and paying attention in class not only possible but profitable.
The link between class and recess is a temporal one with tension preceding release in
time, but the tension causing activity is not logically related to the discharging
activity. This is why non-specific 'relaxation' at routine intervals is so valuable-everyone accumulates tension, and if the tension is held indefinitely the tension
become un--dischargeable, even with participation in normally quite pleasureable
activities.
For example, sneezing is a strong discharge which is naturally pleasureable, which
may explain why it is frowned upon in polite society. Laughter, especially 'belly
laughs' is a great discharge, hence the term 'comic relief.' Sleep for those whose sleep
is good serves as a general discharge for tension accumulated during the day--how
else to explain the frequent pleasant, satisfied feeling upon awakening? Crying
(especially sobbing with abdominal and chest movement) is a strong discharge and is
clearly part of the pleasure economy. At times a person will cry after sex when it is
good because crying enhances or completes the discharge.
A great mistake in pleasure is often waiting too long between the tension and
discharge. The connection between the two may be very logical but if too far apart in
time, the discharge may not be possible. Delaying gratification may lead to more
pleasure of course, by increasing the magnitude of the eventual discharge, but there
are limits to this process. That is why great achievements may not provide great or
even modest pleasure.
At this point a distinction needs to be made between the prospect of pleasure (which
may or may by itself involve some positive feeling) and actual pleasure (which is
'cleansing' and satisfying) The prospect of pleasure is of two
types: anticipation and promise. Anticipation is a whole-body phenomenon, it is
excitement with awareness. Anticipating a good meal when one is hungry is itself
pleasureable, but if the meal never comes, frustration may arise. How anticipation
gets misused when there are blocks to pleasure is described in the section
on sensualism below.
Promise (or relatedly, opportunity) is a cognitive recognition that one has obtained
the means for pleasure. The human ego is always concerned about the future. This
has some value in ensuring future conditions conducive to pleasure. This gratifies the
ego and is accompanied by a modest positive feeling that has no real discharge and
which I think is better described as reward or elation. Still, there is a profound
confusion in our culture between actual good feeling and the prospect of good
feelings. If one asks person how they are doing, almost always the reply is some
evaluation of prospects. The difference is lost between the real time recognition of an
activity as pleasureable, and the evaluation of an instrumental activity as gainful in
the future. The two are not intrinsically incompatible, but where the incapacity for
pleasure is present, prospects are illusory. A common example is a driven careerist
who works constantly, fueling the ego with short-lived bursts of reward, in the
process crippling the body's capacity for love or pleasure.
It is said that there are three types of pleasure: sensory, aesthetic, and mastery.
Sensory pleasures are described later on the page. Aesthetic pleasure is present in the
arts. Visual arts and drama can provide real pleasure by ideationally producing
excitement then provoking its discharge. Managing the progression of tension and
then discharge is openly acknowledged to be the skill in these arts. Symphonic music
is in the same category, although it may blend with the sensory. Popular music is
more clearly sensory, It is common for people to feel like dancing when music is
playing. Music provides the excitement and dancing is the discharge that completes
the pleasure. In art, what brings pleasure is known as beautiful. Much modern art
gets away from the beautiful, and while it may then still have a salutary function, it is
not a source of pleasure. Mental pleasure is a term that may refer to the 'prospect of
pleasure' and reward as discussed above, or may refer to aesthetic pleasures. After an
aesthetic excitement, pleasure may need to be completed with another step, such as
in self-directed movement, self-expression, or sex.
Mastery is a pleasure where the tension of addressing a challenge is well matched by
the release of actually doing the activity. 'Flow' is a term that has been coined to
described this pleasureable state at its greatest intensity.
Problems with discharge and relaxation are much more common than
problems with tension and charge. That is, problems achieving enjoyable
release are more common than problems achieving excitement. Excitement is
necessary for pleasure, but not sufficient. This build up of excitement can become
painful, especially if it is considerable and discharge is not available. Excitement
must subside away in the absence of discharge, and while this may be tolerable and
inevitable at times, it is never satisfying. Work often builds tension over the course of
the day. At quitting time there can be a natural release of tension in the body which is
pleasureable. When work consists of extreme vigilance, is drudgery, is resented, or
has no real stopping point, this natural release may not occur. Hence the ritual of
drinking right after work, which provides an artificial release for a time but soon
weakens the natural release, and dependency is common.
Very commonly the inability to discharge leads eventually to an inability to charge.
This the basis of depression and dysthymia. The problem of pleasure in this case
may seem to be lack of good fortune with external events, but it is really an internal
incapacity for pleasure. To a depressed person, normally very exciting things do not
produce the excitement, this is the basis of anhedonia. Relative anhedonia may exist
apart from depressive episodes. A self-depriving ideology may be adopted to make
sense of this pleasurelessness.
Pain While people vary widely in the capacity and search for pleasure, the tendency
to avoid physical pain is almost never disrupted. Pain is associated with contraction
of the body and with the sympathetic branch of the autonomic nervous system.
Pleasure is associated with the parasympathetic branch. One function of pleasure
perhaps is to restore the balance in the autonomic nervous system after inevitable
experiences of pain.
Pain is intellectually and phenomenologically the opposite of pleasure,
but they are not symmetrical in physiological roles.Reducing pain does not
increase pleasure, rather it provides a temporary good feeling and burst of energy
known as relief. Pain and pleasure occurring at the same time does not produce a
neutral feeling, but rather a 'bittersweet' experience in which both things are present
together. If relief is chronically mistaken for pleasure, one might not be aware of how
much pain one puts oneself in usually. Also with pain or injury endorphins are
produced to counteract the pain. Endorphins trick the mind into perceiving that the
body is okay by making the brain feel good.. Endorphins do not provide an
actual discharge and are not part of the pleasure economy. Endorphins can
become part of the pleasure 'psychology' (not pleasure economy) however, since it is
possible to manipulate the brain to be euphoric with 'aerobic exercise' or other
ordeals (cutting, starvation, risk-taking, etc)
The qualitative difference between pain and pleasure also underlies the difference
between medication and psychotherapy. Medication can take away bad feelings
(provide relief) but (disregarding the deceptive short euphoria of drugs used
recreationally) drugs cannot provide good feeling. Psychotherapy, especially body
psychotherapy can both decrease bad feelings and produce good feelings.
Admittedly, therapy is considerably trickier to 'get right' than medication.
Medication may increase the quality of life considerably, and medication (except
perhaps for chronic opiates and benzodiazepines) is compatible with body
psychotherapy.
It is a myth that in sexual masochism, 'pain is pleasureable.' Rather, short modest
pain or strong sensation can act on the musculature to allow a pleasureable discharge
that dwarfs the initial pain. This is confirmed by the fact that pain is only sought out
in very specific circumstances, such as sexual 'scenes', in which pleasure is
appropriate. Endorphins may have a role here also.
Sensory Enjoyment: The senses are involved not just in acquiring information but
in the tension/charge phase of pleasure. All sensory intake that is likely to lead to
pleasure is therefore called pleasant. Pleasant sensations vary in intensity, which is
related to the tension produced. The intensity of a pleasant sensation depends on the
objective qualities of the stimulus but also on the sensory traits of the person-sensitivity, appetite, taste, etc.. Whether the tension of a sensation is welcomed is
rightly related to the possibility of discharge. For instance, a person starting to get
hungry welcomes the smell of good food cooking because he or she looks forward to
discharging the tension in the eating. Someone who is full may find the smell of the
same good food cooking slightly irritating. Any pleasant sensation in judicious
quantities may be considered a good in itself, however, because the reasonable
anticipation of pleasure produces some good feeling by itself. Pleasant sensations are
necessary if not sufficient for pleasure, and so healthy functioning includes the
seeking out and acceptance of such sensations, including novel sensations.
Food is a very basic source of pleasure. Food intake is regulated by the body both in
terms of metabolic properties (calories etc) and in terms of pleasure. In a fine
restaurant, portions are small, because it is understood that a smaller amount of
really good food provides enough satisfaction. This is explainable only in terms of
pleasure. The epidemic of obesity seems related to the consumption of large amounts
of unsatisfying, sweet but mostly bland food. The body will easily overeat in
terms of calories and grams in order to achieve or attempt satiation in
pleasure In the pleasure arena though, quantity cannot make up for quality. Factory
methods of farming bring food prices down but may delete subtle taste factors that
previously provided pleasure. Another condition of pleasure in eating may be just
being truly hungry so that the food really produces excitement, but not being so
ravenous that it is not in the mouth long enough to be tasted. With cheap food and
snacks always available, many people never really get hungry. Salt and sugar may
drive intake but not provide real pleasure (rather just comfort, as described below).
'Insulin toxicity' creates a craving for carbohydrates but this is not a pleasure related
appetite.
Sensory Adaptation: Humans are noted to quickly adapt to pleasant sensation.
For example, a rare tasty food might produce considerable excitement the first time
it is consumed, but if consumed frequently, the excitement drops off. That is why
material prosperity past a minimum seems to have so little permanent effect on
pleasure. A wise person learns not to try to 'force' pleasure by over-consuming. The
same sensation can continue to be pleasant if it is not over-visited. An unwise person
who does try to force pleasure is known as a hedonist, and this gives pleasure a bad
name. Besides over-consuming in quantity, a common hedonistic strategy is to go for
more and more rarefied sensations. As an occasional treat, unusually exquisite
sensations might lead to very deep tension-discharge cycles, but as a steady lifestyle,
they lead to boredom and sensory burnout.
Sensory adaptation as described above is a functional homeostatic mechanism. By
itself, it does not indicate that all 'upgrades' in living are pointless. Better food for
instance can lead to more vitality and satisfactions by other mechanisms than
sensory input, and the same is true of more living space etc.. However, pleasure
and satisfaction do not require escalating consumption or constant
novelty, just reasonable variety. But misadventures do arise when the difference
between excitement and pleasure are not understood, one of which is sensualism.
Sensualism: It is possible to learn to enjoy in some sense a state of charge without
immediate commensurate discharge. In fact, it can become a 'pleasure skill' to build
excitement and delay discharge, because the gratification is greater and more deeply
satisfying. Building excitement seems more elemental biologically and can persist
even when a early negative environmental responses have limit the ability to let go
and discharge excitement. It is much easier to use the will to engage in activities that
bring about excitement then to bring about release. The effect of will on the body is to
decrease feeling, flow, and subtle, involuntary movement, and so discharge of
excitement is hindered or made impossible. There is a distorted approach to
producing good feeling that often develops in this predicament. It involves treating
the anticipatory good feeling of excitement as an end in itself. Alexander
Lowen called this sensualism.
Sensualism results in a need for ever more intense excitement to maintain the partial
good feeling of excitement, and mask the pain of undischarged excitement, which
must ebb away. Completed pleasure provides a feeling of peace and a feeling of
enough, but with sensualism, there is never enough. The inordinate pursuit of
excitement indicates that 'real' pleasure is not being achieved. Sensualism gives
pleasure a bad name, because observers may associate the role of pleasure with a
moral decay or addiction, or erratic behavior, but the opposite is the case. When the
worry is expressed that a person can become 'too attached' to pleasure, it is probably
sensualism that is being referenced.
For there to be pleasure in activity, it has to be the by-product, not the
goal of the activity. The most fundamental example of the pleasure process with
adults of course is sex. The goal of sex is union, (or as some say fusion), but the goal
cannot be achieved if the capacity for pleasure is not intact. Trying to 'mine' sex for
pleasure may work partially, but it falls far short of the potential.
Taste: What is experienced as pleasant varies from person to person, and can
change over time for the person. Something can be sensed as too irritating for one
person and delicious for another. For instance, one person can dread hot chilies and
another seek them out. Sometimes, a person can come to love what they disliked.
However, it is an error to infer from this that tastes (what is found pleasant) is
arbitrary or random or solely the province of conscious human choice. Tastes
change partly because of exposure to sensations, and also partly due to
associations, but largely because the capacity to hold tension or
discharge tension increases or decreases. The set of sensory experiences that
have the potential for pleasure do not really change, although individuals may always
be discovering a new part of it for themselves. There is always a certain subset of
sensory experiences that are 'edgy' that have a potential for high excitement but are
actually painful for those not ready. Very spicy foods and the music of Bartok are
examples. On the other hand, something truly not enjoyable may become a social fad,
but then the term 'taste' becomes a misuse.
Conditioning: Pleasure and pain naturally influence behavior and learning. This
has become, strangely, the foundation of a theory of human functioning called,
broadly, behaviorism, and specifically, 'learning theory.' To reduce the role of
pleasure to merely decisional information misses entirely the role of pleasure in
regulating the body, let alone missing its role in love. Also, in learning theory, no
distinction is made (or makeable) between pleasure and decrease in pain as an
incentive. This can be very misleading, in that, a life in which a person is limiting
pain is seen as progress, when in fact, maneuvers that limit pain often limit pleasure
as well. In fact suppression, by limiting both pleasure and pain, defeats conditioning
which is a healthy process. Human motivation is a compelling subject, in which
pleasure will always be intertwined. The study of motivation is always hampered,
however, if the pleasure function is taken for granted, or if the prospect of pleasure is
used as a proxy.
Pleasure Anxiety: As described elsewhere on this site, to avoid painful or
overwhelming feelings, many people have severe muscle tensions, and an
estrangement from their own bodies. Pleasure, because it produces expansion in the
body and some involuntary movement, is both painful and frightening. The stirrings
of pleasure bring about feelings of unease, guilt, anxiety, incompetence,
disorientation, and loss of control. Many people arrange their lives so as to avoid
even 'the near occasion' of pleasure. This can be a conscious ideology, but it can also
be an unconscious trend that dominates even when there is no conscious effort to
avoid pleasure. The sounds of children and adults having fun can become irritating.
Other common maneuvers to avoid pleasure anxiety (and thereby avoid the
possibility of pleasure) are workaholism, self-deprivation (under the guise of
austerity, efficiency, or purity), addictions, cults, and taking on excessive obligations
that offer little enjoyment. A very insidious form of avoiding pleasure anxiety
is turning possibly pleasureable activities into 'learning experiences.'
Another mechanism for pleasure anxiety may be the ego's unwillingness to lose its
individuality. In intense pleasure, the ego disappears. That is why orgasm is
sometimes known as 'the little death.'
Subjective well-being ('happiness') is a complex phenomenon that
involves pleasure, excitement, elation, comfort, ability to decrease pain,
and purpose. Only pleasure and purpose seem self-regulating. Everyday
experience brings one into contact with people who are getting stuck in the other
four: excitement (party-going, good time people...), elation (people who are always
busy starting some new project or activity...), comfort (food, oral substitutes,
reassurance, sick-role...), and decreasing pain (numbing, dissociation, TV, opiates,
video games...)
Comfort and Comforting
Comfort is a state of relaxation, freedom from pain, ease, and agreeableness of the
physical state. Comfort is a 'sensible' pursuit for it's own sake and for the sake of
reducing and avoiding sympathetic shift. Comfort is a more limited phenomenon
than pleasure however. Comfort is less dynamic and does not support the life
process as much. Comfort is also biased toward sameness rather than newness so it
does not promote growth and learning as much as pleasure. Also, unlike pleasure,
comfort does not have a clear point of 'enoughness' and an over-indulgence in
comfort can work against the life process.
Comforting is a process that at times strays even farther from pleasure and from the
state of the body. Comforting is reducing a discomfort, pain, or anxiety, using some
of the same 'pathways' as pleasure. An example of comforting is eating a particular,
easily digested food when lonely or worried. Another example is talking to a friend
about a worry. A capacity to seek comforting deliberately is part of selfnourishment.
However, comforting, if overused, can be a way to partly numb oneself and become
estranged from the nature of one's problems. Comforting can be an avoidance of
deeper feeling. Oral comforts--smoking, alcohol, drugs, snacking, rapid talking--are
especially prone to this use. One tricky source of comfort can be spending time
generating comforting thoughts--these may just be reassurances to the ego. It is
common for adults to confuse various comforts and the act of comforting with
pleasure, and therefore overlook the gradual loss of pleasure in their lives.
Discharge versus Release
In the Reich and Lowen tradition, the basic guiding format for a 'session'
is charge then discharge. This is simply a straightforward way to re-establish
the pleasure cycle. Charging is generally upward in the body or in the upper body.
Discharge is downward through the body, or in the lower body. Discharge is usually
more blocked than charge. That is why hang-ups are so common. If discharging has
been blocked for a long time, charging may be low, this is an advanced difficulty.
Screaming, hitting, biting, reaching are all actually charging activities, as is
hyperventilation. Kicking, crying, belly laughing, and grounding measures are
discharging activities
Because of Lowen's emphasis on expression and undoing emotional suppression,
another element got added in the tradition that is confusing, and that is release.
Unlike discharge, which is a biological and energetic concept, release is an emotional
or psychological concept. It is possible to experience an emotional release
without an energetic discharge, they are the same. This is particularly the
case in a group format where emotional expression is so prominently a demand
characteristic. If properly understood in emotional terms, a release can lessen blocks
to discharge and can harmonize the body, and ultimately considerable emotional
release will be required in the work. A release without discharge, and without change,
however, is just a catharsis. A hazard of emphasizing expressive work too early is
setting a pattern of charging through emotional release which only provides a brief
mental comforting without change in the body.
If grounding and neuro-muscular development is properly attended to (in therapy or
in one's own self-designed program,) discharge becomes possible and usually
spontaneous. While many people start Reich and Lowen work with both inadequate
release and inadequate discharge, the benefit of release only (which is available also
through conversational traditions) is limited.
Feeling, Sensation, and Emotion
Feeling and Sensation

First, some semantics are in order. All feelings are a perceptions by the mind
of a change in the body.* A change in the body may be a response to what is
happening outside the body (with or without physical contact), or reflect the motility
and internal functioning of the body. The environment is only known by its effect on
the body. A body that is not affected much by the environment has little feeling.
Chronic muscle tension hinders changes in the body and reduces feeling. Selfawareness arises from feeling. It is the totality of all body feelings at any given time.
Feelings are either sensations or emotions, although in the latter case, the feeling is
only part of the emotion..
A sensation is a feeling that has no emotional aspect. Sensations of course can be and
frequently are judged desirable or undesirable, but judgment is not emotion. Pain is
a sensation that usually indicates damage. Pain is a sensation not an emotion but it
often provokes emotion. Sensation varies in intensity and many people find strong or
even medium levels of sensation hard to endure. The mind tends to 'tune out' to all
feeling that it deems unimportant or about which it intends to do nothing. This is the
basis of suppression and denial.Sensation is a reliable union of the body
and the mind since, without a body to experience a change, the mind cannot have a
sensation, and without a mind to sense it, a change in the body produces no
sensation Perhaps this underlies the Buddhist saying "You are sensation."
Emotions affect actions both through the felt and the unconscious aspects, but this is
quite variable from person to person. Muscle tension and emotional armoring
decrease both sensation and emotion, but there may be relative sparing of sensation
since this is neutral and less threatening or conflictual. Chemical intoxicants
(including endorphins) blunt feeling including sensation, but may release some
emotion because emotion is more than feeling. This intoxicated release does no
durable good for the emotional health of a person, because, besides being distorted,
it is not felt.
In English the word feeling is often used as a synonym for emotion. In everyday use
this is probably not confusing, but as will become clearer in the discussion below,
there is a need to distinguish the two to understand the 'emotional economy' of
humans. Also the word feeling is used to mean 'opinion,' 'tentative conclusion' , or
'ideological position.' These extended meanings derive from the definition above
because folk wisdom has always understood that decisions and principles of living
are based on bodily integrity and pleasure. In the modern culture, though, where
unfeeling cognition is promoted, the term feeling can be misused to describe 'fuzzy'
cognition.
Anxiety, though often a feeling, is not an emotion, but rather a holding against
emotion. Anxiety usually provokes the emotion fear because its origin is not
understood and the mind tends to look for threats when anxiety is present. Shame is
a distressing feeling that probably is best not understood as an emotion either.
Anxiety and shame both drive behavior strongly, but the behavior tends to deny,
obscure, and avoid the stimulus unlike the emotions that tend to involve the person
and the stimulus together.
* This is the definition of Antonio Damasio as well as Alexander Lowen The change in the body may still have effects elsewhere in the body, but
this is reflexive or physiological and not a response to sensation
Emotion
Emotions appear in three different realms, subjective experience (feeling), behavior,
and physiological responses (including 'energy'). As such, emotions have the
potential to be very unifying to the person. However, these component aspects of
emotions may vary independently of each other, giving the description of emotional
life a very elusive aspect. Modern study of psychology (even the 'touchy-feely' variety)
often eschews emotional concepts because of this inconsistency. A certain amount of
of inconsistency, however, does not equal randomness and meaninglessness.
Emotions can be understood and that is a basic task in the Reich and Lowen
tradition.
Emotions are at base, involuntary body responses to events or people in
the environment. As reflections of what is happening, they are neither good or
bad, but just are. Examples of emotions are fear, anger, joy, sadness, terror, disgust,
and mirth, among others. The subjective experience of emotion is based upon the
mind's perception of the bodily response. However, the perception is not necessary
for the emotion to be present. All perception requires some movement and change,
and the perception of emotion is no different. If a person is locked into a bodily state,
they may reasonably be said to be locked into one emotion. Eventually the conscious
perception of even this one emotion fades. It is common to see people whose bodily
attitude indicates fear or shame but who are unaware of it subjectively. These
emotion states are still operative however. I use the examples of fear and shame
because overwhelmingly, these are the two emotional states that get 'locked in' easily
because they are contraction-based and contraction is much stickier than expansion.
In humans at least, memory, explicit and implicit, is able to change the bodily state
enough to evoke emotion, and therefore emotion may not reflect the present state of
affairs outside the person. This makes human attachment and bonding possible, and
deep loving relationships would be impossible otherwise. This is the positive side of
internalized object relations. But the imposition of memory into the experiencebody response-emotion loop also makes the trauma response possible.
Stated another way, the emotional (that is body-response) history of the person
greatly affects his or her present response. That is why, at a reunion with a loved and
trusted one, the body is able to experience great joy. Unfortunately, this effect of the
past is greatest where there has been suffering or trauma. Perhaps this is because
contraction is more self-perpetuating than expansion. I call this misfortunate
tendency disappointment.
Emotions are often lumped together and confused with conditioned reactions. Like
all conditioning, reactions are based on past experience and meant to be
anticipatory. The conditioned reactions most often confused with emotion are
defensive ones that increase arousal and initiate fight or flight mechanisms. Early
relational difficulties instill a set of conditioned reactions that tend to make later
social interactions contentious and so the conditioning tends to be self-renewing and
even progressive. While reactions usually have some trigger, they speak far, far more
to a person's history than to the present situation. Because of the irradiating aspect of
conditioning, conditioned reactions tend to be increasingly frequent. 'knee-jerk' and
invariable over time. By contrast, emotion becomes more fine-tuned with maturity
and experience.
Conditioned reactions often produce behavioral displays that are jarring to others.
Strong emotion may elicit displays as well but they will be less jarring to others if
those others are in sync with what is happening. Conditioned reactions do usually
evolve out of difficult to tolerate emotional states such as shame, disgust, fear, guilt,
hopelessness, and helplessness. The reaction is meant to avoid feeling these
emotional states again. There is an inverse relationship between reactivity
and emotion, If the two are lumped together, there will be great confusion about
what is healthy and desirable, and that confusion is evident in most psychotherapy
approaches outside the Reich and Lowen tradition.
The very strongest reactions have been called 'vehement emotion' by Pierre Janet.
These episodes usually present as rage, terror, or panic. Vehement emotions, are not
so much emotion as they are the behavioral manifestations of very high states of
arousal. These reactions are dissociative, and have the following elements: 1) loss of a
sense of self, 2) loss of observing ego, 3) loss of attachment and bonding, and 4) loss
of contact with the body. This is almost the opposite of functional
emotion. Usually the person later repudiates the actions and statements and cannot
or does not integrate the affective tone, even in a more moderate form. These are
actually minor dissociative episodes, from approach-avoidance conflicts or past
trauma.
Frustration is not emotion. Frustration tension in mind and body when a
person is not able to get what they need or want. In early life frustration is
pivotal in emotional development. if experienced in a moderate degree it helps the
establishment of the reality principle. If experienced in a sever degree, normal
development is overwhelmed and a host of maladaptive patterns arise. As a teen or
adult, frustration can result unnecessarily from being too rigid or narrow in defining
what one wants or 'must have'. A creative approach to life implies enough flexibility
to find alternate routes of satisfaction. It is possible to experience frustration but not
know what one wants. Work with self-expression is indicated. A tendency to

frustration is probably increased by an overall state of muscle tension, and this can
become a circle
Emotions are irreplaceable aids to navigating a life, but not just that. The direct
physiological effects of emotions appear central to regulating the health of the human
organism. Facial expressions are associated consistently with the same emotions
from culture to culture, indicating the common biological basis (but of course in
interpreting, the voluntary control of the ego over part of the face is a complication).
Importantly, a great deal of any emotional state is reflected in the body below the
neck.
Increasingly in our culture emotions are considered disruptions or
distractions and not true guides. This is surely misguided. As mentioned above,
the aberrations of the past will at times bring a mismatch between present emotion
and present environment, but this cannot be used to discredit emotion generally.
Everyday observation will confirm that physical vitality, the prevalence of good
feelings, and strong relationships only exist in persons where emotion is freely
expressed. Any given instance of emotion may complicate things, but in the long run,
comfort with one's emotions leads to a certain ease in facing life, and the asset of
conviction.
There is a worry that emotion will undermine self-determination. This arises
mainly in two cases. One is rage, which as a dysregulated distortion of anger which,
like other vehement emotions mentioned above, does merit special care. No
irreversible or hard-to-reverse action should be taken when upset. The other case is
one in which unedited self-expression will displease someone and lead to a unjust
loss. This latter danger exists of course, but it is from toxicity of the other person, and
one should not model a life around navigating it.
Emotion ideally is ahistorical, that is reflecting the present situation only. This avoids
the unnecessary contamination of memory, although it also forgoes the balancing of
'taking into account' the entire positive history of a relationship. While emotions are
ahistorical, a mature person need not be. Emotions are the motor of response not the
steering wheel.
While this will be a controversial generalization, women are more 'in touch' with
emotion than men, on average, and this will affect inclinations on how relationships
and courses of action are pursued. Women have always been depended upon to do
'more than their share' of emotional work for families and groups, and this continues
today even though it cannot be acknowledged as easily. It is considered 'disempowering' to describe anyone, woman or otherwise, as 'more
emotional' since there is an antithesis between emotion (actually all
feeling) and power.
At times, hostility is mistakenly lumped with emotion, which of course gives emotion
a bad name. Hostility is universally recognized as a uncompleted defensive process
that involves fear, perception of threat, and inability to be direct or express one's own
interests directly. Besides the fear, however, hostility is not an emotion but a pattern
of ego response, and the unpleasantness it creates is not due to emotion.
In a free and natural environment, emotions do tend toward action. They
do this by activating, in an incipient sense the muscles, that would be used in the
action. Because emotions have this 'action tendency', they make 'work' (doing things)
possible or easier. However, the exact actions are not a foregone conclusion but
shaped dynamically as the person acts (this is self-possession). Emotions can
explain an action, but they are never justification for an action (except perhaps, the
act of self-expression.)
It is not possible to choose emotions, but it is possible to choose activities that are
likely to elicit emotion. This is why people may go to a happy, sad, or horror
movie. There is no recipe of emotions for well-being, rather it is the
capacity to respond emotionally to what is happening that matters. As
stated above, emotions tend to be prompted by changes in the environment, and
emotions decay in sameness. Some people become very rigid in routines over time.
In avoiding changes they are avoiding emotions. People more comfortable with
emotion may travel a lot or try new things. They are seeking emotion (as well
as pleasure.) Of course, real emotional response is based on really being involved.
Watching a movie affects the body as long as the experience is not to frequent and
taken seriously because the body is 'fooled' into feeling it is real. With a deluge of
entertainment, the body is no longer fooled, only the mind, and so the mind is
affected and the body is detached.
Muscles can be held rigidly in check and this has the effect
of suppressing emotion, selectively at first but globally as muscle tension
forms into rigid patterns--muscular armor. The same mechanism that stops
emotion, muscle tension, also stops pleasure. A tense person may be irritable but this
is a problem with arousal, not true emotion. Emotions like grief or sadness are
associated with the subjective experience of suffering but the greatest suffering of our
time comes from emotionlessness and the accompanying pleasurelessness.
Relationships (those that are not purely practical exchanges) develop through the
sharing of pleasure and exchange of emotion. 'Small talk' has the function of
exchanging emotion without exchanging any significant information. Too much
information crowds out emotion. People low in emotion always have trouble with
small talk because they can only think of communication as the exchange of
information.
Emotion interacts with quite a few things--cognition, memories, autonomic state,
beliefs, pain, and suffering, which all affect emotions, but it is not accurate to state
that these cause emotion. Life causes emotion, to the extent that the person
is living. Emotions are not truly complete or completely felt unless they are
expressed. In humans, language is strongly developed and word choice (symbolic
expression) can go a long way in expressing emotion, but for those that are not great
poets, movement and voice quality are necessary for full expression.
Appraisal
To restate, in our time, emotion is often confused with judgment or appraisal. An
appraisal is a brain-based judgment about the significance, benefit, or detriment of
an event or person in the environment. One type of appraisal in limbic (mid-brain)
based, and implicit. This appraisal makes itself known to the mind through
feeling. The second type of appraisal is cortical (cerebral cortex) and explicit. This
appraisal is free of feeling and has the potential to be 'objective'. In the study of
human behavior, the interaction of the two types of appraisal is of some interest.
Calm cortical appraisal is nowadays often touted as the superior replacement to both
implicit reasoning and emotions. This is of course based on the reduction of
emotions to information (which they partly are) but missing the biological and
relationship building aspects. Limbic appraisal will affect emotions, but mainly
through an effect on arousal. If there is a conflict between limbic and cortical
appraisal, limbic appraisal seems to win usually, but the person may believe they are
following cortical appraisal. Both types of appraisal certainly affect behavior
and mood.
To the extent that the ego has a definite idea of the way things should be, there is
often a perturbation of the mind when things aren't this way. Again, this is a
cognitive product, an appraisal, not an emotion, although there may be underlying
fear. Interestingly enough, TV sitcoms are almost always based on this perturbation
rather than feeling.
Related also is adult frustration. Frustration is a state of tension in mind and body
that arises when a drive is blocked. In early life, drives are instinctual and seek basic
human needs and wants. Frustration in this arena, if excessive, is unfortunate, and
Reich and Lowen wrote extensively about the sequelae. If early frustration is modest,
the experience is part of development. However, in either case, frustration is not
chosen. However, emerging from childhood, drives may become misdirected, or
focused on what is seen a means to an end. When there is a rigidity and inability to
turn to other objectives, the tension is related to an appraisal of 'what must be' This is
adult frustration, which is voluntary, unlike emotion which is involuntary. See the
section on desire.
Cognitive therapy attempts to make life better by managing cortical appraisal, but in
so doing, reduces life to just voluntary instrumental behavior. To be fair, inaccurate
appraisal clearly has a role in suffering, but the solution to re-regulating appraisal is
more spontaneous emotion, not less.
The Symbolization of Emotion
Humans are able to represent experiences in words and ideas. This is part
of symbolic thought. Emotions are more than experiences, but at least the
experience of emotion can be represented symbolically. It allows much greater
versatility in interacting with others. For instance, it is possible to say "I am angry" to
another without any physical action. This is considered part of maturity. The capacity
for symbolic thought and expression is considered vital in children. Children are
counseled "use your words" at a very young age to hopefully hasten the process. The
understanding of experience can certainly be enhanced by having that experience
named.
Symbols are useful if the people using them have regular contact with the actual
thing. A potential problem with language and intellect is that symbols can take on a
life of their own and continue to be used where the experience symbolized has faded
or never been experienced. Words naming emotions can become meaningless or start
to be used to merely denote elements of justice or morality. A foundational
undertaking in the Reich and Lowen tradition is bringing actual emotion into a
session and into a life. The composure which is a by-product of the symbolization of
emotion is not itself bad, but it has nothing to do with self-possession, which is
based on 'holding' (as in possessing, different from holding back) emotion, not
distancing from it. At times, it is necessary to block devitalized and hollow verbal
expression to allow attention to fall on a bodily state and an experience. Importantly,
the bodily effects of emotion cannot be replaced by symbols.
A Visual Depiction of Emotion as Body Feeling
I have come across a Finnish study that used subject reports to map where feeling
was increased and decreased during particular emotions. As far as I know, these
researchers had no Reich and Lowen affiliation, but their model is in surprising
agreement. Here is the graphic they produced. Notice that these researchers have
included the powerful feeling states of anxiety and shame as emotion.
People drew maps of body locations where they feel basic emotions (top row) and more complex ones
(bottom row). Hot colors show regions that people say are stimulated during the emotion. Cool colors
indicate deactivated areas. // Image courtesy of Lauri Nummenmaa, Enrico Glerean, Riitta Hari, and
Jari Hietanen. From: Bodily maps of emotions Lauri Nummenmaa, Enrico Glerean, Riitta Hari and
Jari K. Hietanen Proceedings of The National Academy of Sciences of The United States of America
(PNAS) Retrievable as http://www.pnas.org/content/early/2013/12/26/1321664111.full.pdf
The colors indicate nothing about the 'valence' (pleasantness or unpleasantness) of

an emotion but only the location and amount of feeling. The contrast
between happiness (full of feeling) and depression (numb) is both visually striking
and certainly confirmatory of Alexander Lowen's formulation. Also notice that the
feet have strong feeling only in happiness ('joy') love, anger and to a lesser
extent,fear. The upward displacement in pride really stands out. Abundant further
observations can be made by the reader and compared to Lowen's descriptions.
Moods
Moods are states of the body that are different from emotions in that they are more
durable and less changeable. Moods shape thought rather than action. Moods
seem a product ( but not just a cognitive product) of the difference between perceived
challenges and perceived capacities and resources to meet these challenges. If there
is perceived to be a surplus, the mood is good; if a deficit, the mood is bad. That is
why folk wisdom knows that people tend to be generous when the mood is good and
stingy when the mood is bad. A common exclamation when the mood is bad is "now
what?" because an obstacle is perceived to tip the 'balance sheet' further into deficit.
Moods are forward looking. Because they reflect feeling about prospects they can,
unlike emotion, be said to be positive or negative along a spectrum. Moods act to bias
thought. Unlike emotions, moods can be quite distorted, both about capacities and
challenges. Resulting cognitions may at times be unrealistic.
Perhaps that is why undertaking deliberately to change moods, for ourselves and
others, is so common. Think of the phrase "cheering someone up." Moods are
human, but unlike emotions are not really necessary. The more one lives in the
present with good contact, the less role moods play. Emotions influence mood, and
of course moods influence emotion, but mostly in the aspect of intensity. A pleasant
mood is not a mood that directly brings pleasure but one in which enough openness
is present to allow one to experience pleasure.
Examples of mood (from most positive toward negative) are mania, elation,
encouraged, hopeful, neutral, dour, discouraged, desperate. Addiction is a dedication
to directly manipulating mood. Addiction over time decreases emotion and increases
the extremity and variability of mood--this is moodiness.
Anger the Valid and Healing Emotion
Right now, at the outset, I would like to make an important

distinction between, on one hand, a healing emotion, anger, and on the other hand,
a destructive force I call rage. When most people speak of anger problems,
anger management, or fearing someones anger, they are speaking
about rage. Rage is a destructive action. It's only possible outcome is to break
someone or something.
The most fundamental reason that a self-protective impulse emerges as
well-possessed anger in some and distorted rage in others is
physiological. Rage results from the impulse of self-protection being forced
through the 'fight-or-flight system, that is, mediated through the sympathetic
nervous system. Anger, on the other hand, is mediated by the ventro-vagal
'social receptivity' system, part of the parasympathetic nervous system. The
autonomic nervous system is not under immediate conscious control, but it can be
purposely shifted over time toward relaxation and social engagement. which is what
much of this website is about. Although the goal of this page is the understanding of
the healing and beneficial qualities of anger, it is necessary to have one's mind put at
rest about violence. To this end, rage is discussed rather thoroughly in the box below,
so that a more confident discussion of true anger may follow.
__________________________________________________________
Rage
Rage is not so much an emotion as it is an activation of the emergency
defense system. Three broad biological conditions are involved: 1) the fight or
flight system of the sympathetic nervous system is activated, 2) certain, conflict
recognition areas in the limbic (emotional) brain are triggered, and 3) the executive
part of the cortex (orbito-frontal) loses contact with the previously mentioned limbic
areas.
In human affairs, rage causes problems because it can be activated not just in rare
life-or-death situations, but much more frequently in situations of social threat. The
repeated physiological and neurological cascade of rage over-develops these
pathways and disconnections with each episode. Eventually every self-protective
impulse is pulled into a rage response. Secondarily, but no less important to
'recovery,' the interpersonal havoc that ensues unfortunately in many ways increases
the tendency to rage through the psychology of shame and resentment, and
sometimes through the acquisition of power.
Rage is not just really intense anger Based on the biological mechanisms
mentioned above, rage or rage episodes have five universal, qualitative, and defining
characteristics:
Suddenness In a fight or flight reaction, the adrenal glands pour potent

chemicals into the blood that highjack the body and mind immediately. This is
unlike true anger, which works through the parasympathetic system and takes
minutes or even hours to develop. That is why people sometimes say I'm
getting angry but never say, I'm getting enraged
Irretrievability It is the nature of the fight or flight system that once the
chemicals are released the biological state will persist for an hour or more,
even if soothing maneuvers are begun immediately, and much longer if
antagonizing activity is pursued (which is usually the case) Once rage 'blows'
no words or thoughts or consequences will change it. True if the consequences
are severe (like arrest) sometimes actions can be crudely controlled, but the
internal state remains unchanged. Even if the 'cause' of the upset goes away,
the rage will persist. If an unrelated activity has to be done (like going to work)
the rage will carry over to the new situation.
Loss of Contact With rage, vision, perception, empathic feeling, and

subsequent memory are diminished and distorted. That is why there is the
folk expression 'blind rage,' and psychologists speak of 'dissociative rage.'
After a rage, the rager often truly does not know or remember what happened
(which of course aids denial.)
Loss of Self With rage, all prior history in a relationship is lost. All principles
and beliefs the rager has developed in life are inaccessible. Any previous
agreements, sincerely made or not, are repudiated.. Human bonding,
attachment, histories of good-will or shared pleasure are denied. The rager is
temporarily without personality, a defensive entity at war with the world.
Loss of Behavioral Control With rage, there is a certain amount of

start/stop activity, but true control is more about guidance and achieving a
desired result through just the right force and direction of movement. With
rage, there is no ability to guide and really no desired results. Rather
movement is either 'destroy' or 'hold back'. Holding back is physically painful.
If the rage is strong, holding cannot last and destruction happens.
The Role of Denial, Resentment, and Revenge

Rage's most common role these days is as an adjunct to denial. Denial is not
accepting that something that has happened has actually happened, or
not accepting that a situation is actually occurring. Denial is natural with
large losses. Sometimes it takes time to take something in. But if a reality threatens
an illusion, time alone may not overcome denial. It is common to accept something
conversationally but not accept it emotionally or not accept the implications. If this
goes on too long, the person is living unrealistically. Ongoing denial is never
stable, the actions and statements of other people will threaten it, and
when this happens, fight-or-flight dynamics and rage usually erupt. After
the rage subsides, denial reforms, perhaps even strengthened by shame

about the outburst. Other people affected by the rage learn not to challenge the
denial. This is a self-perpetuating process.
Resentment is related to denial. While denial proper is the non-acceptance that
something has happened,resentment is the non-acceptance that something
'should have' happened. The most justifiable reason for the position hat
something should not have happened is believing that it happened through the illwill of somebody else (and should be reversed by some imaginary judge). That is why
resentment is made known to others through blaming tendencies, and can take on
the character of paranoia.
Non-acceptance can also lead to attempts to 'undo' Undoing can only be symbolic of
course, even if actual actions with actual effects occur. Revenge (mostly fantasized
but sometimes carried out) is one form of undoing. The results never satisfy because
the original offense still must be accepted. (Retaliation is a punishing action that may
be driven by the psychology of revenge or driven by pragmatics.)
Resentment and revenge are psychological defenses in that they are ways
to hide an unmet need or desire that is painful to acknowledge. To get past
resentment, it is necessary to discover and admit what one really wants or wanted.
Some true anger may emerge, but likely great sadness and shame. This is self-focus
as opposed to the other-focus of resentment. While the energy behind resentment is
the distorted self-protective impulse that would otherwise emerge as anger, the
content of resentment can sometimes be logically rather distant from the unmet
need--this is the way with psychological defenses. However, exploring resentments
honestly with a self-focus will reliably lead to the root.
Resentment, denial, addiction, and rage all contribute to each other. Resentment is
so closely related to both addiction and rage, that one wonders whether resentment
ia physiological as well as a psychological state. In any case, resentments ensure that
self-protection is shunted to rage, because true anger requires acceptance that what
has happened has happened.
Precipitating Situations for Rage
Survival In a literal sense, lethal threats are rare in our society, and even
then, rage may be less effective then a 'cool' escape plan. However, where early
experience has included abuse or insecurity, any social problem can take on
survival characteristics. Even something very ambiguous, like a 'weird look'
from someone, can seem threatening.
Shame Shame is feeling inadequate and unable to justify one's existence.

Undiluted, it is an intolerable feeling, and rage is often an escape from the
feeling (but of course a future cause of shame)
Abandonment Being 'left out' is devastating from a child's standpoint, and

many adults still feel that way. Sometimes a temporary separation, like a
partner going to work, can trigger a reactive rage. Even a difference of opinion
can be a trigger.
Exposure This is where events uncover evidence that something denied is in

fact true.
Power and Control Rage usually develops strongly as a pattern from the
reasons above, but since rage intimidates others, a secondary re-enforcement
can come about. This is most evident in domestic abuse. Rage is self-induced
by mulling over resentments, or erupts when the feeling of losing control
arises.
Dis-inhibition Rage can become a source of an adrenaline high. Like power

and control, this is a secondary pattern built on the first four precipitants.
The destructive consequences of rage are well-known. If rage happens more than
once or twice a year, it will dominate the dynamics of any relationship.
Given the characteristics of rage described above, the following basic implications
seem to apply to efforts to address rage. (Finer, more far-reaching suggestions are
listed after that)
Once rage has erupted, absolutely nothing except soothing and decreasing
stimuli is of any use. This is the basis of the timeout procedure taught in
'anger management' classes. Any discussion of issues is counter-productive,
including discussing the effects of rage on others. Breaking off contact is
almost always best. Slight increments of better composure do not indicate the
rage is ending.
Rages are not willed and so will-power cannot conquer rage. However, selfdetermination can lead to choices that restore balance and harmony in he
self-protection system and 'short-circuit' rage. This is the idea underpinning
the 'ultimate solutions section below.
Rage may explain actions, but never justifies them. To learn, we all must be
responsible for the products of our actions, even when there are involuntary
aspects.
Where a rage tendency exists, there is no point in trying any relationship

improvement strategies like family counseling, new activities, agreement and
bargains, etc.. because none of this will transfer to the rage state. Rage has to
be changed first.
Drug and alcohol use, whether it seems to be a problem by itself, greatly

increases the three physical conditions of rage and should cease. Rage and
addiction often co-exist and if so, they have to be addressed simultaneously.
The impulse for others to tip-toe around the raging person will be strong and
almost automatic, but unless safety contra-indicates it it, rage should be
addressed the first time and every time. Rage is a 'huge deal' that will escalate
when accommodated.
Certain conditions, like brain injury, may mean rage is not changeable, but
secondary patterns and effects can be prevented by understanding.
Rage hurts others, but it is not a moral issue like cruelty. To confront it from
the moral high ground is just to increase the shame dynamic.
Rage dynamics trample context. No 'making sense' of the rage, or things said
in a rage, should be attempted because it is just crazy-making.
Safety sometimes demands force be used to restrain a raging person, but

punishment produces resentment which of course strengthens the rage
pattern.
Denial, although it has to be overcome, is not a sign of moral depravity, but

part of the rage.
Ultimate Solutions
Decrease sympathetic shift. Increase the ventral vagal or social

engagement system.
Increase behavioral control by increasing fine-motor control Bodywork,

Pilates, or yoga are excellent for this. Martial arts may also help, provided the
instructor is attuned to the fine-motor aspects. Brain Gym exercises are also
helpful. All these modalities strengthens the connection between the executive
areas of the cortex and the limbic system.
Identify Resentments and Replace Them with real engagement and

problem solving with the people involved. The fourth step of the 12-step
system has a template of sorts for this, but this is not the only way.
Increase True Anger as described in the sections below this box on rage. Of
course, where rage has been a tendency this will be doubly tricky
Decrease Shame. This is a topic in itself but some ideas are listed in these
sections under self-nourishment and respect. Shame is the engine of
denial.
______________________________________________
Beyond the distinction with rage, anger has a tricky role in social norms and
interpersonal relations, as the paragraphs below discuss. Unlike rage, anger is
grounded in acceptance. Not 'accepting' in the sense of permitting mistreatment,
that is submission not acceptance. But anger is not about undoing what has
happened and what is, although anger is sometimes about re-doing it.
Anger is not negativity, which is a tendency toward criticism, sarcasm,
and judgment, sometimes delivered in a hostile manner but without
any real emotion. Negativity is a defense against anxiety and unwanted emotion.
Expressing negativity, however, is not satisfying, not healing, and damaging to
relationships. Negativity often covers up an inability to act assertively. Negativity can
also be a means to avoid real disappointment and hurt, by anticipating it in advance,
like a broken clock. Willingness to bring up an uncomfortable issue is not negativity.
Anger is commonly confused with a loss of control. It is rage, however, that
results in lack of control. Rage is also recognizable by the irrationality and
disorganization. A person in a rage is usually unable to state what they want. Anger
tends to bring a clarity and focus. An angry person may ask for more than what is
practical, but what an angry person asks for will be rational. Still, even true anger
may be somewhat disorganizing at first if anger has been suppressed. Anger can
always 'flip' to rage if the person is overwhelmed It may be beneficial to work with
anger first in a controlled setting like therapy. Anger, when a person is ready to
own it, often spurs actions that positively 'take control' of a life or
situation.
Anger is also confused with the desire or actuality of punishing someone.
Putting aside all dubious arguments of whether it can beneficially change behavior,
the act of punishment is not the logical result of anger but an attempt to be rid of
anger (or more likely, painful rage). In fact violence, including verbal violence, arises
from either rage, or a need to quickly as possible discard strong feelings we cannot
yet tolerate.
Similarly, anger is confused with blame. Blame is placing the responsibility for
one's actions and feelings on another person. Anger does not transfer responsibility
to the target. Blame also functions as an attempt to punish.
Loss of control, punishing actions, and blame all have to do with the
intense other-focus of rage. Anger, on the other hand, brings a self-focus. Selffocus means an awareness of our feelings, our desires, our needs, and our
foundation. Others do not get the worst of it when we are able to self-focus. On the
contrary, the other- focus of rage dehumanizes others into perceived monsters. Anger
humanizes others.
Anger is not shouting or screaming. Rather these effects on the voice are from
rage and fear, which tighten the throat.. True anger deepens the voice slightly, and
adds a resonance which draws attention to itself and leads others to take the
communication seriously.
Anger also is not hostility. Anger is warm (sometimes hot), has a specific
concern, and impels one toward the provocation. Hostility is cold, consists of a global
attitude against a person, and generally includes withdrawal. Hostility arises when
there has been betrayal or betrayal is feared. Hostility is often driven underneath by
past attraction or subconscious attraction
Anger is also confused with 'establishing the moral high-ground'. Many
only feel they can express upset and protest when someone has done something
'morally' wrong. It is taking a victim role, and expecting that role to compel the other
person. That is, they can get angry against someone, but not angry for themselves.
This leads to negativity and a critical attitude that attempts to make personal
interests, which are legitimate, into moral law, which they are not. This is focusing on
faults and not solutions. Moreover, there is a loss of self-focus.
Anger starts as a self-protective impulse. If the impulse results in
contraction, the emotion is fear. If the impulse results in expansion, the
emotion is anger. If there is contraction, then explosion, then partial
recontraction, this is rage. If the threat is strong, fear is realistic and protective, but
not healing. Most complex social threats faced today naturally elicit elements of both
anger and fear.
In the therapy community, there has arisen a slogan that anger is a 'secondary
emotion that covers fear" Anger is not secondary to fear, it is secondary to
threat, as is fear. Fear is often preferred by other people because it is less socially
disruptive and less likely to be destructively distorted as described above and below.
Still, in the therapeutic context it has be admitted that the threat that provokes
the self-protective impulse is often self-imposed. The anger cannot be
productive because the person is at war with themselves. In these instances, the
threats need examining and not confronting, and this perhaps can be 'more coolly'
done from 'the fear side.' But fear is not in any way morally superior to
anger, and should not be seen as a preferable state apart from the
context.
There are two main categories of self-imposed threats: ego-image,
and self-negation.When the accurate observations and adult behavior of others
threatens false self-mages, protective protests are self-defeating and misdirected. A
clue is defensiveness. With true anger, one doesn't doubt one's legitimacy. It is
necessary to distinguish righteous anger from 'self-righteous' (really 'ego-righteous')
anger. Also irritable explosions may result when one waits too long to take care of
oneself. For example, we want to leave to go somewhere but we are 'too polite' to
interrupt someone talking to us, thinking we can wait it out. Resentment builds. It
may explode, or the resentment is carried along to the next setting because it has
built up in our body.
While anger is an emotion that informs and energizes action, it is never a

justification for an action. Few of us have the ability to hold and experience
anger calmly enough to allow anger to participate in a humane but honest response.
Anger doesn't keep wellwhen denied it turns into buried or partly buried rage, and
resentment.
Anger occurs in a relationship. If some friction has occurred with a stranger, the
anger that arises puts the two people into some type of relationship, if they are
capable of it. If they are not, then often there is rage instead. It is relationship which
will put a cap on destructiveness. Anger is not rejection, it is the opposite of rejection
(not the only opposite of rejection, but one indispensable opposite of rejection.) An
angry confrontation almost always strengthens a relationship if the two parties can
avoid drama and rage. Anger can bring honesty and realness where there has been
acting and superficiality. 'Make-up' sex has long been known to usually great because
the preceding anger has cleared away much of the falseness and distance in the
relationship.
Anger is not intrinsically inappropriate, it is a strong emotion for strong
situations. Some people are to accept the existence of anger, but strongly
question the wisdom of its expression. That is, they have a hard time even
imaging any positive effects from bringing it into their relationships. Cannot goals,
even assertive goals, be achieved another way? Anger is not a tool to achieve
goals. Cannot wrongs be addressed 'peacefully'? Anger is more than conveying the
information of an injury. It is also more than registering a protest on ethical
grounds. Anger is a biological process which restores vitality and
interpersonal contact. A goal for many in this culture is to convey the most
information with the least biological activation. That is a mistaken goal.
Anger is not 'resolved' by managing outcomes, but is discharged (or
'dissolved') by taking congruent steps. Discharging anger is a biological
function that occurs mainly through the lower body. Verbal expression may
adequately discharge anger if the ego is identified with the body and the anger, and
the body's alignment allows for grounding.
True anger is a natural response to injury or intrusion. The motives of
others who injure or intrude may vary quite a bit, but the response of anger is still
natural, and just as healing. Many of us have trouble expressing anger toward good
people or family. We may feel that anger is not 'justified' toward others who may
have our best interests at heart. Anger, unlike punishments or other actions, is an
emotion and does not require justification. When our ability to express anger is
regained in relationships, others may perpetuate the confusion by acting like they
have been punished. The key is not to try to achieve justification, but to achieve
connection.
Anger is often displaced. That is, it is vented on someone else with flimsy
justification. It is possible to make a complete circle of displacement. For instance
a man may vent his anger at his co-worker on his wife, and his anger at his wife on
his co-worker. While this seems to cover all the bases, it avoids really feeling and
identifying with the emotion, and avoids getting closer.
An inability to express anger to the appropriate person contributes to an
inability to express love. Anger is the trickiest interpersonal tool available, no
doubt about it. Every child quickly learns that some people cannot accept their anger.
Perhaps it will beall the people in their lives. Since anger is involuntary, the child
comes to see him- or herself as unacceptable. One seeming way out of this dilemma
is to become nice.
Niceness is no substitute for love, and in fact, it usually gets in the way of
love. Niceness is based on withholding true feeling, and while that makes sense with
strangers, and in casual or business relationships, it is disastrous if used extensively
in close relationships. Niceness covers up anger a lot more poorly than people think.
The anger comes out in distorted form, such as withholding, negativity, passive
aggression, resentment, righteousness, and playing a victim role. An additional
reason that anger is denied is that admitting anger means having to do something
constructive about it.
There is a saying about detoxifying the effects of unprocessed anger: "Claim it, tame
it, aim it."
Claiming means accepting the legitimacy of one's self-protective impulses

and recognizing the effects of anger stirring somewhere in the body and in the
self. Describing injuries and injustices one has experienced may be legitimate
but this is not claiming anger. There is a mistaken cultural norm to try to fix
all things without any anger. Anger, however, when appropriate, is necessary
for healing and self-building.
Taming means shifting the self-protective impulses from

the sympathetic or rage system to the ventral-vagal or social engagement
system. This usually means some bodywork. Taming also means developing
the capacity to hold anger long enough to shape it into a humane response.
Aiming means channeling the energy of anger through the social engagement
system to address the cause for the anger. It is movement toward a
constructive goal. 'Stewing' with anger is not aiming! Perhaps aiming will
include protest, but complaining in a way that makes it clear that the
complainer is not prepared to participate in a solution is called whining, and
this also is not aiming.
Fear
A distinction needs to made between a threat and fear. A threat is any force, entity or
process that can impair the integrity of an organism or end its existence. Fear is
an autonomic and bodily contraction that can be one response of higher animals to
a threat. Fear has an affective component (like most bodily changes) and can
properly be called an emotion. Anger is also an affective response to a threat
characterized by a bodily expansion, and it too is an emotion. Any actual response to
a threat will be driven by anger, fear, or instinct. In humans, love is also a possible
basis for a response, but it is naive to believe that this is suitable for all threats or
even a large fraction of threats.
In humans, with attachment and emotional needs as well as survival needs, threats
can be infinitely complex. So complex, that it is understood that what seems at one
moment to be a threat may in another moment is seen clearly not to be a threat. This
cannot be overgeneralized though, there are some threats, even social ones, that are
basic and cannot be reappraised away. Examples are abuse, bullying, humiliation,
and betrayal. Still the point has to be taken that sometimes, the bodily response of
either fear or anger is not needed.
Fear is realistic if the threat is strong. Fear has four stages in order of severity: alert,
shrinking, freezing, and dissociating Fear might or might not engage the fight or
flight system. Fear needs also to distinguished from defense, although in the animal
world freezing is known as a defense. As stated above, most modern threats are social
ones The best approach to such threats may be the ventral-vagal social
engagement system which is compatible with both anger or fear (if neither is
severe.)
It is a fashionable trend now in therapy and personal growth to encourage
participants to "discuss their fears." What is really meant is discuss their threats.
This naturally is wise as threats can be put in perspective and some will evaporate,
and practical solutions to other threats will gel. However, in this trend it is implied
that fear, apart from lethal threats, is actually a mental mistake. (And also, that anger
is both a mental and a moral mistake.) It is proposed that social threats be
'understood' away. Fear and anger are both involuntary responses, and if the intellect
is employed to discredit them, this is dissociation.
If one endures fearful threats past a point, the contraction becomes fixed. Young
children are very vulnerable, and may be subject to threats that adults do not
appreciate. The contracted state of muscles is stickier than the expanded state. Once
contraction takes hold, in the absence of bodywork, it may be more or less
permanent. However, the feeling of fear leaves the mind, but an interpersonal style
develops that is vigilant and suspicious. The threats are being anticipated
unnecessarily to 'make sense' of the body's condition.
For this reason, it is sometimes said that fear is living in the future (and therefore,
again, a mental mistake). But the fear has a present basis in the state of the
body. As long the body is contracted this way, cognitive work to debunk
the sufferer's conception of what is the threat will have meager results
and widen the split between the mind and the body. We naturally have an
interest in combating fear through safety, either by a protected environment or by
knowing what will happen. But safety cannot be achieved completely, especially for
social threats.
A useful analogy is the comparison of a house cat and a sheep. The cat stays relaxed
in the midst of activities and other creatures. Only when another creature comes very
close and acts threatening does the cat react, usually by showing claws or taking a
'fighting stance'. The cat can run but it is not its first move. The cat immediately
relaxes when the threat is far enough away. A sheep on the other hand, cannot
defend itself except by fleeing or going unnoticed. Therefore sheep are always restless
and on guard always for threats. Potential threats are fled before they are close
enough to really evaluate. The point is that it is not anticipation, but the ability to
fight that provides a sense of safety.
Now of course for humans' fighting may be unwise where there is the possibility of
real bodily harm. But in the social arena, everyone can learn to fight manipulation,
disrespect, shaming, humiliation, betrayal, being cheated etc. If one is prepared to
fight these, it is not necessary to be constantly on the lookout for them. Chronic fear
is closely related to suppression of feeling.
Holding Back, Suppression, and Repression
Perhaps the most important concept in the entire Reich and Lowen tradition is
suppression of feeling and impulse. This is not just a matter of hiding information
or sentiments, it is an actual impedance of the flow of charge in the body. An impulse
is an incipient action that arises in the muscles as a state of preparation for action,
and in the mind as an urge to do something. Impulses are a manifestation
of emotion. A very young child probably carries out all impulses to the extent he or
she is actually physically able to. As a person matures, they are expected not to carry
out every impulse, this is self-possession.
Holding back is using conscious choice judiciously to not fulfill an impulse. The mind
is still aware of the impulse, the urge is still there. If this is not too frequent, the
musculature that was primed subsides into relaxation and the impulse also leaves the
mind. It is known that if an impulse is strong or persistent, doing something else
physical will displace it, in the musculature and therefore also the mind. In fact,
some people are known as 'impulsive' because of sudden 'thoughtless' actions, but
these impulsive acts in an adult are usually undertaken to 'get away' from the real
impulse. A continuous environment that steadily provokes natural impulses but
punishes their expression is stressful. Many families meet this criteria, as do many
modern jobs. But holding back is usually a transient state because the person can
take other actions to handle whatever was provoking the impulse. These other
actions are driven by a modified impulse. Maturation is a process where the impulses
that are provoked by common stimuli change over time to be more responsible and
social. Holding back is not required, the mature impulse can be followed most of the
time.
However, with the consolidator or masochist character, holding becomes fixed
because it is evoked by such a broad range of impulses. The state of continually
holding keeps the impulse alive, and so there is a stalemate with decreased action but
strong urges which usually produces a state of anxiety. Muscles may hypertrophy but
mostly are not unduly contracted.
Where impulses are at an early age a cause of fear, suppression occurs. Suppression
is a strong contraction in the musculature against an impulse. Not only is the action
not carried out, but the muscle cannot prime for the action due to continuous
contraction. Suppression can be transient, but usually it is frequent and so becomes
continuous and global. The contracted muscles can be used for instrumental action,
but this is a matter of will not impulse. The look and feel of spontaneity is lost. This
is muscular armor. The natural urge to do things is lost in the mind also, and
becomes replaced with other motives. Desire is more than impulses but when
impulses are lost, desire fades. The contraction in the muscles also decreases
sensation, especially proprioception. The strongest evidence for this is the
observation that when muscular spasticities are loosed, impulses and sensory
vividness increases. Also, it can be observed that true spontaneity (not erratic
unpredictability) coexists only with graceful easy movement.
Another mechanism of suppression, especially of feeling and memory, is gating in
the nervous system. This is emphasized in the work of Arthur Janov. All sensory
input from the body subject to gating or blocking on its way 'upstream' to
consciousness. Gating is where the output of a neuron is less than the sum of its
inputs, due sometimes to biochemical ceilings on neuron capacity but mostly due to
neurotransmitter interaction. A great deal of gating occurs in the brain stem below
consciousness. If it did not happen at all, the mind would be overwhelmed with
routine information of physiological functioning etc.. However, brainstem gating
varies from person to person and time to time. When arousal and sympathetic tone is
high, more raw input gets through, when arousal is low and parasympathetic tone is
high, less input gets through. Remember, input is both information and charge.
Ideally gating enhances functioning by 'cleaning' the signal and enhancing the
'signal-to-noise' ratio. Meditation may work by enhancing below-consciousness
gating in a way that is somewhat quietistic but improves clarity.
Gating is naturally also prominent in intense, painful, or prolonged stimuli.
Endorphins, other painkillers, serotonin, drugs of abuse, alcohol, nicotine, sugar,
self-mutilation, and many other elements have a role in gating. In this way, volitional
intent can be brought to bear on gating. This internationality is even more evident in
excessive activity. Instrumental activity and distraction both seem to crowd out
unwanted feeling via gating. That perhaps is why our culture has become so busy and
so involved with spectacle. Gating of course is dissociative. Likely, obsessive
compulsive behavior is a maneuver to enhance or shore-up gating.
Concentration is also a means of gating that has an origin more in the mind than
brainstem. Deep concentration means the exclusive of all other awareness.
Gating is involved in backward masking. It has been shown certain stimuli of the
right quality suppress at least the memory and possibly the effect of an earlier
stimulus. Think of the act of gasping and holding the breath after something
frightening. It seems likely that muscular stimuli are able to backward suppress
autonomic system or gut feelings, possibly more so because of greater myelination in
the voluntary nervous system.
Meditation, besides its relaxation and other effects, seems to 'open gates' and work
against suppression. That is responsible for much of its benefit but also that is why
some individuals are overwhelmed and have 'psychotic-like' reactions to meditation.
It may be advisable for people to build up the energetic capacity of the organism
before attempting meditation as a means of ungating
Muscular armor certainly works together with gating and perhaps it somehow works
through gating. Gating may lead to a back-up of nervous 'pressure' that can
overwhelm or leak, which produces anxiety. An interesting theory is that for some,
epileptic seizures discharge this backlog all at once and 'reset the gates'. Electroshock
therapy, interestingly, is an induced epileptic seizure. Slow or incomplete nerve
myelination in development or demyelinating diseases may have some role in
suppression.
Leaking is a slang term for the negative behavioral and interpersonal effects that are
wrought by suppressed feelings and impulses making their way to the surface in
distorted form. Leaking through projection is very common. Suppression is not
elimination. Jungian shadow is a concept devised to explain characterological
suppression and leaking through reactivity.
With suppression, real maturation never occurs. Ego defenses remain primitive
because the full spectrum of adult feelings never reach the ego. People learn prosocial behavior but it has to be intellectually driven because impulses have dropped
out of the picture and are not developing. Mentally driven behavior often has
resentment lurking behind it. No action gets the intended result all the time. When
actions have been driven by natural impulses, there is still peace of mind because the
person knows he did what he wanted to do. When actions are driven by intellect or
precepts, what the person does is indeed what the person chose to do but it cannot be
what they wanted to do. Any imperfect result leads to blame and other-focus. It
might be objected that impulses are dangerous, after all do we all not have impulses
to kill somebody? This is frequently just hyperbole, but lets stipulate that this
sometimes happens. This is a problem only because the arrested impulse of an infant
exists in an adult. Remember, no impulse has to be carried out. The role of impulses
is not to guide self-determination but to bring realness to action.
Suppression is strong in the oral or communicator character, and very strong
indeed in the creator or schizoid character. Suffering negating events very early
is associated with weak impulses, which gives rise to the question of whether certain
impulses require some neuro-muscular development post birth. Depression is the
complete lost of impulses.
Absence of thoughts or memories in the mind is called repression and is a by product
of suppression. When bodywork is done to decrease muscular tension, memories and
'uncharacteristic' thoughts usually arise. Suppression cannot be overcome by
rebellion, which is a mental choice that produces instrumental action lacking feeling
and pleasure. Cognitive or conversational work can partly, in focusing on
provocative topics, raise the emotional temperature and 'push through' suppression a
little, but by and large bodywork is required to free feeling and impulse.
Vibration
Vibration exists in all living things. If there is no vibration, the organism is dead.
Vibration varies of course in amplitude, rate and traveling characteristics. There is an
inverse relationship between character armor and vibration. Vibration varies with
changes in the organism, including emotional. In general, the greater the vibration,
the greater the vitality. For humans this is captured in the phrase "giving off a vibe."
Generally, the more a person vibrates, the happier others are to have him or her
around. Being in proximity with someone who is more vibratory is pleasant, but it
can give rise to anxiety if it stimulates more vibration in the nearby person than that
person is used to handling--this is a form of pleasure anxiety.
Vibration ceases at death. In a very real way, the less a person vibrates, the closer
they are to death. The more a person vibrates, the more liveliness. Domesticated
animals are very aware of this and are attracted to vibrating people. Dogs tend to
bark when with very sick or dead animals because the lack of vibration is disturbing
to them. However, in humans, both abstract intellectual activity and ability to
accumulate power and wealth proceed largely independently to vibration. Even sheer
life longevity is not strictly proportional to vibration. Therefore, mainstream culture
is uninterested.
Individual oscillations cannot be seen by others, but the overall effect is discernable
by people with good sensitivity. This is reflected in the expressions "looking vibrant"
and "vibrancy." A great deal of social friction is dependent on low vibratory states. At
greater vibratory levels, people generally feel better and deal with social conflicts
more productively, independently of any psychology involved.
Because vibrations are not relevant to immediate, concrete, goal directed
manipulations of the environment and others, mainstream culture finds no use for
them. They are excluded from social discussions. Our brains tend to suppress
awareness of what we deem irrelevant. Of course, not hardly vibrating oneself will
ensure a large 'blind spot' for the vibratory phenomena around one.
Tics and fidgeting are not vibratory phenomenon but rather volitionally-tinged
attempts to relieve muscle tension in a the absence of much vibration. Neither tense
shortened muscles or flaccid over-lengthened muscles are conducive to vibration.
Sound is an important source of vibration. Humans have the ability to generate
sound deliberately and creatively. Singing has long been a communal activity that
connects people and raises the life force. Mothers instinctively sing to babies. The
late Alfred Tomatis demonstrated the relationship between sound, hearing, and
well-being.
Hallucinogens are known for increasing the perception of vibration, but this effects
decays with habituation and also is accompanied by an emotional dissociation that
blunts the impact. This unfortunately, has lessened the credibility of vibrations
slightly, because someone talking about vibrations is often thought to be on drugs or
hallucinating. Aldous Huxley is famous for associating hallucinogens with
increased perception. This is possibly because, as discussed below, vibration and
perception are related. Of course a much preferable and durable way of increasing
vibration and therefore perception is bodywork!
Sensory function (and therefore perception) is dependent on movement.
For instance if one holds one arm perfectly still, it will go numb. Vibration and
pulsation (motility) can have the function of refreshing perception when greater
movement (mobility) is not convenient. The eyes are a great example. If they are held
perfectly still, the image fades--this is momentary blindness with the eyes open!.
Keeping vision refreshed can be accomplished by keeping the eyes moving from
point to point of an object of interest (shifting), but there is also the interesting
phenomena of saccades, which is rapid small movements of the eyes, an analogue to
vibration. The Bates Method of improving vision is largely based on getting the
eyes moving again. Lack of subtle movement of the eye is likely a large element
of ocular block, as described in the Reich and Lowen tradition.
Attunement
Attunement is an idea from the world of sound, or audible vibration. Attunement
between two people implies that they are both vibrating, and that each's vibration
influences or changes to match the vibration of the other. It is very hard for someone
with a low energy level or low motility to attune with any one. Sound and voice play
an important role in attunement. Agreement is based on information or ideas and
has no vibrational component. Non-face-to-face, non-voice, 'asynchronous'
interaction, such as email, or texting can lead to agreement but not to attunement.
People often find that attunement obviates the need for agreement.
Pulsation
Functionally vibration and pulsation are similar. Generally the word vibration
suggests movement back and forth around a fixed point, while pulsation suggests
a wave movement outward from a point. In part this is an artifact of the observer
because many waves, such as the pulse of blood generated by the heart, return to the
source. Propagation is how a wave moves through a medium, (in this sense, the
body). When people doing bodywork say they feel 'energy moving' possibly they are
sensing the propagation of waves in the body. Breathing is the start of a pulsation
that 'plays out differently' according to the capacities and situation of the body.
Wilhelm Reich's much misunderstood, much maligned 'orgasm reflex' is simply a
rhythmic wave initiated by the breath, that occurs when the person is relaxed from
even chronic tension and therefore emotionally open.
Motility Contrasted to Mobility
Motility is movement of the body around a fixed point. (Mobility is movement of a

body from point to point). Our culture pays some attention to mobility but ignores
motility. Mobility is associated with the will and instrumental action. It is also
associated with moving towards or away from something. Motility is associated with
just being, rest and relaxation, pleasure, and receptivity. It is motility within mobility
that gives movement beauty and grace. What is rarely recognized is that progressive
loss of mobility usually involves an earlier loss in motility. Mobility is the 'shell' of a
movement, and motility is the guts.
Verticality, Posture, and the Use and Misuse of Gravity
Humans are the only animals that have a fully upright posture. This is a very social
and vulnerable position. It also presents unique requirements for the pelvis. The
pelvis is critical for balance, alignment, and dynamic movement. Posture is the idea
that there is a preferable 'form' in which to stand. Posture is a static concept that
does not easily translate to movement.
Verticality is a dynamic concept that translates much more readily to movement.
Verticality implies not exactly a preferable 'form' to stand, but rather a harmonious
relationship between the skeleton, the muscles, and gravity. It has been said that
walking is a controlled fall. All graceful movement is a controlled fall in that gravity is
leveraged in some part. Adaptation to gravity can be awkward or graceful.
When there is not good alignment and flexibility in the feet ankles legs and pelvis,
(and this tends to be the rule not the exception) there is always present a fear of
falling. Fear of falling has far reaching emotional effects of course, but these stem
from the physical effects. With fear of falling, all movement is distorted to avoid
leveraging gravity. Gravity is fought all the time, which is exhausting.
Graceful movement on the other hand is based on a secure feeling. Graceful
movement is pleasureable. This is the experience of children (for the most part).
Children often cannot not move. Adults of course must learn to be more judicious in
movement, but this does not mean growing out of the pleasure of movement.
Traditionally dancing is a form of shared pleasure in movement. In the first half of
the twentieth century, community dances were abundant. Perhaps this was a way to
provide a shared experience of pleasure for young men and women that didn't
involve sexual intercourse, consistent with the mores of the time.
The type of dancing that is prevalent in the second half of the twentieth century and
now is more akin to shaking or rocking. This may have a neuro-muscular impetus
and benefit, but it also perhaps disguises an increasingly distorted verticality and fear
of falling. There is no leading and following and so the pleasure is not shared
although there may be pleasure simultaneously with others.
Ida Rolf believed that humans would actually take energy from gravity if the body
was oriented to gravity in a correct way. She believed that beliefs about a 'subtle
energy body' arose from the experience of effortless and plentiful energy that
occurred for some people when excellent-enough alignment happened. Like all
phenomena of excellence, this is rare, and scientifically unprovable
Energy Level
Two separate points are to be made about the energy level of a person and the energy
level of an activity. A personal high energy level is very different from a
high activity level. In fact, frenetic activity almost always speaks to a low energy
level and exhaustion. Frenetic activity is high mobility with low motility. It is
as if the mobility is being forced to try to fix the low motility. Pleasureable activity
always has high motility, but the mobility may vary from laying down to dancing.
A high energy level in a human allows muscles to be relaxed and therefore ready to
apply exactly the right amount of force at the right time. There is a feeling of
readiness. As for the energy characteristic of an activity, as Fritz Perls has pointed
out, all thought (even brilliant thought) and language is low-energy activity, and all
physical action is high energy activity. That is why 'thinking ahead' about a big
physical or practical activity conserves energy by moving the trial and error phase to
mental activity.
However biology, including emotion, seems to flourish when there is sufficient high
energy activity in a life. It is beneficial to understand the distinction between high
social value, urgency, and high energy in activity, because depression is a disorder of
energy, unrelated to the merit of what the person has been doing.
Depression
In a good state of energetic functioning, energy from the core of the person travels to
the surface, and this constitutes an impulse. The impulse gives rise to desires,
feelings, thoughts, and potentially actions. With low energy, actions tend to be
executed with the will, and desire, feeling, and even thoughts are impoverished. In
this will-driven state activity may be frenetic, but lacks satisfaction and
gracefulness. What is universally recognized as depression occurs when the the will
collapses and the underlying lack of energy becomes manifest. The affected person
moves less, moves slowly, cannot feel much, and cannot get interested in anything,
either on a body or ego basis. There is a belief that nothing matters perhaps
amounting to despair.
Straightforward attempts on the psychological side to get the sufferer to become
interested in something produce very meager results. What is needed is to increase
energy through breathing, grounding, and vibration.
Depression is not 'a very sad state' although inability to grieve a loss can lead to
depression. Depression is the end point to living by will alone, which depletes energy
without renewing it.
Low level depression is a way of life for very many people. Psychology has a word for
it, dysthymia. At this level, life may have some satisfactions, and sufferers are able to
meet their economic and role responsibilities as they understand them. Still, the
machinery and fundamentals of depression are just underneath the surface. Deeper
depressions do break through from time to time, and at best life seems a chase of
contentment that is always out of reach. One can think of major depression as being
decompensated and dysthymia as being compensated.
Although depression in some sense can be thought of as 'bad luck', it is not random.
It is the consequence of joyless living, and often precipitated by a disillusionment.
The illusion that shatters is frequently that one can earn love by achievement or selfsacrifice. The capacity for joyful living will naturally develop in a child, unless social
and familial pressures and injuries prevent it.
The mainstream culture usually attributes depression to a strangely persistent
mental error. Depressed persons are pressured to to think correctly, and told further
that correct thoughts lead to good feelings. This often leads the depressed person to
hide his or her 'illogical' thoughts. These cognitive distortions are the mind's best
effort to understand very painful feelings that are real and that also are reflected in
the state of the body. They are so compelling and persistent because they make
'sense' (as in sensation) about what is really happening with a person.
After great physical activity, say an all day mountain hike, the body may be
exhausted, but also very satisfied because energy and excitement was there in the
beginning of the hike and was discharged. This provides the satisfied feeling and sets
the stage for rapid reaccumulation of energy. Depression however, is exhaustion
without satisfaction. Energy cannot be easily accumulated because it is difficult to
discharge it. The energy level of an organism will be determined by the demand, but
the demand is not set by will power, but by breathing and body motility.
Elation can lift a depression, but as disillusionment comes depression returns. The
path to feeling better actually consists of overcoming a reliance on the false lift of
elation, building a solid base of energy and satisfaction, and possessing wellgrounded healing anger.
Anxiety
Anxiety is a deeply-seated subjective sense that something bad will

happen. However, so is fear. In casual discussion, the terms anxiety and fear are
used interchangeably, but there is an informative energetic distinction to be made.
Anxiety is caused by a strong impulse leaving the core and being arrested in the
muscular layer. Fear is caused by a strong contraction of the tissues in the face of an
external threat (albeit sometimes a remembered, imagined, projected, or social
threat) Restated another way, anxiety is from an internal stimulus while fear is from
an external stimulus. This difference then indicates a difference in remedies.
Contraction and suffering due to fear is best addressed by 1) removing any
identifiable threats, but mostly, for unidentifiable or irremovable threats, 2)
by anger which re-expands the tissue and the organism. Protest is enough at times
for healing, but if concrete actions are safe and available they must not be shirked.
Anxiety is best addressed by honoring the triggering impulse. This often involves
bringing it to consciousness but not always. It also involves constructive actions,
preferably directed at the person or obstacle that triggered the impulse. However,
any truly constructive life-affirming action can suffice. Now in any case, anxiety
tends to produce the sense that something needs to be done (which further
distinguishes it from fear which tends toward paralysis and inhibition) Four types of
actions tend to be undertaken to satisfy this sense:
Compulsive Actions These are familiar habitual actions that tend to be

used frequently. Examples might be constant working, vacuuming, or
exercise. Actions are in place of the original impulse
Impulsive Actions These sudden discontinuous actions that may seem to

offer a new beginning. Examples are a geographic move or a quick marriage.
Again actions are in place of' the original impulse (here the root impulse is
used in two different meanings)
Mood Change This is the realm of addiction or escape, such as drugs,

alcohol, porn, video gaming etc...
Constructive Actions These are in themselves novel actions but in line with
actual conflicts, or at least in line with true pleasure and growth. Examples
are leaving a bad relationship (and not jumping into another relationship) or
talking frankly to one's boss about duties, promotions etc...
While all actions reduce anxiety in the moment, only constructive actions prevent its
recurrence. Anxiety leads to anxious, ruminating thoughts, but the content of these
thoughts tend toward more superficial conflicts and the are usually not the root cause
of the anxiety.Unlike action, thought does not resolve anxiety to any degree
and may increase it. In the body anxiety is most strongly felt in the chest, followed
by the rest of the torso and the temples. Anxiety may not be obvious at lower
intensities. There are three ways in which anxiety makes itself known:
Anxiety Trail This is where living is filled with multiple actions and
transactions that are meant to quell or distract from anxiety. Examples are
restlessness, novelty-seeking, workaholism, zealotry, addiction or compulsive
behavior, rage, judging, moralizing, blaming, codependency, control,
relationship drama, etc.. At this level the anxiety is often not appreciated by
the holder. It may be appreciated by astute others. Generally, though, the
behavior is attributed to moral failing or moral virtue.
Anxiety State This is a feeling of diffuse, debilitating fear, a nameless dread,

or a feeling of impending doom, and a wobbly, shaky feeling. This state
obviously is felt by the holder. Anxiety state is more associated with inaction
(whereas anxiety trail is more associated with action)
Panic. This is a condition where, for no present external cause, a flight or

fight reaction occurs, with release of adrenaline. There is rapid breathing,
chest constriction, throat constriction, increase in heart rate, increase in force
of contraction of the heart, and nausea. Panic is not sustainable and will abate
on its own, although it can be terrifying. This is why it is called a panic
attack. It can be helpful for sufferers to understand that panic is the
physiology of their own bodies, not a judgment of the universe (which is what
the cognitions usually tend toward).
In the Reich and Lowen tradition, anxiety is seen as a sign of life, albeit a painful one.
The generally advised approach to anxiety is then increasing the body's (and ego's)
tolerance for energy, life and feeling. Where baseline anxiety is high, lifestyle tends to
be busy or frenetic but without any pleasure or satisfaction.. At that point, trying
just to be uncovers considerable anxiety. That is why 'doing nothing' when
disquieted can be so beneficial, it allows conflicts and motives to become clear, but
the price is tolerating some distress. For most people, strong anxiety is uncovered
when character defenses start to fail, either because the external stress or shock is
great enough, or the character has been softened with bodywork and character
analysis. Strong character-dystonic impulses emerge which cause panic and
disorientation. A goal of therapy is to avoid large jumps in anxiety, but no progress
can be made without some anxiety. So bodywork in the Reich and Lowen tradition
can both cause and release anxiety at times, but it leads eventually to authentic living
in which anxiety plays only a minor role. Drug therapy, in contrast to bodywork, is
dysregulating and up-regulating. and inevitably leads to greater anxiety. Stimulants
reduce anxiety in the short-run perhaps by spurring activity, but of course stimulants
increase anxiety in the medium and short run. Sedating drugs and opiates including
endorphins quell anxiety briefly but again in the medium and long run increase it
through up-regulation.
Aggression
Aggression is simply 'moving toward' something. Aggression, as a quality of a person,

speaks to one's relationship to one's natural impulses. Emotions and desire engender
impulses. Aggression is moving toward something on the energy of an impulse. In
human affairs there is always external resistance, and so "aggression" is
the ability to move toward a constructive goal against some resistance.
Aggression is not the egotistical intent to get more than others, get ahead of others,
or get some ill-gotten gain. The word for that is greed. Aggression is the
biological and interpersonal process by which impulses and desire are
transformed into action.
Now aggression can be distorted, and one of these distortions can
be violence. Violence, broadly defined, is imposing one's will on another. More
narrowly violence is harming another. Most personal violence is about revenge and
not about getting something. Episodic destructiveness is not aggression. In fact most
destructive behavior comes from the suppression and holding of feeling and then its
distorted eruption. Personal instrumental (goal-directed) violence is rare and implies
lack of feeling. Violence is about control, and actually impulsive. The confusion of
aggression with violence is a large part why aggression is distrusted. It is true that an
incapacity for aggression may translate into a lowered capacity for violence, but this
is like chopping off legs to prevent kicking.
Another distortion of aggression is passive-aggression. While passive
aggression is a trait that has many descriptions, for this discussion it may suffice to
say that the impulse to 'get to others' is entirely disguised but usually successful in a
frustrating way. A common reaction is, "If life with such apparently well-intentioned
efforts is so hard, who needs aggression?" But life is much easier when
straightforward. The solution to passive-aggression is not to remove the aggression,
but remove the passivity!
Aggression is not just persistence. Mere repetition may succeed in attaining a goal,
but aggression seeks to understand and really engage with the resistance. Likewise,
sheer frenetic, vigilant activity may succeed in achieving a goal, but it usually consists
in providing or offering what is already accepted or wanted, and so also not quite a
use of aggression. Neither is aggression use of the will. Will power is used to act
contrary to feeling, aggression always follows feeling.
For this discussion, it is assumed that impulses are good and natural, and aggression
is the energetic process that brings this goodness and naturalness into the world.
Now, mature persons do not act immediately on all their impulses, but this is not
because they feel their impulses are alien or bad. This is the result of selfpossession. The basic impulse is held for a better time or circumstance, according
to the reality principle. Aggression implies the capacity to hold feeling in awareness
long enough to shape it into a creative response.
Many people feel stuck, because they believe one way, and act another. In this
situation, beliefs are untested. Aggression presses to align beliefs and actions,
which is harmonizing to the person, certainly, and almost always, to relationships
as well. Of course beliefs may change in the process, but also actions will happen
where before there was passivity.
Part of aggression can be taking a position in a conflict. This is different from taking
a side in a conflict. A position is a belief in what should happen that one is able to
back up with actions. It makes both unilateral actions and collaboration possible. (Of
course, people really skilled in conflict resolution think of interests more than
concrete positions, but in the sense meant here, interests are ranges of positions).
Part of aggression is also telling people, when appropriate, what to do (and of course
people told still have the right not to do it if it seems wrong to them) Many "captains
of industry' and entrepreneurs have no real skills other than sufficient aggression to
tell people what to do. For this they are usually well rewarded. Many people know
what to do but cannot tell others to do it, and some people know what to do
themselves but still need to be told to do it. Occasionally someone doesn't know what
to do, and they may only need to be told what to do but they may also need to be told
to do it. Parents are often reluctant to tell children what to do, and often confuse
them with extensive moralizing about what is right in an effort to manipulate the
children into doing what they want. There is a way to tell someone what to do
without dis-respecting or dehumanizing them but this requires
To the extent a person is less able to really 'possess' an impulse, there is a tendency to
handle it in three ways: 1) enact counter-impulses, that is to say a reaction
formation, 2) be generally inhibited and over-controlled, or 3) act out substitute
impulses either in a repetitive fashion (compulsive behavior) or in a chaotic fashion
(impulsive behavior). The more the underlying impulses are distorted in these ways
of course, the more they leak out someway into interpersonal affairs, and the more
justified it seems to stifle them. This is a 'vicious circle.'
The first two categories above, reaction-formations and over-controlled-ness are
encouraged in our culture because they do seem to limit maiming and killing (at least
directly, though many 'architects' of mass destruction, are in fact over-controlled).
Compulsiveness and impulsiveness may be frowned upon, but actually more
tolerated than aggression.
Mere drive to obtain an idea or goal regardless of the consequences or process
is psychopathy, with which aggression is also frequently confused.
What matters is not the strength of the idea to get something, but rather
the energy level and energy structure to support movement toward the
goal, and the ego skills to negotiate interpersonal complications along
the way. Just as there are driving skills that never get developed if one never takes
the car onto the highway, ego development is limited if aggression is limited.
Aggression is a key element by which character can be evaluated. For instance,
the schizoid or creator character can formulate constructive goals and even
mentally anticipate obstacles but tends to leave the goal as abstract 'for later.' There
is a complete disconnect between a goal and the impulse to go after it. The oral or
communicator character also can formulate goals and sets off impetuously but
tends to quickly feel that obstacles are too great and retreats. They may call for
someone else to intervene or apply a rule. The swollen or includer
character may go about a goal even more impetuously but tends to get distracted
and also retreats if resistance is great. The psychopathic or inspirer
character also acts quickly and quickly loses sight of the original goal and gets lost
in the experience of being influential or dominant. The masochistic or
consolidator character clearly experiences impulses but holds in powerfully.
Where aggression is low, there is a tendency not to act on one's
judgment, but seek seek certainty. This can contribute to inaction, but it is also
a trait that contributes to conscientiousness. On the other hand, those with greater
aggression tend to trust their own judgment and act on it more readily. This aids
decisiveness. There is some antagonism between conscientiousness and decisiveness.
We live in an economy where there is room for only a few decisive people, but there
is room for many, many conscientious people. This possibly contributes to a societal
disapproval of aggression (both as it is misunderstood and as it is meant here.)
Also where aggression is low, the person is at risk for bitterness. This is because
those who are aggressive and thriving are perceived as cheating or acting as bullies
by pushing others aside. A world view of unfairness develops
The rigid or achiever character is best able to apply aggression but tends to
organize all activity around aggression, including personal relationships. In
general, women tend to be more aggressive (try to bring about desirable conditions)
in the family or close relationships, men tend to be aggressive (try to make
something happen) in the world.
To better understand the role of aggression, it may be helpful to contrast two other
human traits: receptivity and passivity. Receptivity is the complement to aggression.
To receive is to participate in another's impulse. If the impulse is directed at oneself
then receptivity is taking it in. If the aggression is directed elsewhere, than receptivity
is following actively and with conviction. Passivity on the other hand is not
participating. Passivity results in neither aggression nor receptivity. Passivity may
result in following but without conviction.
The path of least resistance describes a trend that can develop where aggression is
low. Excessive doing of unopposed things can be a compensation for difficulty doing
what one really wants, that is busy-ness or frenetic activity can be a sign of low
aggression. Driftingis moving from endeavor to endeavor based on interest and

agreeableness, but moving away after reaching the point where some aggression is
necessary (which it always will be in anything worth doing). Drifting looks like
exploration for a while, but after a time the avoidance is more clearly seen. Drifting
avoids developing the assurance, strength, and functional roots that working through
provides. Some situations are toxic, in that aggression has no chance of helping and
is in fact punished. Toxic situations are rare though, and have to be distinguished
from situations that are merely difficult, competitive, impersonal, slightly biased, or
that require new abilities.
Grieving
Grieving is an active process that frees a person up for living again after a loss. A loss
in this sense is not just any reversal of fortune but loss of an attachment object-meaning relationships or people, sometimes animals, and possibly places. Grieving is
experiencing both sadness and anger, and discharging both with strong expression
including sobbing and wailing, and striking ones chest. Mourning is a synonym of
grieving that conveys more the expressive aspect.
Of course the ready example of an occasion of grieving is someone's death. In
victorian times, it was a ritual to wear black for a time after the death of a loved one.
This was a bit mechanical and could be done hypocritically, but it was a recognition
that grieving was a biological process that required time. However, while time is
necessary, it is not sufficient. The inability to grieve has traditionally been
recognized as an emotional disturbance, but it is becoming more common. The
inability to grieve arises from a survival orientation, depression, sympathetic
shift, and repressed emotion, among other things.
As a practical matter, when anyone that has been shut down starts to increase his or
her vitality, a great many ungrieved losses rise to the surface. In fact, since the past
cannot be changed, all the problematic elements in ones past can thought of as
losses, and grieving is the core of dealing with present effects of one's past. While this
may involve adjustments in belief, this is not an intellectual process but an energetic
one.
Three Experiences of Suffering
A person's experience of the world is actual, whether or not it seems valid to others.
This subjective experience is sometimes called aphenomenology. It is mostly
determined by the body's reaction to the environment, with some influence from
conscious knowledge and cognition. The body's reaction is sometimes strongly
affected, sometimes dominated, by its history. A history of trauma, abuse, or
insecurity is especially lingering in the body (I call this disappointment) , and can
cause bias in experience that defeats healing. I believe there are three stages to
experiencing harm and I describe them below.
Phenomenology of Threat If past threats were not adequately resolved, the threat
detection system (amygdala, locus cereleus) will remain on high alert. Structurally
the body is in a state of contraction. the autonomic nervous system is in a state of
alarm and 'fight or flight' Perception is geared to pick up evidence of threat. All
actions then have characteristic defensiveness. However, it may be ascertained that it
is normal social friction that is causing the experience of threat. The real threat has
been in the past. It is sometimes said that this is locking the barn door after the horse
has been stolen. Past and present is not adequately separated emotionally. Others are
provoked sooner or later to respond harshly and this seems to confirm the ongoing
dangerousness of the world. Grieving cannot take place because there is no safety.
Phenomenology of Resentment The next stage is the ability to place injuries 'in
the past' but not really accepted as having happened in a final sense. This is a type of
denial. Considerable energy is spent in denying the realness or legitimacy of what has
happens, so that reminders of what happened, are experienced as the injury
happening again (that is where the term resentment comes from, to feel again)
There is tremendous bitterness and behavioral volatility. Grieving cannot happen
because it requires acceptance.
Phenomenology of Loss A loss is appreciated if the injury is understood to be the
past but effects are still felt in the present. Neither defensiveness nor denial is
needed, and vulnerability can be shown. Only losses can be grieved. Threats and
resentments cannot be. Recognition of loss and grieving can only happen in relative
safety. The external situation must actually be safe, but that is not enough. The
would-be mourner has to feel safe enough in his or her own body.
Galvanic Skin Response
It is not disputed that small non-random electrical fluctuations are measurable on

the skin of a human. This is an element of polygraph testing. Wilhelm
Reich investigated this and wrote a slim book about it. A fundamental
understanding is that these fluctuations are much more variable over certain areas.
These areas were already known as erogenous zones because of their role in
sexuality, but it could be fair to call them human contact zones as well.
Erogenous is not the same as erotic. The universal erogenous zones are: the tongue,
the lips, earlobes, palms, nipples, anal mucosa, vaginal mucosa, and penis. Many
would classify the eyes as erogenous but they are not testable for galvanic skin
response. In some the forehead is erogenous. Potentially, a woman's 'throat' (uppermiddle anterior of torso with front of neck) is erogenous--that is why even with very
conservative dress, a woman's throat is often exposed by the neckline, and necklaces
are worn. This aspect of galvanic variability is very different from sensitivity in the
usual sense, although there can be overlap as with the lips.
Electrical current changes induced by physical contact in erogenous areas were
associated with pleasure, anxiety, or annoyance. The difference in the response was
not solely based on the mechanical nature of the physical contact but also the
'readiness' of the stimulated subject. This is consistent with Reich's sex-economic
concepts. A raised charge was identified with pleasureable sensation usually and
also itch. This explains the use of the term 'itch' to denote 'desire' in folk sayings.
Light friction or tickling of an area increased charge, and pressure decreased it.
Hypersensitivity to touch is experienced by some people with friction (stroking), and
this possibly denotes an inability to tolerate the charge at the surface. Usually in
these cases, pressure is welcomed. It is important to note, that Reich did not
think these millivolt electrical changes were the main biological effect,
but rather just indirect evidence of it.
Field Effects
Fields are theoretical constructs used to explain action at a distance. The

constructs of gravitational field and magnetic field are well established and not
controversial. Gravity does not have to send out any substance to a target object to
affect it, rather it affects all objects within a distance, and this is conceived of as a
field. Apart from these two examples, however, western science has been
extremely hostile to the idea of fields, partly because it interferes with a
tidy treatment of cause and effect. If fields are always around, effects are
expected, but what then is the exact cause? And if effects are variable, how does one
know the same field is in force?
In traditional Chinese thought, field based thinking has been the norm. Qi (chi) is a
universal energy that figures in many fields. Two fundamental understandings about
qi and certain conceived fields are that 1) they interact with living things differently
than non-living things, and 2) they interact differently with different people
according to the person's state of body functioning or preparation. How else can
many differentials in health and disease be explained? But these two understandings
have been anathema to mainstream western science, which is based on belief that
human functioning and natural laws do not cross paths.
To be fair, the possibility that action and effect can be had at a distance by unseen
fields allows immense room for fraud. Some of this is witting, but magical thinking is
rarely totally extinguished in any adult, and what is magic if not action at a distance?
Discernment between the real and false is possible of course, and in Chinese
medicine is not considered a major issue. The usual giveaway to falsity is the
assertion of casual or ad hoc manipulation of fields to accord with human will of the
moment. Natural phenomena may interact with human bodies but they do
not interact with human will--that is mysticism. But in the west, because this
discernment requires subjectivity, the entire area is made taboo.
So in the West, only a few great thinkers have persisted with fields, however:
Paraclesus, Mesmer, Jung, Reich. Alexander Lowen endorsed certain field
phenomena but did not make them central to his work, because his work, like this
website, was organized around practical means to decrease human suffering.
One common field concept is the human aura. Walter Kilmer demonstrated that
anyone could train themselves to see auras by using purple goggles. This practice was
revived by John Pierrakos, an associate of Alexander Lowen. From this it seems that
auras are essentially in between visible and UV light. Distinguishing different colors
within an aura has often been done diagnostically and may have validity but color in
this context is interesting because it is not explained how UV frequencies have
'doubled' the color spectrum of visible light. In any case, the 'healthiest' colors are
white or gold, which is the color of halos depicted around heads in early Christian
art. In this early art, it was clear that the halo emanated from the head and there was
no gap. In modern, graphic-design depictions of 'angels', halo are mere rings that
hover above the head, like a sign of goodness that has been 'put there' rather than a
biological function.
Turgor and Colloid
Turgor refers to the state of liquid and colloid just under the skin. Colloid is a liquid
thickened with proteins. The role of colloid in the appearance of skin has been well
known. Many expensive cosmetics promise to restore the colloid in the skin by
external application--but if this happens at all it happens very minutely. Skin that is
naturally supported by colloid from within looks healthy. The appearance stems not
just from the skin, but from the substrate the skin sits upon. The skin will look full,
and while it will not look moist it will not look dry. Skin that is not underlain with
with colloid will look less supported and dry. It is from this that the folk-term 'dried
out' gets applied to someone in whom life force is low.
Wilhelm Reich proposed that during parasympathetic expansion, the body
thickens the liquid near the surface and the liquid at the core became relatively more
watery. During sympathetic contraction, the opposite happened, liquid towards the
center became thicker and at the skin more watery, which produced a change in
turgor.
The most important point of Reich is that skin with better turgor is more
sensitive, more responsive, and more capable of pleasure.
There is a condition called edema, which results from poor circulation or local injury.
In edema, a watery substrate accumulates under the skin at higher pressure, usually
causing swelling and hardening. This is different from colloidal turgor at more
normal and supple pressures. When someone is said to look radiant, good turgor
seems to be a factor.
Boundaries
The surface of an organism is where sensation (and therefore pleasure),

and contact with others takes place. It is only possible to know and love others
through the surface. A healthy surface is expression of a solid core made possible by
the more or less unobstructed flow of feeling to the surface.
On the one hand, the surface can refer to an opportunity to conceal the
core. This can happen by placing a 'mask' or a false covering on the real surface.
'Masks' can fool others at times but they cannot interact with others sincerely. An
observer who is more alive can discern the true state of things. A common reason for
a deceptive mask is feeling shame about the real surface, but a surface that is fully
connected to the core does not engender shame.
The task in regaining feeling and purpose is often one of first dispensing
with masks, then secondly bringing life and emotion to the surface. It is
not enough for the core to be strong or noble, the surface must reflect the core. But to
'make use' of the surface, it is necessary to have boundaries.
In the 'self-help' culture, boundaries are often described as 1) mental rules of
engagement, and 2) defensive stands that prevent exploitation. Having been
exploited is believed to be grounds for a label of 'bad boundaries.' There are many
maladaptive behavioral strategies that develop around the task of coping with
interpersonal risk. One strategy is to avoid contact. Another is to plunge into
symbiosis. A third strategy is to analyze other people's behavior for clues of safety
and willfully adjust interactional distance. This latter risk-analysis strategy is
strongly endorsed culturally, and is generally what is called having boundaries. A big
weakness is it tends to fall apart in the face of strong feeling.
Functional boundaries are a biological and energetic thing, however. Bad
boundaries are boundaries that are are faint in a biological sense. Most
'neurotic' indirect behavior comes from the state of weak boundaries and the need to
protect oneself and further interests some other way. Contact with boundaries of
others are meant to be felt. Bringing expression and feeling strongly to the
surface provides a natural boundary that has the advantage of being
clearer in situations where feeling is strong. Boundaries make both kindness
and firmness possible.
Interacting with the boundaries of others involves feeling. Wherever feeling is low
or denied, there is a potential problem with boundary transgression. the Creator
character and Communicator character have low feeling but also
low aggression, so that boundaries are crossed inadvertently, while pursuing a goal
or while upset. The Inspirer character has ample aggression so more direct and
frequent transgression are expected. A Consolidator character has ample feeling
but very conflicted aggression and so may take others boundaries too rigidly and so
not achieve intimacy. The rigid group of characters, (except for the passivefeminine who functions more like the consolidator in this respect) have both feeling
and aggression, and so push but not cross boundaries. A boundary transgression may
not elicit discomfort in a 'target person,' and conversely, mere discomfort at an
advance may not represent a boundary transgression.
Boundaries need to be thought of as not merely defensive but something productive
and connecting as well. Asking for something difficult, or participating in a strong
group without losing one's purpose and principle, is made possible by boundaries. A
metaphor can be taken from the animal world: A cat is often noticed to be
comfortable sleeping in the middle of a room, even with many people walking
nearby. Only if the cat is touched does it respond, perhaps with a claw. The cat is a
'fight' animal. On the other hand, a sheep is a flight animal. It cannot fight so it is
always vigilant for the possibility of a predator, even far off. It is almost always
moving somewhat skittishly and oriented toward escape routes. To have good
boundaries allows one to be comfortable in the 'middle of things.'
Human and Natural Rhythms
Rhythm adds the ideas of change over time, patterns, and cycles to the concepts of
pulsation and vibration. Some cycles are very short, and some very long in human
terms. Humans have many rhythms, and the natural world humans live in has many
rhythms, not the least of which is night and day, the lunar cycle, and the seasons. The
modern sensibility is very inpatient and disdainful of rhythmic activity,
preferring the instant. Honoring rhythms introduces the concepts of waiting and
readiness. Mere delay is not waiting but rather avoidance unless one is prepared to
sense readiness.
Folk wisdom talks about a 'seven-year itch' cycle in romantic and sexual behavior.
This cycle is very under-appreciated.
Human will of course is influenced by rhythms but not compelled. Human ingenuity
has profitably limited the impact of natural cycles--think of artificial lighting and
central heating. Another example is importing fruit and vegetables from the other
hemisphere in winter! The result however, seems to have been the forgetting of
rhythms altogether. To the ego and will, one hour is as good as another. Many
businesses run 24 hours a day, as does television. Then there is the subject of a
general cultural speedup, in which the body is driven to work faster than inherent
rhythms. Of course this is exhausting and stressful, but what is now greatly lacking,
is the general pleasure of activities that are performed well and at a natural rhythm.
Relaxation
One area of agreement between the Reich and Lowen tradition and mainstream
healthcare is the role of relaxation to reduce suffering. Relaxation, though, seems to
have several common meanings:
Less Functional Ways of Relation
1. An artificial state of calm known as the opiate or endorphin
response. The state of the body need not and usually does not match
the subjective feeling. Endorphins are actually an indication of strong
stress to the body. This response can allow the mind to feel quite good when
the body is in grave distress. Now, if endorphins come from aerobic exercise,
the conditioning effect is cited as evidence of benefit to the body. Aerobic
conditioning effect does not include muscle lengthening (see below) or good
alignment. Usually posture becomes more distorted and muscles hard and
shortened. (Very top level athletes will do many other things to combat this,
but the casual user almost never has the time or inclination for that) A
common history for a person that comes to love aerobic exercise for relaxation
is injuries that prevent further exercise. This comes about because over time,
whatever the heart and lung capacity, the body becomes very tight and less
suited to movement over time. Knee and feet injuries are extremely common.
Over time a deep chasm can arise between the state of the body and the state
of the mind.
Chronic prescribed or unprescribed opiate use can have a similar effect. Alcohol and
nicotine are also used in this way of course.
2. A decrease in arousal and vigilance. High arousal often upsets other
people nearby who understandably fear erratic behavior. A common
admonition in this situation is "relax!" but relaxation can not be willed. High
arousal tends to seek more stimulation which contributes to the arousal. Here
the will power can be used with benefit to resist the inclination and go
deliberately into an environment of less stimulation.
3. A state of detachment from cares or worries A healthy person is able to
detach intentionally at times from worries. This is healthy because it allows
problems to be addressed at a more opportune time and therefore be less
disruptive. A person can also arrange soothing around the issue and therefore
be more relaxed and creative. Also, many problems either work themselves
out or simplify simply with time. And still further, many problems benefit
from a different type of background processing that is slower and
unconscious. This is epitomized by the phrase "sleep on it.' But to sleep well
implies being able to detach from a worry.
So it seems that 'relaxation' as commonly understood involves either the state of the
body, or dissociation from the state of the body. For all the benefits of flexible
and temporary dissociation, chronic or permanent dissociation produces
denial and unrealistic behavior.
A common experience is the 'mental' reframing of a situation, so that, in thought,
what had been deemed bad is deemed good. Now this is very close to the idea of
acceptance, it which a person gets away from thinking of 'what is' as
bad. Acceptance is a great stress reliever. But acceptance has to happen in the
body as well, not just the cerebral cortex. Chronic denial does not necessarily protect
the body from stress, though it might. Chronic denial, however, precludes honest
contact with others. The result of this is a pleasurelessness in relationships.
4. A state of absorption into something interesting. This is also known as
concentration or voluntary attention. It is essentially dissociation. It is often
substituting reward for relaxation. It can decrease distress but can also be
addicting. Of course absorption into research about a problem can bring a
capacity to act effectively to change it.
5. A state of distraction by something amusing or entertaining. Having
some fun might translate into having pleasure, which is a great contributor to
relaxation. Also pleasant distraction can allow time for unconscious
processing as detailed below in number 7. However, modern entertainment
with video is set apart from the here and now, and can lead to further
estrangement from the body and the real.
More Functional Ways of Relaxation
1. A state of calm, in which a person feels no urgency or need for
protection. This is characteristic of ventral vagal shift(parasympathetic
dominance). The state of the body matches subjective feeling. This
comes about naturally when a healthy person has no strong demands on them
either from others or their own ego. It can also be helped about by breathing
practice, meditation, light exercise, beauty, ritual, touch, bodywork, and
several other things.
2. A balance in muscle tension. A common situation in the modern body is
chronically tight muscles. Tightened muscles alone are generally believed to
tend toward a sympathetic shift. Beyond that, patterns of tension affect the
sensory system in ways that push painful or threatening feelings out of
awareness--this is the idea behind the concepts of segments and
armor. Work with muscle and fascia lengthening is perhaps the best way
to restore the natural but often lost capacity to relax. Moreover, relaxing this
way does not add to dissociation.
Disappointment
Disappointment is a psychological event of course, but in this page, it will be used to

describe a biological phenomenon. Every living organism expands and contracts.
There are things that induce expansion, usually pleasureable, and things that induce
contraction, usually painful. Disappointment is the proven biological fact that after
something has caused contraction the things that normally lead expansion are much
less effective. This is captured in the folk expression, "once bitten, twice shy."
Wilhelm Reich used the example (not just a metaphor) of the amoeba. An amoeba
in solution will send out pseudopodia. If poked however it will contract suddenly.
After this, it will send out pseudopodia but at less distance, it seems almost cautious.
Amoebas are one-celled with no brain or nervous system, so this reaction must
be cellular.
Muscle Function and Release
Muscles function mostly by lengthening and shortening. Most mainstream

treatments of muscle function ignore the lengthening because shortening
(contracting) is believed to be the extension of human will and "how the work is
done". Lengthening is considered passive and taken for granted. Graceful and
pleasureable movement however, requires that opposing muscles work in unison,
some shortening, some lengthening. An over-simple model of muscle function states
that muscles only lengthen when a different muscle, gravity, or a mechanical force
pulls on them. This does not take into account the role of reducing contraction
stimulus to the muscle that should lengthen. General states of alarm or vigilance can
keep even opposing sets of muscles more or less continuously tense.
Over-time muscles shorten chronically and this is probably related to connective
tissue elements (the 'fibro' part of fibromyalgia) Because of anatomy, in many parts
of the body, chronically shortened muscles are matched with opposing muscles that
are overlong. Chronically shortened and chronically over-lengthened muscles are
both weak, because it is a certain middle range of length at which the filaments are
optimally overlapped..
A large part of the sensation or feeling of relaxation comes from the
perception of muscles that are fully energized, at optimal length, and
ready to do work. However, doing work is not necessary, and a relaxed state is
appropriate for resting or going to sleep. After muscles contract, discharging some
energy, they must take in energy to fully un-contract and relax. A continuously tight
or contracted muscle is actually an exhausted muscle. Ironically, a large amount of
chronic muscle contraction may lead to frenetic, un-graceful, constant activity as the
will power and mind try to overcome the depletion. Chronic muscle contraction also
leads to difficulty falling asleep, and rumination.
As mentioned above, muscles shorten when a person is alarmed, or frightened, or
humiliated, but they also shorten or contract to hold back a response. When
a body is under constant stress, or is exhausted, or unable to take up energy, the
muscles tend to stay contracted. Shortened muscles decrease feeling overall, but
when feeling is increased because of a strong stimulus, tight muscles imbue the
situation with a tone of fear and worry.
This view of relaxation is of course at odds with the mainstream cultural belief that
holds that relaxation will be the result of either accomplishing enough
(attainment), or holding the right thoughts ('figuring it out'). If one starts working
with the body, however, personal experience is usually convincing about what really
provides relaxation.
Muscles that are weak and chronically lengthened must be allowed to shorten and
gently exercised in a way that does not keep over lengthening them. This is truly
tricky. A traditional physical therapy way is to apply a brace that limits the range of
motion for that muscle, but bracing is overseen by the medical field and truly out of
fashion there. What may in fact be best for overstretched muscles is alignment as
discussed below.
Hatha yoga is a process obviously geared with tuning muscles to optimal length,
strength and tension. However, the practice is geared to a body that is not too far
from the optimal already. The overwhelming number of modern American bodies,
even aerobically fit ones, are not prepared for it and struggle, receiving an endorphin
response but not re-alignment. An investment in true Pilates studio work is well
worth it, because this is a truly remedial focus. .
Release: Muscles that are chronically short must lengthen again to relax and be
ready for satisfying movement. In bodywork this is sometimes called 'release', and
there seems to be ten general strategies for releasing shortened muscles:
1. directly stretching muscles by pulling them with other muscles, helpers,
gravity, or devices,
2. moderate exercise with the muscle
3. employing vibration
4. contracting opposing muscles that activates a lengthening reflex (reciprocal
inhibition)
5. bringing muscle tension into awareness
6. warming
7. direct massage
8. improving alignment
9. expression of emotion, especially anger and sadness.
10. visualization
Direct Stretch This has the advantage of being intuitive to our culture of doers
that is, it seems like doing something. In stretching, will power can be applied to the
body, but then this also undermines the basic goal, since will power tends to contract
muscles overall. Also some muscles require very complex maneuvers to be stretched
at all, like the psoas. Other muscles, like those supporting the spine, are difficult to
stretch against gravity without the assistance of another person, such as a
chiropractor. Gravity can be employed to stretch what it usually compresses,
however, with the use of an inversion table. An inversion table has the advantage of
being somewhat immune to the over-use of the will, because one just 'hangs around,'
and there is no way to try to perfect the maneuver. The diaphragm is a muscle that is
almost impossible to stretch directly. Direct stretching also runs up against the
stretch reflex, which causes muscles that are stretched to want to shorten. Stretch is
not synonymous with lengthening. Stretch implies creating a tension in the muscle
fibers that does not necessarily arise in all lengthening methods. The stretch reflex
can be partially overcome by stretching slowly, and holding the stretch. If connective
tissue is shortened, some direct stretching will probably be necessary since all the
other methods target muscle fibers.
Exercise Moderate exercise will discharge tension from a muscle, and the muscle, in
restoring itself, will replenish itself with energy and lengthen. If there was a modest
contraction from stress in the first place, the end result will usually be less
contraction than when the exercise was started. That is why office workers usually
feel more relaxed after working out or taking a walk. The first stages of 'Progressive
relaxation' , in which muscles are isometrically contracted and then 'let go', is based
on this.
Heavy exercise may be a different matter. When the body is stressed cardiovascularly, muscles that do not need to tighten usually do anyway. Joseph
Pilates felt strongly that strong exertion was bad for body conditioning. Many
amateur joggers develop a great deal of muscle shortening, and often some postural
distortion, as everyday observation will show. Heavy cardio will produce
exhilaration, but this is from endorphins. Endorphins act like opiates, that is,
they dissociate the mind from how the body feels. The endorphin response seems
safe enough as opiate responses goit is self-limiting. Still opiates seem to increase
contraction in the long run. Of course, vigorous exercise can have positive effects on
heart health and weight etc..., and can be paired with appropriate measures to keep
muscles lengthened.
Vibration A tense muscle will start to vibrate coarsely as it lets go. There is some
belief that vibrating the body coarsely with voluntary movements or externally
applied vibration can induce muscle lengthening and relaxation. In the Reich and
Lowen tradition, vibration is also an end in itself, a basic life process. The basic
Lowenian bioenergetic positions are stress positions that stretch large muscles and
allow for vibration to occur. Therapists that work with trauma, such as Peter Levine,
have recognized shaking as a basic recovery mechanism in all 'higher' animals. The
Trauma Release Exercises of David Bercelli is a sequence of seven exercises
intended to induce vibration in the psoas.
Reciprocal Inhibition This refers to the fact that in some muscle group pairings,
contracting one muscle causes the opposing muscle to relax somewhat. The
relaxation can be enhanced if the contracting muscle is contracted isometrically, so
that the relaxing muscle is not stretched at first. This general approach is known as
reverse isometrics. Some yoga sequences may also make use of this.
Awareness Awareness of muscle tension is believed to lessen the tension. The
muscular tension that functions as armor does so because it has fallen from
awareness and functions automatically. Increasing awareness cannot come about by
will or increased vigilance for muscle sensation, but rather by quieting and mindful
movement.
Warming Applying low heat directly to muscles will relax them. This method has
the advantage that it does not require skill, with common sense it cannot be done
wrong. It is possible to affect core muscles also, although the body will resist much
change in core temperature. Hot-tubs, saunas, and sunbathing are all tradition
methods of relaxation with heat. 'Hot or Bikram yoga seeks a synergy with heat and
stretch.
Massage Tight contracted muscle relax with massage. It is unclear whether this
effect can be cumulative, or whether it wears off, even with frequent application. (The
same concern is relevant for all methods listed here except perhaps, awareness and
emotional expression) Reich and Lowen frequently massaged key holding muscles to
release tension, and give them a taste of partial relaxation. Massage is particularly
useful for the muscles of the mid- and upper-face, which cannot be
stretched. Trigger point massage can be very effective, since chronic muscle
tension is not homogenous, but bunches close to the motor endplate.
Alignment Undue contraction in one muscle or group throws the body out of
balance and other muscles must become contracted just to provide a semblance of
balance. If a person can be 'put' into a good enough alignment, a multi-location
release might be possible. This seems to be a premise of Rolfing, Hatha yoga, and
Feldenkreis.
Emotional Expression Both Reich and Lowen sought true emotional expression
as a goal of therapy. Lowen however, developed the principle that emotional
expression was also a way to release muscle tension, and in fact is a necessary
adjunct to sustain gains. However, a distinction must be made between catharsis and
true integrated expression. A cathartic outburst is seen by the ego as an aberration
and not really true for the person. Only when the expression both involves the body
(eyes, face, hands, voice, etc) and is seen by the ego as true for the person, can selfexpression provide a release psychologically and muscularly.
Visualization Visualizing seems to be able to 'attainment get to' underlying
mental beliefs that are holding muscles tight, not by directly opposing them but by
substituting a different subconscious guidance.
Vegetative Systems
Vegetative Systems
The vegetative systems are those body systems that support the living process, that
neither require nor greatly benefit from conscious attention. Though this could be
considered a gift, our culture has deep distrust for any function not under immediate
willful control of the ego. Also, changes take place in the vegetative systems,
especially with the parasympathetic part of the autonomic nervous system, over
several minutes or even hours, and certainly not instantly For these two reasons our
culture at large ignores the vegetative systems, preferring the so called voluntary
nervous system to achieve all ends as quickly as possible.
The term vegetative system was formerly used to designate solely the autonomic
nervous system. In this discussion, it can be useful to think of other vegetative
systems, the neuro-endocrine system, the vestibular system, involuntary
functions of the skeletal muscle system, and the the immune system.
As Wilhelm Reich and Alexander Lowen showed, however, volitionallydominated actions are mechanical and unpleasureable. They often have a "flung"
quality. They lack grace. All satisfying actions , and the large majority of effective
actions, are the product of the conscious choice and the vegetative systems working
in concert.
It is sometimes said, too simplistically, that the vegetative systems exert involuntary
control only. Actually, they can be deliberately influenced, by breathing, imagery,
feeling, letting go, certain types of movements or positions, the presence of other
people, sex, warming and cooling, massage, meditation, shocking news, what is done
with the mouth, stimulating reflexes (including gag reflex), etc ...
All the above practices, strangely, are considered 'alternative' in our culture. Aerobic
exercise, along with general health benefits, does have some vegetative effects, and it
is endorsed by our culture, perhaps because it is associated with power, endurance,
and superiority, which are ego, not body qualities. The pleasureable endorphin effect,
though probably not harmful, is actually a dissociative effect, where the mind is in
less touch with what is happening in the body. All movement therapies discussed in
this website avoid aerobic or cardiovascular stress because 1) it generally works to
increase contraction and muscle shortening, and 2) for traumatized people at least, it
decreases ventral shift and increases sympathetic shift, and 3) using up oxygen
rapidly creates a minor survival stress in the body-one is simply trying to finish-which makes it hard to change old muscular habits
Vegetative functions can be influenced by drugs of course, but not to their long term
betterment, so that will not be discussed here.
Autonomic Nervous System
The autonomic nervous system (ANS) both regulates and monitors the body, mostly
outside consciousness. As Antonio Damasio describes extensively in his books,
these two functions form the substrate of emotional functioning. Eighty percent of
autonomic nervous fibers are afferent, that is they bring information to
the brain. The 'headquarters' of the ANS is the hypothalamus, which communicates
extensively with the limbic or emotional areas of the brain. Unlike the voluntary
motor system, the autonomic nervous system has synapses outside the brain and
spinal cord. This ensures that a broader range of inputs is influential in its
functioning.
The autonomic nervous system traditionally has been described with a "bipolar
model'. In this model, which matches the table below, the parasympathetic part
'controls' rest and restoration, and the sympathetic part controls action. Ideally they
oppose and balance each other for health. Neither is good or bad. This model may
explain the maintenance of vital functions for daily functioning and survival, but it
does not explain the emotional or motivational aspects of the ANS.
The Polyvagal Model
A much more nuanced model, at least for human affairs, is the polyvagal model,
developed by Stephen Porges, which describes threelayers of autonomic
functioning, arranged hierarchically rather than in opposition.
The top layer is the ventrovagal, which can also be described as the Social
Engagement System. It is constituted from fast myelinated vagal fibers that
interconnect the ear, the eye muscles, the mouth, the throat and voicebox and the
heart. This is the most 'social' and most adaptive system for dealing with the
presence of another person or a novel situation. The vagal fibers that go to the facial
muscles are called, the special efferent system, and are often overlooked in thinking
about the autonomic system. The facial muscles then constitute an interesting system
that overall has both voluntary and involuntary control. Some parts of the face such
as the cheeks and lips are useable freely by voluntary control, while the orbicularis
oculi around the eyes is essentially vagally run. That is why it has been noted that a
smile around the mouth may be faked, but a smile around the eyes is inevitably true.
The Social Engagement System both requires a felt sensation of safety to be active,
and helps provide such a sensation of safety. Poor eye contact and a flat facial
expression are common signs that the Social Engagement System is not active.
When the ventro-vagal system is in a state of disuse, or is inadequate for
the challenge, the sympathetic or action system takes over as the driver
of behavior and feeling. This is less social and biased toward action not 'inter'action. The sympathetic system has at least three aspects: 1) a baseline tone that is
necessary to sustain life as a human, 2) the capacity to adjust the body to increased
purposeful physical activity, and 3) an emergency system, fight or flight' that involves
the adrenal system as well.
The baseline sympathetic tone for instance is what insures that blood pressure will be
adequate. If the demands for energy output increase, it is possible for the ventralvagal system to lessen, and the baseline sympathetic tone has more effect, but
without involving the adrenals. This means that the effect can be reversed instantly,
which is very important in social situations. This use of the interplay of ventovagal tone and baseline sympathetic tone has been termed 'the vagal
brake'.
The most known aspect of the sympathetic system is the ability to provide a sudden
massive burst of stimulation, both directly and with the aid of the adrenal system.
This provides not only the ability to 'do something' but psychologically, provides a
strong sense of urgency to do something. This has been termed 'fight or flight'
Though this is 'meant' to be a rare, emergency system, in many people it is chronic.
When functioning in this state, a person perceives neutral faces and neutral voices as
hostile, and responds defensively very quickly. In a shark attack or fire etc.., this state
is very useful. In a social situation it is maladaptive, and makes social relations
chaotic and unrewarding.
If as so often happens in modern life, 'flight or fight' is triggered without an objective
life or death emergency, it is still a good idea to perform safe moderate physical
activity away from the stimulus, because being stimulated this way and not moving
has consequences of sympathetic shift, or dorsal shift.
When a person is trapped, or cannot act effectively, the third or 'bottom' layer of the
autonomic system is activated, the dorsal vagal, which is constituted from slower
unmyelinated fibers to the heart, bronchi, and visceral organs below the diaphragm.
The dorsal vagal is like a sudden emergency brake. The person freezes, or 'plays'
dead. Speech is limited, eye-contact impossible, motion absent. When
thephysiology is in freeze, the psychology is mostly in dissociation.
Orienting Response
When there is a change in the environment, human and higher animals have a very
basic response, the orienting reflex. The individual stops what it is doing andturns
its head (with eyes ears and nose to the source of stimulation. There is also pupillary
dilation, a drop in skin resistance and a momentary drop in heart rate. What is very
important, is that this is a take off point for further autonomic response, which can
be dorsal vagal, sympathetic, or ventral vagal. That is it can be freeze, flight, fight, or
making friends. In complex social environments, what constitutes 'sufficient' novelty
to benefit from orienting reflex is not a fixed issue. Concentration inhibits the
orienting reflex severely. In ADHD, the reflex seems insufficiently inhibited. We live
in a society where novelty is deliberately manipulated constantly. Disordered or

excessive orienting seems to be another aspect of autonomic dysfunction.
Defense Ladders
The polyvagal system constitutes a neuro-endocrine defense ladder. Commonly, in
psychology, defenses are arranged along an ego-defense ladder, with more 'mature'
defenses being encouraged because they allow more interpersonal flexibility. It can
be thought that neuro-endocrine defenses preserving the biological integrity of the
body and ego defenses preserving the coherence of the ego. However, they are interrelated. 'Higher' ego defenses are based on higher neuro-endocrine
defenses. That is why bodywork is often necessary for significant change in
interpersonal functioning.
Other Implications
Functioning takes on its flavor from which of the three autonomic states is
predominant at the time. However there are two 'states' that seem to be
characterized by an increase in both ventral vagal and sympathetic level. These states
are play and sexual activity.
There is also a two-layered neuroplexus in the intestinal wall. It has as many neurons
as the spinal cord and produces the same neurotransmitters and hormones as the
brain. Clearly, this, along with the solar plexus, seems to be the 'belly-brain' that
many healing and wellness traditions have intuitively described. This is the source of
'gut feeling.'
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder seems to be a cycling between the fight-or-flight
system (sympathetic) and the freeze system (dorsal vagal). The social engagement
system falls into disuse. The person continues to try to engage socially but not
effectively, because the social engagement system is not available. This happens even
if a person had effective social engagement earlier in life, because social skills are
not cognitive skills but rather body skills. A stalemate between the freeze
system and the fight-or-flight system may superficially appear as a 'well-regulated'
state but is actually a state of limited contact.
The table below reflects the cruder, faster-slower, two part oppositional model still in
use for most medical explanations. As described above, it is not that useful for
explaining emotions or relationships, but is included for it's memory value.
Oppositional Model of Sympathetic and Parasympathetic

Organ System
Sympathetic Reaction
(Anxiety)
Parasympathetic Reaction
(Pleasure)
Iris of Eye
Dilation of Pupils
Constriction of Pupils
Tear Glands
Inhibition, "dry eyes"
Stimulation, "glowing eyes"
Salivary Glands
Inhibition, "dry mouth"
Stimulation, "mouth watering"
Sweat Glands
Stimulation, "skin wet, clammy"
Inhibition, Dry Skin
Peripheral Blood Vessels
Constriction, Pallor, Cool Skin
Dilation, Flushed Warm Skin
Piloereector Muscles
Hair Bristles, "goose flesh"
Smooth Skin
Bronchial Muscles
Dilation. Relaxation
Constriction, Tension
Heart Muscle
Excitation, Accelerated Pulse
Inhibition, Slowing Pulse
Digestive System
Inhibition of Peristalsis
Stimulation of Peristalsis
Adrenal
Stimulation of Secretion
Inhibition of Secretion
Urinary Bladder
Inhibition of Expulsion
Stimulation of Expulsion
Bladder Sphincter
Sphincter Closes, Inhibition
Sphincter Relaxes, Urination
Male Genital Penis
Flaccidity, Withdrawal
Enlargement, Erection
Male Genital Scrotum
Excites, Tightens
Inhibits, Relaxed
Female Genital
Constriction, Dryness
Expansion., Moist
The Endocrine System
The endocrine system is the collection of glands that secrete hormones into the
blood. The endocrine system works closely with the autonomic system, and when it
does, these are termed neuro-endocrine events.
Once secreted a hormone is active for a time even if the situation changes. Hormones
are almost always part of a cascade of physiological regulators. Therefore endocrine
dysregulation tends to result in 'roller coasters' or positive feedback loops.
In our culture endocrine disorders are epidemic. The disorders for each gland tend to
come in pairs: the overstimulated state and the exhausted state. It has been noted
that endocrine gland locations tend to correspond both to Reich's segments (and to
Hindu Chakras)
Endocrine Gland
Segment
Chakra
Pineal
Ocular
Crown
(Sahasrara)
Pituitary This is the middleman in the hypothalamus-pituitaryadrenal axis (HPA)
Oral
Brow (Anja)
Thyroid This is a general regulator of metabolism
Cervical
Throat
(Vishuddha)
Thymus It is probably very key that the thymus gland is active

in childhood and seems to cease function at puberty. It would
explain why childhood heartbreak impairs adult loving so
severely
Thoracic
Heart (Anahata)
Adrenal This is the most downstream member source of fight

or flight hormones, but also the source of cortisol, a regulator of
immune function and stress.
Diaphragmati
c
Solar Plexus
(Manipura)
Islets of Langerhans (in the pancreas) This is the source of

insulin. With rare exceptions diabetes is a disesase of insulin
resistence (at least until exhaustion. Treating elevated blood
sugars with pharmaceutical insulin where there is too much
insulin already of course increases dysregulation further.
Abdominal
Naval
(Svadhishthana)
Ovaries/Testes ( Segment) This is where sexual function is

regulated.
Pelvic
Genital
(Muladhara))
__________________________________________________________
Immune system
The immune system is a key component in 'psychosomatic' disorders which usually

have an auto-immune aspect. The immune system is a much slower system than both
the voluntary muscular system, and the autonomic nervous system. It responds over
days and weeks. Because of this, in our 'instant' culture, it is little trusted or relied
upon except when it 'goes wrong'
Though it is litle understood how exactly it occurs, the immune system seem to
communicates with the brain via the afferent fibers of the vagus in the viscera.
What is relevant in the Reich and Lowen tradition about the immune system is not
how it acts toward foreign bodies and micro-organisms, but how it acts towards one's
own body. Stress plays havoc with the 'economy' of cortisol, which is an important
regulator of immune response. In interpersonal matters, immune responses,
including allergies and auto-immune disorders might be thought of as last-ditch
efforts to address a problem (threat to integrity) that the voluntary and autonomic
systems have failed to solve. No one really seems to understand the immune system
or the mechanism of autoimmune disorders. Allopathic medicine treats autoimmune disorders with more cortisol-like drugs, or increasingly with potent
immunal suppressants, which may provide symptomatic relief, but are not reregulating, but further dysregulating.
Taking in the Environment
Perhaps the largest function that is not under conscious control is that which
constitutes the taking in of the environment. To the extent that this does not happen,
the person and the existence is said to be 'autistic'. As far as the experience of the
individual goes, taking in has three spheres:
Being Affected By: This is any change in the body that is caused by the
environment. People who are said to be 'sensitive' are probably affected by a lower
threshold of environmental input. Think of a cat that acts strangely before an
earthquake. At this level, awareness or understanding may or may not result.
Spirituality seems to have some root in a low threshold of being
affected. Armor seems to possibly distort 'being affected by" but not really block it.
Conscious Perception: This is the awareness by the ego of a bodily change caused
by the environment. It is the realm of sensation, emotion, and affect.-- see the work
of Antonio Damasio. Conscious perception may include most of 'being affected by"
or only a small part. Armor seems to function mainly by reducing conscious
perception.
Reality Testing: Conscious perception may or may not permit harmony with the
environment. This is because the ego and the adaptive self are at liberty to distort
conscious perception. Reality testing is not so much discerning a static set of facts as
it is the ego flexibility and openness to accept the the effects of nature and the
actually occurring human nature of others.
Self-possession seems to be the integration and optimization of all three categories
above. Aggression seems to decrease sensitivity (being affected by) but increase
reality testing. That is, a person with intact aggression is more usefully informed
about his or her environment, but they may miss subtle elements in the environment.
A person with less aggression may sense weaker forces in the environment, but be
less able to realistically address this. The result may be mysticism or psychosomatic
effects.
Denial
The opposite of taking in is denial. Taking in is the default biological mode; denial is
an active defense against that.
Shutdown: This is an effort to not 'be affected by' the environment. Of course this is
technically a response to stimuli, but it does work partially. That is because, in being
an invariant and non-interactive response, it denies the uniqueness or particular
qualities of the stimulus. Shutdown is mostly mediated by the dorsal vagal
system, but some people learn to purposefully 'zone out' when they feel
overwhelmed.
Not Knowing: There are two distinct 'prongs' to not

knowing. Repression: Emotions normally arise from inside the body into
consciousness. Simultaneously they rise to the surface for others to see. Not
uncommonly, however, the conscious perception is blocked by character armor.
Armor may also dampen the appearance on the surface of a person, but not as totally.
This is how the body usually 'tells the truth' about a person. Refusal: Sometimes,
external events that are related to the person in clear informational form may not be
taken into consciousness. This is the 'classic' psychological defense. Something that
mentally should be easily understood and retained simply isn't. Conscious perception
is blocked so unnaturally that it is clear that 'being affected by' has happened, and
that the effect is overwhelming. It usually happens about unwelcome news. "Never
knowing' is rare; more common is forgetting quickly, or a mixture of not knowing
and not accepting, as described below.
Not Accepting: When something is unwanted, it is common to accept its existence
intellectually, but not emotionally. It may be treated in discussion or thought as an
aberration or as a accident, when in fact it is a likely occurrence given conditions. The
logical conclusions and information that could be gleaned from the unwanted
occurrence are denied or minimized. In action, the situation is not addressed
realistically and effectively. This is the opposite of good reality testing.
Not Owning: This is when the personal implications of an event are denied, usually
because the called upon response is contrary to the person's self-image. Instead,
others are blamed for not taking care of the situation.
The Vestibular System
In the most narrow sense, the vestibular system is a part of the middle ear that
contains the uticle, the saccule, semicircular canals and the vestibular nuclei. It is
commonly known and undisputed that this system is involved in balance. What has
been demonstrated, but is less well known, is that the vestibular system is intimately
invoved with learning, change, and human relations. It also cannot escape notice,
that the vestibule is located together with hearing, in the ear, which is a sound and
vibrational energy collection system. There is a strong functional interrelationship
between hearing, balance, learning, movement, and social openness. The solar plexus
and proprioception receptors throughout the body are also related to vestibular
function.
The Reich and Lowen tradition speaks often of falling anxiety. Falling anxiety is
not a mental mistake but rather the experience of of a hampered
vestibular system, perhaps together with insecure footing. Vestibular
mediated signals cause the motor system to increase or decrease its signal to specific
muscles, especially in the core and neck. Chronically contracted and shortened core
and neck muscles are endemic in our society and a major part of armoring. This
chronic signal to contract is what might happen to brace oneself for the impact of a
fall. People with this type of contraction perhaps always feel they are actually falling
or about to fall. Needless to say the sensation is one of insecurity. This is hard to
address with 'gung-ho' style physical 'fitness' training because forced movement
stimulates more bracing which makes movement even less balanced, which causes
more input to brace, etc... Often a person with poor balance gives up exercise in
frustration.
Vestibular function also controls eye movements. One theory of near-sightedness is
that convergance and divergance of the eyes in early life is inappropriate for given
visual targets causing stresses that result in an increase of axial length of the eyeball.
If the vestibular system is hampered, eye movements (saccades) will be decreased,
which increases eye strain. Also if vestibular function cannot ensure balance, the
visual processing system will be recruited to handle balance, which distorts the role
vision plays in human contact.
Stress and Distress
Longish but Hopefully Worth it
At the outset, I wish to make a distinction between distress and stress. Distress is a
conclusion by the ego that something has gone wrong and that prospects are not
good. Stress is the 'wear and tear' and chronic changes in the body that
result from efforts of the body to maintain some type of homeostasis in
the face of a constant imbalancing force.
As an example, it has been shown that palm sweating (a sign
of sympathetic reaction) increases in proportion to crowding in a prison. However,
subjective distress does not correlate with crowding. Many inmates adapt mentally
but this is an ego adaptation--the body never totally adapts but rather copes
chronically.
Even if initially distress has been quelled, ongoing stress will at times make its way
back into distress. If the body is suffering enough, the ego will become
alarmed. However, we live in a culture that encourages the ego to
disregard internal signals if they conflict with the goals of the ego. Stress
does show up in cognitive and emotional functioning, but fundamentally it is a
biological state of the body. Of course distress usually adds to stress, because distress
usually triggers more sympathetic tone. Mainstream culture, as well as mainstream
psychology, endorses the mental maneuver of a reappraisal of stress as 'good.' While
this may work partially as described later, if over-relied upon this furthers the
dissociation between mind and body.
Hans Seyle famously demonstrated three stages of stress. The first stage is 'fight of
flight', this produces strong sympathetic nervous system activation and puts
adrenaline and nor-adrenaline into the blood. This produces the readiness to act
strongly (if not gracefully) and it renders, at least for a time, what the person had
wanted to do irrelevant and forgotten. It also renders irrelevant for a time those
building blocks of satisfaction and healthrest, eating, relaxation, affection, play and
wonder, etc... If the source is not removable, stress develops into the second or
chronic phase which is dominated by the secretion of cortisol. Cortisol is necessary
for life but has many harmful effects when present constantly in large
amounts. Cortisol is among other things, a numbing agent.
The third stage is depletion or exhaustion (especially of endocrine glands like the
adrenals and the thyroid). Seyle seemed to have conceptualized in terms of complete
exhaustion, but this seems to be less common than relative exhaustion (or 'fatigue')
in which adrenal response is possible but requires more stimulus. This results in a
'roller-coaster-y' experience, as the individual learns how to 'jump' his or her
adrenals in ways that make functioning possible but maintain the overall depleted
state. It is unclear if most chronic disease appears during the chronic or exhaustion
stage, but it is clear that almost all chronic disease involves inflammation.
In fact, stress is a biological state of alarm. Alarm is what a person must undergo to
be prepared to meet a threat (or challenge) when they are not otherwise ready. This
could be because the external situation is a very strong danger, or unwanted, but
even chosen challenges activate stress. The common element in all stress
seems to be struggle. A struggle could be chosen, or it could be imposed, and
while the difference is important in whether the experience is perceived as 'disstressful', the long-term effects on the body and the body's capacity to relax are
similar.
Struggle is a situation of the body. However in our modern day, the body is placed
into most of its struggles by the attaining mind. One could struggle with an actual
assailant or calamity, but what most people struggle with is the way things
are. Whenever a person decides things should not be the way they are, but cannot
easily change it, a struggle ensues, at least internally. A feeling of helplessness or
being trapped, does not decrease stress, it increases it. It does not matter how
accurately one perceives reality, stress is a struggle with what one perceives is the
case.
While all physical activity increases sympathetic tone, ideally the adrenal system is
not activated often, and when it is, the body and autonomic nervous system
rebalances when the exertion ends. This is one role of work breaks. However,
increasingly in our culture we do not allow that to happen. As a result, the very set
point for rebalancing shifts toward the sympathetic and vigilant. This is known as
allostasis. Allostasis is like running the engine of a car continuously so that one can
take off slightly quicker. It leads to greater wear and tear, and an actual decrease in
performance.
Though Wilhelm Reich considered the challenges a society poses to its members,
the major factor in illness, he did not work with a concept quite like the modern
concept of stress. Alexander Lowen only came to describe stress in the 80's, in his
book Love, Sex and the Heart, and in other writings. It could be that he was just
adopting then current terminology. However, it could be, and this is also my opinion,
that he was responding to the emergence of stress as a much greater contributor to
illness and emotional dis-ease because of changes in society.
While some stress is unavoidable, much stress is due to the character attitude. I do
not say mental attitude. A body that is in a more or less fixed state of
readiness for struggle will struggle more or less constantly. Character
attitudes include both cognitions and states of the body.
Another distinction needs to made between a challenge, and a struggle. A challenge
is a stimulus for growth, and without any challenges at all, both the human mind
and the human body deteriorates. Some activities are not very stressful for some,
and very stressful for others. For instance, someone that has good balance will only
struggle a little learning ice skating, and will not be unduly stressed, while someone
with poor balance will struggle greatly ( worsening balance further) and be very
stressed. This difference has been described as some people meeting the experience
as a challenge, and others meeting it as a threat. This characterization can be badly
misused, however, to imply that it is merely a mental label that makes the difference.
The difference is the presence or proximity of the bodily state mastery. When
someone attempts something that they are on the verge of, or have the component
skills for, there is first a slight stress, then a reduction of stress as the skill is gained.
When someone attempts something that they do not have the component skills for,
they get confused and frustrated, and praise and encouragement does not change
this.
How does one achieve mastery when one is a 'long way' away? It is possible but
usually only by addressing fundamental capacities in a measured way that avoids
triggering much struggle. Pilates, Feldenkreis, and the Alexander method are along
this line. True remedial work is not too popular in our fast-paced culture.
It is also true that some situations are very stressful for some but not for others. This
is because of differences in goals. For instance, one person goes to a party to be in
proximity with other people. Since that is a given, he or she is not stressed. Another
goes to a party to impress others. Since that is never certain and constantly 'wearing
off' it is very stressful, even if successful. Constantly trying to 'exceed' is a guarantee
of stress. Actually changing goals, and not just pretending to, requires more than
sleight-of-mind, it requires a change of heart, and possibly some surrender. Even if
circumstances can not be changed, an attitude of surrender can maintain integrity
without impossible stress. Surrender is an acceptance of the limits of the
will--will only intensifies stress. Moreover, this change in character attitude often
leads a person to choose circumstances differently. A person may leave the 'rat race,'
or may define success less competitively.
In addition, the chance to recover vegetatively is important after any challenge. The
amount of time that is needed is often underestimated in our culture. In past eras,
rest cures of several months were prescribed in a low stimulatory environment in
those cases where 'nervous exhaustion' was recognized. The terminology seems old
fashioned but the biology we have in the present day is the same. Another useful
concept under the heading of recovery is reset. An extended challenge or struggle, as
described above often leads to allostasis. The set point will not be reset without a
good rest and the undertaking of some parasympathetically-aligned practices. Rest in
this context does not imply complete idleness but does require a situation in which
one 'doesn't have to do anything.' Allowing recovery time seems to be waste except
that effectiveness is so enhanced that the results are qualitatively better for sure and
commonly even quantitatively better.
While care must be taken not to mistake a decrease in distress for a decrease in
stress, there are some modulators that decrease both actual bodily stress and
distress, and there is value in examining them, not so an individual can engage in
more stressful situations unnecessarily, but so that the societal aspect of stress can be
made clearer: Modulators, which are not complete antidotes, include:
Control. This is composed of real options or capacities to actually address the

stressor. Social privilege (greater options masquerading as greater capacity)
reduces stress greatly, perhaps because the disguise enhances the subjective
feeling of mastery. Privilege in a culture implies a disprivileged group with
fewer options and more stress. At times, more control is available than a
person admits, because effective options are available, but require acting
differently than one's self-image permits.
Illusion of Control: This is based on ignorance of the true state of affairs,

but very human, and works fine to bridge brief stressful situations that resolve
by themselves. For major life difficulties, it is very maladaptive.
Predictability: This one is tricky, because its preventive effect is based either
on having some control, as described above, or on there being a 'just-prior'
warning. Waiting helplessly for something bad but certain to happen, made
possible by predictability, increases stress.
Sociality: Asking for help, getting affection, touch, and simply being able to
'talk about it', decrease stress. Also, if the stressor is 'group-dystonic' one may
be able to feel they are not struggling alone.
Ventrality: (A word I just coined) This refers to a relative ventral vagal

shift and a greater development of the Social Engagement System thereby
made possible. Ventrality works to reduce stress directly since it is a brake on
the sympathetico-adrenal system, and it creates more options to address the
stressor in the world.
By the way, 'learned helplessness' is not so much a stress reducer, as it is an

'exhaustion' preventer. It is in fact, accompanied by a strongdorsal shift. With
learned helplessness, there is no obvious struggle that completely depletes the
person, but stress continues steadily.
It is true that in some endeavors, not accepting something leads to positive action to
change the situation. For instance not accepting that a river is uncrossable can lead
to building a bridge. However, in other areas, non-acceptance leads to futility, such
as for instance not accepting certain traits in a spouse or not accepting human
imperfection.
The basic external struggle is to outdo each other. This puts in place a permanent
competition, in which internally one part of the person struggles against another part
to conform to some image of special or lovable. Fighting for a principle need not be a
struggle, it can be a creative act, in which the actions are harmonized with the
feelings of the body.
A person capable of experiencing pleasure is not likely to be at war with the way
things are. They will act, out of creative feeling, and in fact often end up changing
things, but it won't be a desperate act. On the other hand, when it is difficult to
experience pleasure, the world will always seem wrong. One may then try to change it
but this leads to no real pleasure and so perhaps, if any thing does gets done, it seems
there are many more things to get done before one get rest. Constant struggle results,
and this struggle, because of the physiology of stress, blocks pleasure more, and a
vicious cycle results.
Hans Seyle, and stress researchers after him, have been troubled by the implication
of these findings. If stress is bad, then civilization, which is largely built of struggle,
might be considered some ill-gotten gain, that is, it comes with an unacknowledged
price, and an individual doesn't have a full choice whether he or she pays that price.
Seyle developed the idea of good stress. Good stress is stress undertaken in a good
cause.
But in doing this, he switched the focus of attention from inside to
outside. The biological, wear-and-tear parts of stress can never be considered good.
However, struggle could at times be justified by a good cause, could it not? Stress
then came to refer to the nature of the social challenge, and the body (as
usual) was dropped from awareness.
A great deal of struggle, (and therefore) stress is produced by trying to defend a selfimage. Threats to a self-image are inevitable but they can feel integrity- or even life
threatening if the ego is dependent on the image. These days people speak of stress
(that is, they complain of distress) mostly only when they believe they are not
'succeeding' in life. If they are 'succeeding', they do not complain, because the cost to
the body is outside awareness. That is, stress is present, but distress, at least
subjectively and for the time being, is not present. Lowen writes:*
The maintenance of a facade predisposes a person to somatic illness because it
imposes a constant stress upon the body. One tries to be what one isn't which
deforms the personality and the body. When the deformation (stress) persists long
enough, the internal structure of the body breaks down. It is not the facade that
breaks down but the tissues of the body. The facade is maintained even at the cost
of structural integrity.
What Seyle and others lacked as an alternative, but what Wilhelm Reich and
Alexander Lowen (and others) introduced, is the idea of effortlessness
and contact with others. Both reduce the internal struggle, while increasing social
effectiveness.
There are other cultures, for example, indigenous and 'latin' cultures which are
deemed lazy, however these cultures are probably just more in tune with the
desirability of avoiding chronic stress if one wants to live a life worth living. In these
cultures, people tend to act and cooperate not according to a rigid schedule but
rather when everyone involved 'feels ready' The feeling of readiness is the
opposite of stress. Readiness implies an acceptance of the present reality if not the
permanence of a situation.
Creative and productive activity does not require stress. Also, strictly repetitive
activity in a predictable situation, does not require stress (although it may have other
costs) Stress is not just being busy, although the emptiness of chronic stress often
leads us to over-fill our lives.
Our economy, though, depends on stress. That is, the majority of 'high-valueadded' jobs involve humans being vigilant, conscientious caretakers of complex
systems. Workers must always push and compete to keep 'margins' higher. The risk
of failure is ever-present. Even once one is quite knowledgeable in a job, it is still
necessary to on guard for small or novel threats to a plan or profitability. Education
has many of the same characteristics. It used to be the case that all schooling and
most business took the summer off. Now our culture considers that 'wasteful.' There
is no opportunity to recharge. Again, in the words of Lowen:*
We all know that the lifestyle of modern society creates enormous stress for its
members. The demands upon them are great, and often excessive .These demands
are, broadly speaking, to produce, to achieve, and to accomplish. The goals are
success power and fame. The attainment of these goals requires that the person
devote almost all his energy to this task. This is especially true since the culture is
very competitive. People who are committed to the goals of this culture have no place
in their lives for feelings. The drive for success requires the development of a rigid
personality structure based on the suppression of all feeling including sexuality. The
person becomes a doer, an achiever, a performer. In most families the training for
this lifestyle starts early in the life of the child.
So the concept 'good stress' makes little sense. Strong challenges that have a
reasonable expectation of reward can be handled by using only briefly and then
stopping using the adrenal system. A stronger sense of self-results. Chronic
treadmills of stress, however, even if they provide status or the means of comfort, will
'burn-out' the adrenals, even if someone believes they are 'getting somewhere in life'.
Mainstream healthcare providers act under stress all the time. It is in fact part of
their self-image that they struggle against 'what is' in order to change it. Also, they
loyally give to others despite how they are feeling, and postpone for very long periods
doing what they want to do. Therefore the suggestion that stress affects
health draws strong opposition, despite scientific evidence, because it is
counter-cultural, not only to the larger culture, but also and especially to
the helping profession culture.
Chronic stress also blunts the perception of acute threat, that is, the strong 'heartbased' signals of acute danger are lost because chronic stress has both weakened the
acute system, and desensitized the person to this type of signal. This can explain why
smart people with traumatic histories, though they are suspicious and cautious
overall, often fail to feel the risk in a specific person or situation.
*Stress and Illness: A Bioenergetic View (1980)
Shift Toward the Social Engagement System
The ventral vagal system is involved with most aspects of social contact
and pleasure. It guides eye contact, hearing, eating, speech, singing, nursing,
kissing, smiling, and some would say, direct heart to heart contact. Because of its role
in making contact between different people favorable, the ventral-vagal system is a
way of achieving personal safety, but it requires a moderate amount of actual safety
to develop or stay employed. That is why prolonged danger or stress, or
stress or danger early in life, tends to atrophy or impair the development
of, the ventral vagal system.
The Social Engagement System
The social engagement system is a two way interaction system (receptive and
expressive) based mainly in the eyes, ears, larynx, and mouth, but incorporating the
entire face and the torso above the diaphragm. All twelve cranial nerves participate
in the social and expressive functions. However, only four of these nerves have both
motor (efferent) and sensory (afferent) functions. They are the trigeminal, facial,
glossopharyngeal, and the vagus. Interestingly enough, it is also these four, along
with the oculomotor nerve, that carry most of the parasympathetic fibers involved in
the cranial nerve system! Cranial nerves are not merely divided by territory, but
actually overlap with complementary functions. Here is the system supporting
eating, smiling, suckling, kissing, baring the teeth, voice, breathing, and the heart!
The subtlety, interplay, and delicate overlap of the cranial nerve system not only is
wondrous to contemplate, but also very little understood. I am not saying it is
misunderstood, but rather that it has not been studied in proportion to other
structures of the body, despite being known about for more than a hundred years.
Eye contact, smiling, and tone of voice have always been understood to be pivotal in
good relationships. Without these sensory and motor connections, it seems that both
implicit and explicit understanding of what is happening socially will always remain
crude, even with very intelligent people. Without a functioning social engagement
situation, any modicum of hostility in a situation will seem exaggerated, and
ambiguous or neutral aspects will be perceived as negative--this is a sympathetic
shift at work. True empathy surely depends on the social engagement system.
Some of the motor components of the face and throat are under voluntary control
and some are not. That is why some behaviors, like a smile, can be only partly
simulated. The absence of the involuntary movement (for instance in a 'forced' smile)
has always been detectable by discerning people.
Typically, limitations on engaging socially have been attributed to never having
cognitively 'learned' or 'developed' social skills, or to losing such skills through brain
injury. However, here is an interesting example which does not fit that simple
explanation:
The social skills of men and women were tested both before entering medical school
and then again after residency training. Almost uniformly, subjects 'lost' social skills.
That is they were not only less inclined to be social, but that in an interpersonal
situation demanding skill they performed less sociably and effectively. The
investigators deplored the results but had no real explanation of why. A simple
answer suggests itself, informed by polyvagal theory. Because medical training is an
extremely 'doing' oriented undertaking 8-16 hours a day over years, it likely shifts
even rather ventral vagally oriented people into a sympathetic shift, which is
innately less sociable.
We intuitively understand the idea of 'defensiveness.' Defensiveness is the
inability to employ the social engagement system when a social challenge
arises. Instead, a sympathetically-mediated response is evoked that seems overdone
and out of place. Defensiveness as a trait is famous for bringing on the very dislike
that seems to justify it but which was not there in the first place. Usually
defensiveness is viewed as a problem that arises because of a complete misjudgment
of the benign as threatening. This can happen. But defensiveness often arises in
response to an actual social threat that is just a small part of the overall situation. In
a sympathetically-shifted person, the threat becomes of survival significance and
activates a fight-or-flight response. Cognitive distortions are just part and parcel of
that. But if the social engagement system is available, a phenomenon I would like to
call ventral discrimination occurs, in which a finely nuanced response is possible
depending on the severity of the threat.
It is said that fashion models are picked for bone structure in the face, because unlike
other aspects of attractiveness, they cannot be faked with cosmetics or camera tricks.
Facial bones develop guided by the state of the social engagement system, with
prominent or forward cheeks seen as most attractive, friendly or approachable.
The currently fashionable concept of emotional intelligence seems to
describe simply the relative development of the social engagement
system. Since it is not either a fund of knowledge, or even an intellectual skill,
emotional intelligence quite notoriously cannot be taught. (Therefore, using the word
intelligence here, even metaphorically, seems slightly misleading.)
Autonomic Flexibility
The self-regulation goal for the autonomic system is not any specific point of arousal
along the parasympathetic-sympathetic continuum. Rather the goal is flexibility,
range, and versatility. Some situations require high parasympathetic tone
(digesting), some high sympathetic tone (chopping wood), and some both
simultaneously (play, sex). At best, the autonomic system interacts with the
environment for best adaptation to present circumstances. Perhaps the hallmark
of our culture is that autonomic states of a person tend not to reflect the
present situation but reflect, rather invariably, the persistent autonomic
set-point of that person. The autonomic state is not adjusted dynamically but
rather is durable like a personality trait. Subjectively then, all situations becomes the
same except superficially.
The Vagal, or 'Cruising' Brake
The ventral vagal nervous system can act like a very precise intensity controller for
arousal and doing. In this function, it affects more than the heart but its effect on the
heart is very illustrative. The ventral vagal keeps the heart rate well below its intrinsic
rate of the pacemaker. This means that a decrease in the ventral vagal slowing frees
up energy for activity in a prompt and precise way. This 'brake' once lifted can be
reapplied just as promptly and precisely. This makes for fluid shifting and balance
between goal related activity and social activity.
If it was not for the vagal brake, then an increase in activity or goal related behavior
would require an increase in the firing of the sympathetic-adrenal system. The
downside of this is that the sympathetic system, partly because it uses the release of
'adrenaline' tends to be an all or none system rather than a finely tuned system.
Adrenaline cannot be retrieved promptly once it is released. This makes it hard to
shift gears. There are many people who have a hard time shifting gears once they
have become alarmed, even if shortly afterwards, information comes that indicates it
was a false alarm. This is because chemicals have 'flooded' the body. This state has
long been intuitively referred to in psychology as flooded for that reason and it is
understood it is impossible to shift quickly.
Bedroom Eyes
The eyelids give an important clue as to autonomic balance. The eyelids are raised by
two muscles: the levator palpebrae superioris, and the superior tarsal muscle. The
levator is innervated by the third cranial nerve (parasympathetic) and has the main
job of keeping the eyes open. The superior tarsal muscle is innervated by the
sympathetic system and has the role of scrunching the eyelid up further, as in alarm
or surprise. This wide eyed look is rather the norm these days. Where there is good
autonomic balance, in a state of relaxation, the eyelid is lower but not closed. After
satisfying sex, in the relaxation that ensues, the eyelids are sometimes noted to be
lower, hence the term 'bedroom eyes.' Such eyes, whether sex has been recent or not
indicate the capacity for pleasure.
'Vagal Reactors'
When autonomic response to interpersonal situations is studied in the lab, cruelty,
and attempts to dominate, however ego-syntonic, are accompanied by a strong
sympathetic discharge. With a few rare individuals, however, a strong
parasympathetic response is seen, along with a disconnect from the left pre-frontal
lobe. These individuals are known as vagal reactors (or slangily, "cobras"). It seems
that when the social meaning of behavior is disconnected from the autonomic
response, any successful behavior or mastery elicits a parasympathetic response. The
problem is not with the autonomic system of course, but with the disconnect.
Play
Play physiologically is only possible when both the ventral-vagal (social engagement)
system and the sympathetic (doing) system are simultaneously activated. This allows
play to be both adventurous and active, and also very social. If someone is say
accidentally hit with an elbow during play, they will not get (very) upset if the ventral
vagal tone is strong, but they will get very upset, involuntarily, if the ventral vagal
tone is weak, even if intellectually, they 'know better.'
Things That Contribute to Ventral Vagal Shift
Contribut
Mechanism
or
Eye
Contact*
The 'truth' of a person's emotional and energy state is conveyed in

the eyes.
Touch*
Touch releases oxytocin, and perhaps transfers something person to

person.
Human
Voice*
The voice of another will be comforting for many, but for others may
be experienced as a threat.
Crying
Crying is an outpouring through all ventral vagal outlets--eyes, lips,

jaw, voicebox, lungs, and belly.
Listening
Listening is more than taking in the minimum information

necessary to neutralize a threat, it requires an attunement.
Music
To appreciate music ( at least classical)
The Sun
Sunbathing has been practiced for centuries. All energy on earth

comes from the sun.
Moderate
Exercise
Can discharge tension without inducing a state of struggle.
Warmth
Relaxes muscles and promotes peripheral vaso-dilation
Functiona
l
This is basically slow, easy abdominal breathing
Breathing
Closing
Eyes
Most threats are perceived by vision. A person that is always vigilant

for threats has trouble closing the eyes. Also if vestibular function is
diminished, the eyes are employed in compensating for poor
balance.
Lengtheni
ng
Muscles
tense muscles are both a cause and a result of sympathetic

activation. Lengthening muscles seems to be a major method of
Hatha yoga
Vomiting
or
Gagging
This stimulates the vagus directly. This is part of the inducement of

bulimia, throwing up produces relaxation, especially if there is no
sickness or nausea causing it. This has been a traditional
bioenergetic exercise.
Screamin
g or
Wailing
Screaming produces vibrations which help relieve the tension.

Screaming is a sign of distress to others, but it prevents the distress
from becoming locked in the body. It is important not to 'growl' in
low tones. Low tones come from tensing the vocal cords. Low tones
are a sign of aggression to others and lead to hoarseness. Rather it is
preferable to scream in high tones--"like a fire engine" as Alexander
Lowen would say.
Moving
Water
Unknown. One unsubstantiated theory is that moving water reduces

ions.
Sex and
Masturba
tion
Sexual arousal is dependent on a parasympathetic shift. However,

ejaculation and climax call upon the sympathetic, so frequent
quickly completed activity may not have much positive effect.
Falling
Asleep
Falling asleep is a letting go of goals, of doing, and of control. Taking

naps at midday is more than a way to get extra hours of sleep--it is a
way to double one's opportunities to fall asleep. Sometimes one is
too exhausted to fall asleep. That is the muscles are depleted of
energy and unable to lengthen and relax. Falling asleep is promoted
when the muscles have been used that day but have recovered
enough to be relaxed.
Honest
Anger
Anger send energy and blood to the face. Anger (not rage) probably
involves simultaneous increase in both ventral
vagal and sympathetic tone (which is true also of play, and sexual
arousal)
Hypnotic
There is a reason that almost all trance induction has in common
Trance
suggestions about warmth, sleepiness, and heaviness. These are the

main feelings of parasympathetic dominance
Rhythmic
Movemen
t
Dance is the most common example.
Avoiding
Deadlines
Schedules and deadlines are a man made threat that make doing
something into a survival behavior. Doing things out of direct desire
or a sense of readiness allows the body to work at its own pace and
rhythm.
Familiar
Rituals
This is classical conditioning. If the familiar place or activity has

been associated with good feelings, deliberately doing the activity or
going to that place brings good (relaxed) feelings by association.
*The starred items in this table can be tricky in that they depend on a certain capacity
for social engagement already, in order to have the effect of enhancing that capacity.
Where ventral vagal 'tone' is very low, these items tend to promote either sympathetic
or dorsal shift.
Sympathetic Shift
The sympathetic branches of the autonomic nervous system, together with the
neuro-endocrine system (mostly thyroid and adrenals), are the 'doing system' The
body shifts toward the sympathetic, the more doing that has to be done. More
prominently, the sympathetic is also the 'fight or flight system' for emergencies.
Partly because it has an emergency function, and partly because of its chemical
aspect (catecholamine release) it is an all-or-none, global system. This is in
distinction to the parasympathetic system, which can be active on a local basis,
presumably because rest and relaxation is never an emergency.
Besides 'doing', the sympathetic nervous system is activated by threat or
struggling. We have created a culture in which struggling to find a 'place in
the world' and the very real threat of not finding such a place is the
norm. These social threats are usually ones in which fighting or flying is
'inappropriate or punished. This is a critical point, because the physical activity of
flying or fighting, if it happens, and if it is effective and comes to a conclusion, will
discharge the sympathetic arousal and balance will return to the autonomic nervous
system.
There is another non-fighting non-fleeing defense against milder social threats,
the Social Engagement System (SES) The SES also acts as a 'vagal brake' that
allows for somewhat more doing but without a full-fledged fight or flight response.
It is useful to speak both of an acute and a chronic sympathetic shift. An
acute shift happens when effort is exerted, or a novelty or challenge is encountered,
and absent a vagal brake, a strong fight or flight response occurs including
chemically. This response cannot shift quickly at all, and so social give and take is
disastrously affected. Perhaps everyone knows someone is obviously well-intentioned
but who seems to get into disputes or upsets with other people frequently but with
seemingly little ability to change the pattern. This is an acute shift.
A chronic sympathetic shift is constituted by a shift in the 'thermostat' of the
autonomic nervous system toward sympathetic arousal. Chronic sympathetic
shift arises as a permanent state largely because 1) arousal is almost
continuous and 2) action is stifled. Often a person is thought 'better-mannered'
the more impulses he or she stifles. The sympathetic nervous system is activated for a
long time, and certain features can become fixed. The balance point between ventral
vagal parasympathetic and sympathetic shifts toward the sympathetic. This may
occur with 'the help' of the dorsal vagal center, which counterbalances the arousal
effects of sympathetic shift without counter-balancing the 'contraction' effects. This
is an example of 'allostasis' in which a balancing or 'homeostatic' system moves the
target range in one direction. under constant stress.
Wilhelm Reich found that a healthy human, depending upon circumstances, is

capable of experiencing full excitation of the ventral vagal parasympathetic
nervous system, which allows for pleasure. However, people that have grown up in
and continue to live in painful and repressive social conditions may suffer from
chronic over-stimulation of the sympathetic nervous system--and gradually become
incapable of full pleasurable parasympathetic excitation. If the 'freeze' or dorsal vagal
system comes into play, it may counterbalance the effects of the sympathetic
overdrive in a way but not in a completely protective way in the long run. This also
leads to an eventual depletion of the neuro-endocrine system especially in the
thyroid and adrenal glands. (Alexander Lowen thought that the depletion of these
two glands was usually concurrent with neck and low back pain, which are endemic
in our culture). Chronic, seemingly fixed, imbalance toward sympathetic response
may be referred to sympathetic shift. (or more technically, sympatheticotonia).
Of course plainly traumatic situations are wide-spread and almost universal. But as
stated above, in modern life, many frequent, everyday 'binds' 'trap' a
person in a struggle with no way to conclude the situation promptly or
definitely. This is especially the situation for children, lower status people in social
situations, and many work situations. Moreover, constantly trying to achieve
or perform can and often is an endless source of struggle.
Stephen Porges has developed an objective measure of autonomic tone based on
respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) of the heart. This is not yet in clinical use in
healing.
Sympathetic shift comes to involve mostly the physical effects that have dropped out
of awareness. A person with sympathetic shift looks 'over-controlled' and may or may
not act "hyper". The more mental conscious state of being engaged in fight or flight is
known as 'high- (or hyper-) arousal', and may or may not accompany
sympathetic shift. In our culture sympathetic shift is almost universal. Some aspects
are listed below.
'Physical Signs' of Chronic Sympathetic Shift
Manifestati
Possible Mechanism
ons
Dry Eyes
Lacrimal glands are parasympathetic. this will interfere with

vision, and of course, crying.
Myopia
the exact mechanism is uncertain, but possibly when young wide

pupils make vision blurry and then great effort to see leads to eyes
growing too long front to back.
Large
Pupils
Direct sympathetic stimulation. Poorer visual acuity but wider

field of detection
Poor
Peripheral
Vision
This is otherwise known as 'tunnel-vision'.
Rapid
Shallow
Breathing
Breathing occurs high in the chest, with small tidal volume.

Chronic hyperventilation leads to chronic hypoxic feeling at tissue
level due to Bohr effect.
Calcium Ion
Dysregulati
on
Chronic hyperventilation raises blood pH but the body must
Tone
Deafness
The inner ear has two small but important muscles that 'tune'
hearing
Poor
Balance
Poor balance comes from tight muscles and malalignment, and

dysfunction of the vestibular system
Fear of
Falling
From tight feet and hips and weakened vestibular system
Fear of
Heights
This derives from a fear of falling
Fear of
Closing
Eyes
Perhaps from 1) poor vestibular function that forces the eyes to

take over the function of balance, 2) vigilance for threats in the
immediate environment
High Blood
Pressure
Direct sympathetic effect on the vascular system
Cardiovascu
lar and
Cerebrovasc
ular Disease
Oxidative stress damages blood vessel walls (endothelium)

Sympathetic shift increases clotting tendency. Clots form readily
on the damaged endothelium. High insulin levels are also a factor.
Muscle
Tightness
The sympathetic system stimulates gamma motor units in the

muscle spindles that regulate muscle tension.
Clumsiness
From poor balance, muscle tightness, and insensitivity
Joint
stiffness
From chronic muscle shortening which can also cause

osteoarthritis
Poor Sleep
Muscle tension produces racing thoughts and inability to 'let go'
Low Body
Awareness
The stronger the muscle contraction, the less the sensory

information
'Cold Sweat'
Direct effect of sympathetic innervation
Pale Skin
Constriction of surface blood flow
Dry Skin
From poor turgor and constriction of peripheral blood flow.
Erectile
Dysfunction
Tumescence is a parasympathetic function
Premature
Ejaculation
The sympathetic system manages ejaculation, if up-regulated it

reacts before much sexual tension can accumulate.
Female
Anorgasmia
Sympathetic dominance prevents or delays sexual arousal and

sufficient tensioning in the pelvis and genitalia.
Cold Hands
and Feet
Blood circulation does not reach the surface
AutoImmune
Disease
This is an area that is little understood. One possibility is that

adrenal depletion (below) results in decreased modulation of the
immune system.
Thyroid
Depletion
The thyroid regulates the basic 'speed' of metabolism. Because of

the complexity of the system, standard measures of thyroid
adequacy may be misleading.
Adrenal
Depletion
Living by the will firsts exhausts the adrenal, which then makes
the will paramount because only by the will can one 'get going.'
This is also known as 'adrenal fatigue' which for some reason is a
very controversial idea to mainstream healthcare, perhaps because
it is so widespread it appears normative
Diabetes
Mellitus
Overuse of cortisol and insulin in stressful and will-based living

leads to burnout in the pancreas and up-regulation of insulin
receptors.
Difficulty
Swallowing
Swallowing requires the cooperation and coordination of the

voluntary (mouth and tongue) and ventral vagal system ( pharynx,
esophagus, sphincters) Will based living may lead to a mismatch

between the voluntary and involuntary.
Constipatio
n
Sympathetic tone directly slows intestinal function. Western

medicine only recognizes constipation when bowel movements fall
behind intake and there is an unsustainable accumulation.
However, sluggish bowels and slow transit time has many
implications for health and emotional functioning.
Fidgeting
Fidgeting has long been associated with being 'up-tight.' Possibly

simply a result of muscle tension.
Picking and
Scratching
The picking function of the brain seems stimulated. This is greatly

exaggerated when people use chemical stimulants like
methamphetamine or cocaine.
Psychological Signs of Sympathetic Shift

Manifestation Mechanism
Sense of
urgency
This is appropriate to an emergency. Sympathetic shift makes

all life into an emergency
Heightened
sense of
threat
The capacity of others to harm becomes relevant, rather than

their desire to harm.
Inability to
relax
Relaxation requires the capacity to shift into parasympathetic

tone.
Continuous
urge to do
This is similar to a sense of urgency
Need to
control
situations
In a state of high arousal and flight-or-flight, control (or the

illusion of control) reduces anxiety somewhat, but it produces a
great deal of interpersonal strife that perpetuates the high
arousal.
Seeks to avoid
surprises
Continuous analysis of what might or could go wrong takes the

fun and the present out of everything.
Impatience
If others are more relaxed, needless conflict is created
Endgaining
When it feels like survival is at stake, 'how' something is done is

unimportant
Loss of the
'whole'
The loss of the sense of the whole, or 'gestalt'
Irritability
This is the tendency to become upset quickly and from

seemingly small provocations. Perhaps it derives from a
constant physiological state of upset that is masked by a veneer
of calm.
Rage
'Kindling' occurs where limbic centers especially the amygdala

becomes hair trigger. Self protective impulses are distorted, and
connection becomes impossible. Rage is usually accompanied by
tunnel vision, tight,spastic, clumsy muscles, and dissociation
from the body. Physical violence is possible and may be an
attempt to overcome the physical symptoms.
Humorlessnes
s
Perhaps because laughing involves the face (ventral vagal) and

belly.
Difficulty
accepting
influence
from others
Others are seen as a threat to one's integrity, not an aid to it.
Things that Contribute to Sympathetic Shift
Contributor Mechanism
Chronic
Danger and
Fear
This is the archetypical cause of sympathetic shift. It is important

to remember that in infancy and early childhood (when the
template for autonomic functioning is developing) many more
things are life-threatening, including abandonment.
Chronic
Doing
Even without conscious distress, or even when one believes they

are succeeding, doing stimulates the sympathetic.
Repressed
Anger
This is an a relationship that Alexander Lowen dealt with

extensively. The connections may be complex. At any rate, holding
anger back requires strong muscle contraction (in fact, it is
commonly assumed that this muscle contraction 'is' the anger )
Dysfunction
al Breathing
This is an entire topic in itself, but to put it briefly, 'high in the

shoulder' breathing, rapid breathing, shallow breathing, gaspy
breathing, cutting off exhalations, and holding the breath after
inhalation all contribute to sympathetic shift.
Stimulant
Drugs
Caffeine, nicotine, cocaine, methamphetamines, etc
Cold
Blood is shunted away from skin to preserve heat, and muscles

may contract in shivers. It is not an accident that 'cold' is also an
adjective used to describe people with little friendliness.
Aerobic
Exercise
Prolonged strenuous exercise is the deliberate creating of struggle

and hypoxia. Sympathetic tone is increased to meet the challenge.
The capacity to oxygenate the blood will increase to point, but may
plateau quickly due to less than optimal breathing patterns. In
twenty minutes endorphins kick in. Endorphins provide good
feelings but they due not change the condition of the body.
Chronic
Opiate Use
The sympathetic system up-regulates to deal with the sedating

effects (This is by no means the only dysregulating effect of
chronic opiate use)
Chronic
Alcohol Use
The sympathetic system up-regulates to deal with the sedating

effects (This is by no means the only dysregulating effect of
chronic alcohol use)
Constant
Novelty
Though novelty provides excitement that is usually deemed

positive, it often provides no pathway or time for discharge of this
excitement. Since novelty is a sales strategy also, in modern life we
are bombarded by it.
High
Stimulation
There seems to an escalation in society to get people's attention.

Loud sounds, flashing lights, bright lights, and in video quick
changes in scenes, and special effects stimulate the sympathetic.
Habit of
Judging
Judging is focused on the concepts of good or bad, and so keeps

life in an adversarial framework.
The Dorsal Vagal Shift, or the Frozen Response
Of the three part autonomic nervous system, the 'oldest' is the

unmyelinated dorsal vagal part of the parasympathetic nervous system. It regulates
mostly visceral organs below the diaphragm, such as the bladder and bowel, but it
connects to the heart and lungs as well. It consists mostly of unmyelinated fibers, so
it's response is the slowest. Its overall tendency is toward shut-down or
freezing. When it comes to regulating human behavior, it can be thought
of as a crude instrument. However, constant sympathetic arousal is often
unsustainable or ineffective. Therefore a dorsal vagal shift is very common in modern
life, but often unrecognized, because to others it can appear quite erroneously as
being well-behaved or peaceful.
The Dorsal, or 'Emergency' Brake
The dorsal brake is in contrast to the (ventral) vagal brake. In very different
species, such as reptiles, the dorsal vagal system is responsible for the 'dive reflex'
and immobilization as a defense (playing dead). In humans, such defenses are less
useful, but they exist still. When sympathetic tone drives the body in an
unsustainable way, physiology demands some respite and it often comes
in the form of shut-down. An example is sudden death in athletes, described
below.
Sudden Death During Exercise
Strenuous exercise will both increase the sympathetic tone and minimize the fine
tuned ventral vagal brake. However it will also produce endorphins which will
disguise the nature of autonomic situation. Sudden death while exercising seems to
be related to 1) exercise is taken over a fairly long period maximizing sympathetic
tone and decreasing vagal brake, 2) the exerciser ignores sensations of distress
either with the aid of endorphins or will based goals or pressure from a coach or from
competition 2) the dorsal emergency brake slams on causing cardiac arrest.
Signs of Dorsal Shift
Manifestati
Mechanism
on
Freezing
This term is used when someone doesn't move. But the term
implies also a drop in temperature. This is probably more than the
peripheral vasoconstriction of sympathetic shift, it possibly
represents a decrease in the production of body heat
Speechlessn
ess
The organs of speech, run by the ventral vagal system seem unable
to co-ordinate when the dorsal vagal system is strongly dominant.
Dissociatio
n
This is possibly just the psychological correlate of freezing. With

no movement thought and perception loses its anchor in the body
and the here and now.
Involuntary
Defecation
This is in extreme distress.
Involuntary
Urination
This is in extreme distress.
Fainting
Plain fainting is also known as vaso-vagal syndrome. While there

is a large danger of injury from an unprotected fall, people who
faint often feel fine afterwards. Fainting may work as an
autonomic reset.
Shock
Shock is circulatory collapse. It is life threatening. We also speak

of emotional shock from hearing or witnessing something, it may
be akin to fainting. Shock is usually notable for speechlessness.
Sense of
Effort
The muscles and limbs feel heavy
High Arousal and Vigilance
High arousal is a mental trait, but it strongly drives the body. High arousal always
exists with sympathetic shift but sympathetic shift does not always exist with high
arousal. High arousal is different than 'flight or fight' in that it is a
conscious readiness for a threat, as opposed to an acute or chronic response to a
threat. High arousal probably has to do with a 'hot' amygdala in the limbic system.
The amygdala influences the thinking cortex much more than the other way around,
so it is not effective to try to lower arousal by cognitive means. Rather, the amygdala
is best cooled from 'below' by autonomic re-regulation.
The physiology of arousal produces the phenomenology of threat. High
arousal produces a strong vigilance and distrust about other people and situations.
High arousal causes any frustration to be experienced as a major betrayal, or
evidence of the bad intentions of others. Neutral transactions often escalate into
upset and dispute when one or more of the participants has high arousal. Past a
threshold, hig arrousal is self-perpetuating. One sign of high arousal is a tendency to
raise the voice often. Another sign is a tendency to try to control situations (with the
sincere intent of benefiting everyone, but with the inevitable result of conflict).
A person with high arousal is experienced by others as intense. Often the high
arousal is ego dystonic, and is part of an ideology of life that emphasizes danger,
threat, and betrayal. High arousal seems to derive from prolonged exposure to active
danger--abuse, chaotic upbringing, sexual abuse, extensive medical interventions,
etc... People with high arousal have not been traditional psychotherapy clients
because high arousal usually defeats consistent routines, especially in the context of a
relationship. Moreover, serious talk almost always leads to flooding if high arousal
is present. Think of the metaphor of a radio. If different emotions are the different
types of music played on different stations, and arousal is the volume dial, then high
arousal is like turning the sound on a radio way up--any emotion will be distorted
and painful. Work on better reception and new stations is pointless until the volume
gets turned down.
That is why bodywork is excellent for high arousal. Because it works from the
'bottom up,' from the body to the brainstem then the limbic system, it can be
soothing in a way that attempts at soothing talk cannot be. However, at least four
obstacles present themselves. First, It is hard to do much body work with a
distrustful person. They may initially agree, but small instructions to do something
differently can be received defensively since it may seem someone else is trying to
control. Second, a method that does not provide quick results runs up against the
sense of urgency that high arousal imposes. Third, high arousal produces an intense
other focus and external focus. People with high arousal want to focus on the people
and situations that seem to be the difficulty. The self-focus that most bodywork is
organized around is resisted. Fourth, being told what to do with the body is
experienced as especially intrusive, even more so if the format is less permissive and
includes a lot of correction.
As a culture we have become very threat-centric. This can represent an increase in
the average level of arousal. It skews community life because anything in the form of
a threat is responded to strongly, taking resources and attention away from nurture.
The 'opportunity costs' of hunting threats are cast aside.
The Purpose of Vacations
Modern civilized life places a lot of pressures and demands on people young and old.
Adapting to long periods of conformity and alertness as required in work and school
causes everyone to tighten up in some respect. Crowded cities and competitive
aspects of social relations also contribute. The 'set point' of the autonomic system is
moved toward the sympathetic (or fight and flight) and away from the
parasympathetic (pleasure and rest). Vacations are needed to both recover and reset.
The amount of time that is needed to recover is often underestimated. The set point
will not be reset without a good rest and the undertaking of some
parasympathetically-aligned practices. Rest in this context does not imply complete
idleness but does require a situation in which one 'doesn't have to do anything.'
During the rise of cities and industry in the last few centuries, this was recognized,
and vacations became a deliberate undertaking. Vacations have traditionally been
many weeks long. That is because people have known that it takes that long before
they have felt their bodies ''reset.' A nights sleep, even if judged good, simply does not
reset the body in the same way. An old fashioned Sunday or Sabbath, where nothing
much competitive could or should be done, did function as a 'mini' vacation.
However researchers have described a 'three-day effect'--it takes three days off for
the body to start to reset. Most people notice that after a three day weekend it seem
much harder to 'get back into routine.'
As people lost touch with their bodies, the purpose of vacations was lost. Vacations
started to become consumption of interesting experience. They became short,
hurried, expensive, and competitive--in other words, useless for their original
purpose. With cell phones, email, satellite television, etc.. it is less possible to 'get
away' from sympathetic and ego stimulation.
All schools, including colleges, used to be in recess during summer. It used to be
expected that commerce would slow and nearly stop during the summer. Courts
recessed during the summer. In the last few decades that has begun to be seen as
'wasteful'. What is not understood is that human creativity will be much greater after
a true vacation. Children especially need unstructured vacations from school.
Money may not buy happiness but it can buy recovery time (if one is wise enough to
purchase it.) Economic disadvantage may be self-perpetuating in that social
gracefulness can't take hold if one is struggling 'to get ahead.'
Flooding
Flooding is a loss in homeostasis in the vegetative systems, especially autonomic and

endocrine, in response to a perceived threat or unfavorable event. It causes a
disruption of self-regulation and self-awareness. There is a loss of connection
between the prefrontal cortex and limbic centers (and through limbic centers, lower
centers). Behavioral at this time cannot be unified, and is often chaotic or crudely
instictual. Flooding is often coupled with the sympathetic fight or flight response. It
can also be coupled with the dorsal vagal 'freeze' response but this manifestation is
less recognized because the outward behavior is less disruptive.
It is a dissociative state, and memories of this time will never be clear. The subjective
and behavioral manifestation of flooding are sometimes termed 'upset'. Flooding is a
threshhold phenomenon. Once the threshold is reached the state cannot be quickly
reversed.
Paradoxically, during flooding there is often an intense desire to fix problems but
simultaneously, a catastrophic impairment of problem solving abilities. Logic is
impaired. All agreement or understandings previously in place will not be
operable. When flooding is recognized, all discussion, negotiation,
analysis, etc... should cease because it just prolongs the state. Instead,
soothing activity should begin at once. Rage is a flooded state. People, when not
flooded tend not to recognize or own their actions performed a flooded state, and
arguing about this tends to become a secondary red-herring that obscures basic
conflicts that lead to the upset in the first place
Conditioning
Wise people have always understood conditioning as part of human

functioning. Ivan Pavlov made explicit the elements and workings of conditioning,
which is a true physiological process. Later behavioralists wished to extend the idea
of conditioning into goal oriented manipulation, and this they termed 'operant
conditioning.' and so physiological conditioning got termed 'classical conditioning' to
avoid confusion. Most of this page is about classical conditioning, with a discussion
of operant conditioning at the end.
Classical conditioning is the association of sensory information with vegetative
activity, usually autonomic or endocrine. That is, basic regulatory activity of the
animal body can come to 'have a jump start' when certain originally neutral stimuli
become 'conditioned' as signals of physiologically important events, such as food,
sex, or danger. .
The popular 'trope' of conditioning involves salivation and food. For instance food in
the mouth produces salivation and the flow of gastric juices. This is not conditioning
but a hardwired physiological reflex. Because it is not conditioned, the food is
considered an unconditioned stimulus and the flow of secretions is considered
the unconditioned reflex. If a sensory stimulus like a 'bell sound' is presented
consistently before the food is given, salivation and gastric secretion starts to initiate
at the sound. Thus the sound becomes the conditioned stimulus. The salivation and
secretion is the same reflex but because it has become linked to a special condition, it
is now termed the conditioned reflex.
Conditioning requires constant renewal to be active. If the unconditioned stimulus is
not continued, the conditioned stimulus stops working. However, the conditioning is
dormant and can be re-established very quickly. This is probably why if there is a
relapse in addictive behavior, the process seems to take off right where it 'left off,'
even after a lengthy remission.
The head start provided for the vegetative systems by conditioning is valuable
because these systems are not instant. Where the association is to pleasure,
expansion begins, where the association is to pain, contraction starts. Motor activity
can be conditioned, but only movements that reach out to receive pleasure or brace
for pain.
Classical conditioning is often confused with training. Training is one organism
getting another organism to perform complex behavior on
command. Training often uses classical conditioning but bridges individual
conditioned responses with the activity of the trainer. Conditioning cannot be built
upon endlessly to create long chains of performance. Human motivation is complex.
Animals can be trained to perform instrumental acts using elements of conditioning
but this is not really the same as 'classic' conditioning Training humans involuntarily
to perform specific tasks is largely a myth. Brainwashing, if it exists, is largely an

amalgam of influence techniques in which snippets of conditioning may play a part.
Conditioning has nothing to do with cognition. Conditioning is always unconscious
and vegetative. Conscious associations are separate entities which may be of interest
in human affairs, but they do not constitute conditioning. An astute person may be
aware of a conditioned response but that awareness is not itself the conditioning.
Conditioning can affect beliefs as people try to develop explanations for what is
happening to their bodies.
Wise people have always used conditioning to enhance pleasure and ease.
Conditioning can be used to set a mood or emotional tone. Conditioning is a major
element in ritual.
Random events can conspire to produce some suffering through 'inadvertent'
conditioned responses. What is sometimes problematical is that certain situations,
people or places become associated with pleasure or pain incorrectly. Where the
association is to danger, this is the trauma response.
Operant Conditioning
Classical conditioning is oriented around cues, or what happens before. Operant
conditioning as a construct is concerned withconsequences, or what happens after.
There are three main elements:
Relief This is the condition where something painful is happening, and if an

action is taken, the painful condition will cease. This is called negative
reinforcement
Reward This is the condition where if an action is taken something is given

that is supposed to produce pleasure. This is also called positive reenforcement.
Punishment. This is the condition in which if an unwanted action is taken

and response is provided that is meant to produce pain.
There is no question that the three elements above affect motivation, in humans and
other animals. There is a natural reach toward pleasure and withdrawal from pain,
However, the above three elements do not synergistically or even in an additive way
work with other motivators like pride, creativity, love, etc ...Reward and punishment
are not the same as pleasure and pain because humans one may be sated, or two, will
accept pain or reject pleasure to maintain a sense of integrity. Although there is an
idea of natural consequences acting as 're-inforcers' there is no clear distinction
between these and contrived elements. The Reich and Lowen tradition makes
operant conditioning irrelevant.
Approach-Avoidance Conflict
An approach-avoidance conflict is a special and compound case of conditioning. It

exists when the same condition has become a conditioned stimulus for both pleasure
(approach) and pain (avoidance). In human affairs it is usually other people that
become this type of stimulus. This is at root a biological dilemma that affects the
arousal and autonomic systems. There are four elememnts that will be active
simultaneously: the approach conditioning, the inhibition of the approach
conditioning. the avoidance conditioning, and inhibition of the avoidance
conditioning. This is never a stable situation, it relies on precariously
balancing and constant management of one's exposure to the stimulus.
When the balance begins to fail great upset usually erupt in the emotional
equillibrium. Where approach-avoidance conflicts exist, arousal is usually kept high.
This is more than a mixture of likeable and unlikeable which can be averaged into a
medium or lukewarm attraction for the stimulus. It is the coexistence of two strong
drives that actually increases the strength of each. Decision making is very
problematical and choices take on survival importance. Partial steps, compromise,
and the option of later changing one's mind seem unavailable. A common example is
an adult child returning to his or her childhood home for a holiday dinner, where
there has been a history of humiliation at dinner but of course pleasure has
transpired at past diners as well. Such an adult child is often driven crazy at such an
occaision even when nothing unexpected happens.
The parent child relationship often has approach-avoidance elements. The family
therapy concepts of enmeshment and cutoff are examples of attempts to manage it.
Most intimate partner violence is driven by an approach avoidance conflict in
the primary aggressor that is highly sexualized.
Trauma Response
Trauma is a concept that encompasses at least four elements: 1) external events that
threaten the life or integrity of a person in the setting of relative helplessness, 2) the
body's response to those events both acute and chronic, 3) the effect on mind and
spirit of these bodily effects, and 4) self-perpetuating (positive feedback) effects of
trauma within the regulatory systems that has been likened to a 'foreign body" or
contaminant.
The trauma response is a very special case of conditioning. Somehow,
traumatic conditioning forms a self-sustaining loop that defies normal
extinction. It is as if the conditioned response (the fight or flight response usually)
either becomes it's own unconditioned stimulus or recruits sufficient unconditioned
stimuli. Peter Levine believes that the immobilizing freeze response becomes both
the conditioned response and the conditioned stimulus. Robert Scaer believes that
traumatic memories have that role.
A basic and successful intervention for troublesome conditionings (phobias,
obsessions) has been exposure therapy. That is, the survivor is exposed to a
conditioned stimulus in a safe setting with arousal kept low. When the unconditioned
stimulus (feared trauma) doesn't happen, extinction occurs, this is automatic in
conditioning and is not a consciously mediated process. This often doesn't work in
trauma and the reason why is as follows: In humans, memories are potent and can
induce bodily states. Trauma produces both biological conditioning which is not
consciously mediated, and painful associations that are consciously mediated
(although they may be repressed or dissociated) The former are called signals and
the latter reminders. Extinction is possible with signals because the signal can be
deliberately used as a conditioned stimulus in a setting where the unconditioned
stimulus will not occur. With reminders, the memory has become the 'new'
unconditioned stimulus, (feared trauma). So with any deliberate exposure to a
reminder, the memory is evoked, which is to say, reminders of the
trauma actually reperform the unconditioned stimulus, and the response
is strengthened not weakened.
The result of the trauma response is a spiral of autonomic and emotional
dysregulation that produces progressive damage to the organism if not reversed. The
main long-term effects are perpetrated through exaggerated swings between
the sympathetic fight/flight system and the dorsal vagal 'freeze' system. The
latter may have been involved as the initial response to the traumatic events, or may
have been recruited as a desperate brake on the spiraling sympathetic
and arousal systems. These alternating aspects of this dysregulation unfortunately
undermines the credibility of the sufferers of these effects in the mind of allopathic
medicine which equates variable or changing symptoms with malingering.
The trauma response disproves the simplistic adage that time heals all
wounds. When healing of any sort does occur, it occurs over time. However mere
time does not heal trauma. Rather, besides being self-perpetuating, trauma is
progressive. Fibromyalgia, for instance, is a manifestation of the very late stage of the
trauma response. In some respects, the time elapsed since the trauma response
began is more a determinant of the amount of suffering than the magnitude of the
trauma. Unappreciated childhood traumas may have immense effect by
midlife.
While the trauma response is different from a sympathetic shift, a
sympathetic shift increases greatly the risk of the trauma response
taking hold. A trauma response seems to arise when very earlier efforts to regulate
after a trauma are unsuccessful. This could be because the initial trauma was so great
or it could be because social norms often preclude the physical acts and emotional
expressiveness required to 'shake off' the early trauma response. The work of Peter
Levine and David Bercelli specifically targets the trauma response
through trembling.
'Mental Efficiency': This is a concept adapted from Pierre Janet and his work with
the trauma response. Despite how the name sounds in English translation, it is not
really a cognitive concept but rather an energetic one, and not merely an attribute
but a process. A basic part of human functioning and adaptation is the
capacity first to turn needs, desires, thoughts, demands, feelings,
instinct, and reflexes first into a conceived adaptive next step, and
second to take that step. Without this capacity, which Janet termed mental
efficiency, the aforementioned elements lose or fail to gain 'realness'. As mental
efficiency decreases, reality weakens as an experience, which further impairs mental
efficiency. Mental efficiency requires energy, but the energy available becomes
likelier to be insufficient if the process of determining an action is too chaotic and
indirect. This is an area where the 'rich get richer and the poor get poorer.' A late sign
of trauma is 'poor' mental efficiency which often gets labeled laziness, passive
aggression, or even attention-deficit disorder. What is necessary for improvement is
increasing energy, (as in all change in the Reich and Lowen tradition) but it useful or
necessary also to find some structure or practices externally that provide some steps
to decrease chaos. This is the idea and history in part behind 'milieu therapy.'
The Reich and Lowen tradition has always included the trauma response in its
concept of body armor and organismic response to negating forces. However the
distinct trauma pattern as seen in fibromyalgia and other 'baffling' disorders has not
been central to its teaching. It is possible that the overstimulated and overly
competitive trends of the last several decades have increased the trauma response
prevalence markedly. Approximately two-thirds of bearers of the trauma response
are women. This could be because less muscle mass on average lessens the ability of
character armor to absorb the trauma, and the autonomic and limbic regulation is
more affected.
Of course, trauma is where Freud started (hysteria) but he eviscerated the theory in
the face of its social implications. But the study of the trauma response is the one
area of psychology that has been able to both assert mind/body unity and become
semi-mainstream. That is because its adherents have, unlike Reich and Lowen,
avoided social criticism and any theory of human relations. It is assumed that if the
trauma response is overcome, the person will be fine. Still, trauma theorists have
explained with great benefit to a wide audience the futility of intellectual approaches
toward emotional suffering. Also, they have elucidated the mechanisms by which
'biopathies' are manifested in the detailed manner that is demanded by the present
day sensibility.
Syndrome of Disrupted Homeostasis
Syndrome of Disrupted Homeostasis (SODH) is a term coined by Robert Scaer

MD to describe many diseases that are characterized by an alternation between an
exaggerated sympathetic response and an exaggerated dorsal vagal
response. Each swing of the pendulum 'causes' the return swing, but instead of
increasingly smaller swings, the swings become greater over time. This causes
symptoms to appear and disappear, to vary in intensity, and to vary in location.
Eventually static and unchanging organ damage occurs.
Allopathy accepts this late organ damage in its disease model, but strangely rejects
the previous pendulating period, even though it is becoming the main mode of
sufferring in our age. Severe intense interventions aimed at symptoms may actually
increase dysregulation. Chronic opiate use only masks the process and contributes to
increased myofascial pain in the long-run. Women experience SODH about 2:1 over
men. This could because lesser muscle mass on average decreases the capacity for
muscular armor to absorb trauma, and therefore increases the liklihood of
autonomic dysregulation.
Reperfusion Cycle
A common mechanism of damage is an alternation between periods sympathetic
overdrive with insufficient blood flow (ischemia) followed by a parasympathetc
rebound engorgement. This causes reperfusion injury. The absence of oxygen and
nutrients from blood during the ischemic period creates a condition in which the
restoration of circulation results in inflammation and oxidative damage through the
induction of oxidative stress rather than restoration of normal function.
At a visible surface, evidence of reperfusion injury is an unblanching redness when
pressed. For instance, with 'bedridden' patients, it is known that unblanching
redness is the first stage of a bedsore. First comes a lack of circulation due to
pressure, followed by a reperfusion injury. Because of tissue injury an inflammatory
response ensues. 'Autoimmune' disorders are in some instances related to this
inflammatory response. Psoriasis is an example of a visible disorder that waxes and
wanes, is affected by stress, and the basic symptom, overgrowth of the skin cells,
arises because of a localized immune response in the skin. One can imagine similar
processes occuring less visibly within internal tissues. Auto-immune diseases are
known to be associated with a sympathetic shift, emotional suppression, and a
history of trauma.
Syndromes of Disrupted Homeostasis

Manifestation
Mechanism
Gastroesphagea
l Reflux
This is where acid flows back from the stomach into the
esophagus which unlike the stomach, is not lined in a way that
resists acid, so damage and pain results. It may be thought that
the sphincter has become incapitated. But the spincter is
supposed to open when food goes from esophagus to stomach
and close when the stomach contracts. The problem is one of
mis-coordination, an autonomic problem.
Ulcers
Ulcers have long been associated with stress by everyday

observation. In the modern era, where strong attempts are
being made to rehabilitate stress as good, other causes are
being blamed.
Irritable Bowel
Syndrome,
Crohn's
Disease,
Ulcerative
Colitis
The basic cycle is between ischemia and reperfusion

engorgement and inflammation. Think of the damage that
arises when frostbitten tissue thaws. The ischemic periods are
not recognized often and are seen as 'good' periods or
remissions. The reperfusion periods cause irritation and
diarrhea and intense pain, and are seen as the flare-ups.
Interstitial
Cystitis
Most symptoms are ultimately from inflammation, which is

caused by reperfusion after ischemia.
Asthma
Asthma has been intuitively understood to be related to stress

for a long time. The exact mechanism is still obscure. Perhaps
the bronchiolar walls are supposed to constrict and expand
slightly rhythmically to aid the breathing mechanism, and if
this gets out of balance, asthma results. Chronic
hyperventilation also plays a part.
Mitral Valve
Prolapse
This can sometimes be a structural defect but is most

commonly caused by a discoordination between the chambers
of the heart, and high blood pressure.
Fibromyalgia
This is an extremely complex syndrome which is

also extremely common. The progressive myofascial
shortening and stiffening effects causing pain, and dorsal vagal
symptoms are most credited, but impaired interpersonal
relationships probably stem from unappreciated chronic fight
or flight effects on the limbic system.
Migraines
A period of vascular insufficiency (usually in one side of the

brain) causes 'aural' symptoms and then vascular engorgement
follows a s a rebound and causes the pain. Ironically, the aural
symptoms would be worrisome for a stroke in todays contest of
heightened awareness of early stroke signs, were they not to
occur in this context.
Kindling
Kindling is the tendency for cells or groups of cells in the nervous system to 'fire'
either at a much lower stimulus threshold than is 'healthy', or even to fire
spontaneously. It is an attempt at adaptation and represents allostasis. Kindling may
or may play a role in primary seizures. A seizure is an event where the neurons in a
large part of the brain especially the cortex fire all at once because the firing of
several reaches a contagious level. Seizures can act as a 'reset' on kindling. Electroshock therapy (and hypoglycemic 'insulin shock' before that) was used to artificially
induce seizures and create a down-regulating 'reset' of sorts on neurons that was
manifested as docility and 'feeling safer.' Of course brain damage also accompanied
this. More recently anti-epileptic drugs are used to 'stabilize' the neurons and defeat
at least for a time the effects of kindling (including the interpersonal). Like most
allopathic strategies, this probably increases dysregulation over time.
With kindling it is possible for some processes to become self perpetuating, either on
a purely neural level, or on a mixed behavioral-neural level. An example of the latter
is for instance, having a limbic system over-vigilant for possible threat, then overreacting to the requests of others as if harm was meant, and inducing a hostile
response which increases the baseline of the threat system. Self-perpetuating
processes like this of course create an unstable positive feedback loop that leads to
progressive dysfunction on a biological level. This dysfunction may be partly
compensated crudely by other behavioral strategies but this is never satisfying, and
behavioral dysfunction may occur as well.
Kindling is mostly an issue with the limbic system, which is the middle part of the
'triune' brain. Our modern tendency is to try to 'cool' the limbic system from above,
with the cortex or thinking brain. This is largely unsuccessful because 1) the
connection between the cortex and limbic system is weakened by the kindling, and 2)
(unless there is a very strong dissociation, which is itself a problem) the emotional
tone of thoughts is driven by the state of the limbic system, and so attempts to soothe
by thoughts just start a positive feedback loop. This is rumination. The strategy that
works, is cooling from below, from the brainstem, with breathing, pleasure, and
kinesiological activities.
Goals and Abilities
What is the Point?
Neither Reich or Lowen defined a permanent desireable state of existence, that is,
they did not define "happiness." Rather, they both conceived of psychotherapy as
restoring the basic conditions of obtaining good-feelings.
Much is made about he importance Reich gave to the orgasm reflex. The orgasm
reflex is a respiratory phenomenon, not a sexual one, and perhaps it would have been
better to name it differently. Still, some take this to mean that the orgasm reflex is
the goal of therapy. It seems rather, that Reich used the orgasm reflex as an objective
sign of de-armoring and a good point to stop therapy. The client then was free to go
on and build a desireable life. Two goals that Reich did define are contact and selfregulation.
Lowen came to believe that building a good life required more capabilities than this
respiratory wave. He developed several concepts, such
as satisfaction, grounding, surrender, joy, and his important 'trio', selfawareness, self-expression, and self-posession.
Finally, I have defined two goals that may seem to arise more generally from the
humanist tradition in therapy: flexibility and vulnerability. These are strongly
implied in this tradition, but sometimes, because of the robust way of living
encouraged by Reich and Lowen, they are mistaken to be at odds with it.
The reader may well ask, "What about love." The search for love is what underpins
the search for emotional healing. Love, however, is a bigger subject than emotional
healing. The Reich and Lowen tradition cannot subsume love. Love is notoriously
difficult to define, probably no single or perhaps no ten definitions can quite 'get it
all.' Lowen did, however attempt one definition: "Love in the strictest sense can
be described as the deepest feeling of tenderness expressed with the
strongest aggression.*" From that it may be seen that the goals of this tradition
are really the underlying capacities necessary to love. From there it is still a matter of
finding a way to love.
The capacity to give and receive love implies good contact, and an open heart,
literally and biologically. Whatever else love is, it is a biological phenomenon that can
be felt.
* Language of the Body, Chapter 17, Paragraph 30.
Human Contact
Wilhelm Reich was perhaps the first western therapist to name contact as a
problem in living, but the concept has had long been present by implication in many
philosophical traditions. Reich noticed that many people were able to interact very
elaborately, but something very human was missing in the interaction. Contact is
frequently mentioned, but not very clearly defined in his writing (or that
of Alexander Lowen)-- it seems to be something that one "knows it when they feel
it." In the Reich and Lowen tradition contact is biological, not just
phenomenological-it is something that is felt. The slang expression "you feel me?"
comes from this idea. Contact is a sensory and perceptual event--goodwill
does not enter into it.
Contact implies that one is not playing a role. Perhaps it could be said that contact is
the simultaneous perception of each other's substance by two or more people. Love
requires contact. Contact happens on the surface, but it requires relatively
unimpeded flow of feelings from the core to that surface. Though strong contact is
rare in our society, it probably is the natural biological response to proximity. That is,
it is an active process to stay 'out of contact.' Where contact is poor, the presence of
other people tends to be irritating and to elicits defenses. It seems perhaps that there
are two general ways of staying out of contact: abstraction and objectification.
Boundaries
In the Reich and Lowen tradition, boundaries must be considered as energy or
strength at the surface* of a person. With such boundaries, true contact may be made
with others without the fear of engulfment or falling apart. Without this capacity at
the surface, defensiveness must always be present. Many people recognize that they
do not have boundaries, and come to therapy to get them. In our self-help and
cognitive culture however, thought-out rules of engagement are substituted where
biological and felt boundaries should be. Rules are just ideas. If what one is using to
protect one's integrity is an idea, than other people become just ideas. This may have
some benefits in safety, but it works against contact. It is a common experience that
clients in conversational therapy develop rules and resolve themselves to follow
them, but these ideational boundaries crumble in intense relationships or intense
situations.
*Whether the surface of the body in this context is the skin or extends beyond the skin (and involves
the aura) is an interesting but distracting controversy. It should easily agreed that humans have a
surface somewhere.
Self Regulation
Self regulation is the idea that the body knows what is good and lifepromoting, and that honoring the body's feelings and inclinations will
lead to a life that is good, satisfying and just. It includes the belief that desire,
and the pursuit of real pleasure do not lead to mayhem, and are compatible with a
civil society. Passions only seem to be dangerous because, when they emerge in the
presence of repression, they are greatly distorted. These distorted secondary
drives then act as a secondary justification for the repression. Efforts that the ego
makes to keep secondary drives in check constitute another layer of self-negation.
This self-negation is generally called self-control, and considered positive. But
control really only means reasonable guidance of a force or movement
toward its fit or intended goal.
The foundation of self-negation is the automatic filter of character. However, over
an entire life, character will leak a great deal of noxious secondary drive behavior
anyway. Secondary conscious self-negation starts as the effort to plug these leaks.
Self-negation evolves as the ideology that the ego, following ideas or rules, should be
sole arbiter of what emerges in a person and in a person's life. Not all self-control is
negating but repression hides easily within self-control because images of 'what is
best' are used as a guide instead of feelings. Each bit of restraint is usually logically
defensible, but a life lived solely that way becomes dehumanizing.
It is very difficult for anyone in our culture, to fully trust natural
processes. It is strongly tempting even for therapists working in this tradition to
replace the idea of self-regulation with the idea of a 'kinder, gentler selfnegation' And in fact, it should be possible for this less oppressive 'control' to mimic
the general scope of behavior that is seen in self-regulation. However, there is this
very important difference. In self-regulation, it is the body and ego together that
decide what the tasks are for the person, and self-control plays a role in managing
actions realistically. In self-negation, the ego decides what the goals are according to
an image, and proceeds cautiously if intensely in achieving those goals in a manner
that is intended to pre-empt criticism.
Self-regulation has its roots in biology, but the ego can participate in selfregulation through principles.Principles are different from rules. Based on an
intellectual analysis of past experience, rules are behavioral dictates that are applied
compulsively, that is, without feelings. Principles are behavioral guides based on an
understanding of past experience, including past feelings. Principles are applied
judiciously and somewhat flexibly, in accord with present feeling. Rules are useful for
large organizations or impersonal brief transactions. Close relationships (personal or
therapeutic), benefit from principles.
You see, man is energy, and if man does not seek truth, this energy becomes
destructive; therefore society controls and shapes the individual, which smothers
this energy... And perhaps you have noticed another interesting and very simple
fact: that the moment you really want to do something, you have the energy to do
it. ...That very energy becomes the means of controlling itself, so you don't need
outside discipline. In the search for reality, energy creates its own discipline. The
man who is seeking reality spontaneously becomes the right kind of citizen, which
is not according to the pattern of any particular society or government.
Krishnamurti
Satisfaction
Satisfaction as used here is a bodily state not a mental conclusion. Satisfaction is an

enjoyable feeling of 'enoughness,' and thereby, a state of harmony with the natural
and human environment. It arises primarily from the capacity and opportunity to
experience pleasure. Pleasure is necessary but not sufficient for satisfaction. Many
people tend to identify satisfaction with doing the right thing (often determined by
social norms and other's expectations.) There is no inherent conflict between these
values. Sometimes doing the 'right thing' (following a social norm) is pleasureable
and satisfying, but many times it is not. On the other hand, if pleasure is
understood as the inner feeling of harmony and flow, then doing the
pleasureable thing is always right for the individual. The common fear that
others will be unnecessarily damaged is a mistake. Pleasure and satisfaction increase
feeling and real concern for others. Some social norms may be violated, but the real
rights of others will not be impinged.
As a single occurrence, pleasure requires no effort and no achievement. In the
context of a life, having satisfying pleasure requires some achievement. It is a
common experience that continuous vacationing leads to listlessness and a slow
decline in the experience of pleasure. However, it is also common for a person
to 'achieve' a lot without any satisfaction whatsoever, and this latter
experience seems to be the dominant one in our culture today.
Perhaps that is because the experience of achievement has been hi-jacked in our
culture. Achievement originally meant the accomplishment of any constructive goal.
Tending a garden, discharging the duties of an honest job, raising children, fixing a
roof--all were achievements. These were available to everyone, and communities
were organized around providing 'achievable' roles for everyone. When pleasure is
taken in the activity itself, which is possible without undue pressure or haste, then
the activity is creative and possibly even joyful.
In our competitive culture, attainment took over as the main mode of constructive
activity. Being constructive meant becoming special or superior. Quantity is one way
to be superior, so haste and greediness entered the picture. Quality is another way to
be superior so people struggle not to have, say, an excellent garden but the 'best'
garden. Celebrity or fame came, strangely, to be considered an achievement and a
goal.
Attainment produces a permanent state of competition in which the will drives
roughshod over the body and the ego is ever vigilant for threats to its specialness.
Through sympathetic shift, this ruins the capacity for pleasure. Pleasurelessness
often feeds the drive for attainment.
True pleasure, on the other hand, naturally leads to an interest in constructive goals
and creative activity.Pleasure is naturally balancing. It is this balance that leads
to a satisfied life.
'Subjective Well Being'
Satisfaction is the closest one can probably come to the concept of happiness without
leaving a pragmatic point of view and entering into philosophy or spirituality.
'Happiness' implies a durable quality that is hard to fit onto the changing emotions of
an actual life. In social psychology, happiness is known as subjective wellbeing.Subjective well being has two parts: 1) the sufficient presence of good feelings
and perhaps feelings of security and 2) the subjective recognition and conscious
enjoyment of this sufficiency. The Reich and Lowen tradition clearly addresses the
first part. But the second part is bound up in questions of prospects, good or bad
fortune, expectations, rate of change, hope, etc...
Grounding
Grounding is a practice and concept that precedes Reich and Lowen. The concept
was already present in other bodywork traditions such as Chi Gung, and of course it
was present in folk wisdom.
Grounding as an impressionistic term is readily accepted by most people-- there
seems to be a real need for the concept. To move from metaphor and define
grounding operationally, however, is somewhat more difficult. It seems to refer to a
single experience, but the definition or description can be approached in several
ways:
An alignment and dynamic equilibrium of the lower body (pelvis, legs, ankles,
and feet) that permits vibration, creates balance, provides a sense of security,
and allows agile movement. 'Fear of falling' is the opposite of this.
A actual strength of the connection between feet and ground. One is then not
easily 'knocked off one's feet.' Chi Gung and Tai Chi speak about this in a very
literal sense. Alexander Lowen speaks of this at times literally but mostly
speaks about it in an interpersonal or social conflict sense.
The ability of the body to undergo a charge-discharge cycle without a

misadventure of some sort occurring.
An actual transfer of something between the lower body and the earth, in
either direction. This, if it happens, is certainly not electricity,but it tends to
call forth the image of electricity.
'Groundedness' is perhaps a slightly different concept, describing how grounding

shows up in a lifestyle. Groundedness is shown by:
An emotional poise that prevents undue illusion or being carried away with
ideas or feelings.
A consistent sense of self
True humility, or absence of the need to be superior or 'higher' than others.
An acceptance of the natural order. This includes an adeptness and calm when
working with actual substances affected by natural laws (practical arts). It
contrasts with a tendency to be comfortable with abstract concepts, products
of imagination, and man-made systems, but be awkward with and shun work
with actual substances and forces of nature.
The opposite of grounding is 'upward displacement', which describes an emphasis on

getting 1) above the waist, 2) above the neck, 3) above the brainstem and midbrain
(into the cerebral cortex), and 4) above other people. Upward displacement often
results in underdevelopment of the lower body. Some writers have tried to make
upward displacement into an asset as well, calling it 'skying.' It might be possible, as
a thought experiment, to conceive of a 'too-grounded', too-earthbound' condition
that needs lifting, but it is hard to think of any modern real world examples. The
opposite of grounding, at least in the psychological sphere, is derealization, discussed
below.
Pierre Janet and 'Realization'
Janet's concept of realization is a psychological concept not a physical one, but it is
closely allied with the concept of grounding, and I think beneficial. Realization more
narrowly focuses on the senses and perception and their effective functioning in
harmony with the ego,. Realization, and its constituent processes of personification
and presentification are actually artifacts of recovery. That is, they are recovery from
derealization, depersonalization, and de-presentification. which stem from loss of the
body. When the body is not in contact with the environment, the 'here', the 'now',
and the 'me', is lost. In modern English the word realization is usually used to mean
gaining a new understanding. The meaning here is somewhat different, more akin to
'making real,'but the meaning is not entirely different.
Realization This is regaining the feeling that something is actually

happening, and the implications of what is happening matter in some way.
There are consequences for our personal existence. De-realization is an
increasing disturbance in our age. People can intellectually grasp and
manipulate the content of what is happening, and perhaps can distinguish
actual events from fictional events, but have no relationship to what is
happening in either. No adaptive response is forthcoming, even in serious
matters..
Personalization This is taking personal ownership of experience. Without

this, there is no way to connect present with past and future in a biographical
sense of self
Presentification Is the act of both being and acting realistically but

reflectively in the moment. Awareness of both the external and internal
environment is synthesized but not confused.
The best way to accomplish realization (combat derealization) is to reclaim the life of
the body, this was a very strong point Alexander Lowen made in Betrayal of the
Body.
Walking the wire is living, everything else is waiting

Karl Wallenda (famous acrobat)
When we understand the balance mechanism we will understand the aetiology of

neurosis
Paul Schilder
Surrender
The very best experiences in life cannot be willed but rather 'happen' to a person. The
will-centric ideology of our culture makes most people incapable of allowing things to
happen. The goal of therapy then, becomes regaining the state of susceptibility; to
love, to orgasmic convulsions, to unchangeable reality, and cosmic feeling. Because
our culture always points people toward control, a goal of Reich and Lowen therapy
is to develop the capacity and agreement to let go of control when appropriate, that
is, surrender. Surrender is not something one can do with the will since it requires
giving up the will.
Alexander Lowen developed many key ways of working that 'forced' a temporary
surrender on the ego so that a client could experience non-control for once. They
would also experience that their worst unconscious fears about surrender would not
come true. Lowen writes:
Letting go of ego control means giving in to the body in its involuntary aspect. It
means letting the body take over. But this is what patients cannot do. They feel the
body will betray them. They do not trust it and have no faith in it. They are afraid
that if the body takes over, it will expose their weakness, demolish their
pretentiousness, reveal their sadness and vent their fury. Yes it will do that. it will
destroy the facades that people erect to hide their true selves from themselves and
from the world. But it will also open a new depth of being and add a richness to life
compared to which the wealth of the world is a mere trifle. (Depression and the
Body, Chapter 10, Paragraph 53)
Surrender is the basic underlying 'ability' for the capacity for sexual satisfaction and
capacity to love. In this tradition, love and sex fall under surrender.
Wilhelm Reich believed that in surrendering to the melting sensations and
involuntary convulsions of orgasm, humans discharged accumulated tension fully.
Without full orgasm, problems in energy and relationships ensued. Reich believed
that most indirect and self-defeating ('neurotic') behavior was driven by
undischarged sexual energy. If orgasms were achieved on a regular basis, a person
would not act in a self-defeating manner, even if some quirky subconscious ideas
remained.
Reich believed that few people had full orgasms, whether they knew it not. He used
the orgasm reflex, a wave seen in the body with breathing,as a sign of the ability to
have a sufficient orgasm when the occasion was appropriate. He felt therapy had
been successful when the orgasm reflex was seen, because it was evidence of the
capacity for surrender. It is a mistaken belief that he held an actual sexual orgasm as
the goal of therapy.
The capacity to give and receive love implies an open heart, literally and biologically.
Whatever else love is, it is a biological phenomenon that can be felt. But it is also
unwilled and usually unexpected. Many people are unable to truly love because they
do not have sufficient aggression and contact. But some, especially achievers,
have the aggression and contact, but have a primary resistance to surrendering to
love.
Willingness
A quality that can arise out of surrender is willingness, which is the capacity and
tendency to give oneself wholly to the actions (not goals) that the times and
circumstances require, without recourse to self-image. Willingness implies openness
to external guidance but it is not submission. Willingness includes the willingness to
say 'no' Willingness is the active form of humility. Because of the hurts and betrayals
most of us are subject to in development, willingness is often replaced by willfulness,
but no real change can be willed.
Healing is not an intellectual function. No clever mind can order healing in injured
tissues. The cortical monkey decorates doubt and embellishes fear. Clever thinking
is of little value in coaxing rebellious muscles to abstain from excessive contraction.
Individuals with pain syndromes know that the pain of muscle spasm in the back or
neck cannot be relieved by mere talking. Nor does the deep anguish of depression
abate with so-called positive thinking. What is needed is true spiritual surrender.
Majid Ali
Harmony
Harmony has two aspects, each necessary, 1) differentiation of parts and

2) mutual responsiveness of those parts to each other. One can speak of
harmony in nature, families, groups, music, couples, minds, and even brains. An
important place for harmony is mother with infant. Harmony is a natural
phenomenon, not a mental product.
Harmony implies unity, but unity is not uniformity. Differentiation is always
hampered if responsiveness is lost as a result. Responsiveness is just narcissism if
there is no differentiation. Merely sharing a goal is not harmony because there will be
resistance to influence. Attempting to please another will never result in harmony
because it is both a denial of differentiation and an attempt to control the response of
another.
Harmony may seem to be inefficient because, unlike conformity, it cannot be
mandated or put in place quickly. Harmony however, allows for synergy and
creativity. Undertakings are enhanced by a feeling of belonging. Power is always
disharmonizing because it limits freedom of response.
Bodywork is intended to improve the unity first of the body and as a consequence,
unity of the person. Alignment speaks to harmony, but harmony is really a dynamic
quality. Grace describes an harmonious quality in the person.
Joy
Alexander Lowen titled his final self-initiated book Joy. He seemed to be trying to
find a single unifying goal of living and of therapy. Harmony is necessary but
probably not sufficient for joy. Joy is not a frequent experience even in health. Joy is
the basis for spirituality, because it connects a person to the larger fabric of life. Joy
cannot be forced. rather one is in 'harm's way' of joy by being fully alive and fully
human.
Self Awareness
Self-awareness arises from feeling. It is the totality of all of one's body feelings at
any given time. Stated another way, self-awareness is simply knowing what
one feels, what one is actually doing. Where feeling is low due to muscle
tension and suppression, there often arises a substitute to self-awareness, selfconsciousness.
Self-consciousness is a mental focus on the possible judgment others will
make about one's actions and statements. This has an inhibitory effect, and
though some actions will be allowed through the 'internal censor', they will lack
naturalness, because shame is always present. Self-consciousness is seeing oneself
from the outside, from the 'mind's eye' so to speak, because one cannot see or feel
from the inside. The body is recognized as one's own but is not felt, so there is usually
an awkwardness and tension in expression and movement. This is sometimes called
having an observing ego.
Self-consciousness can lead to some social deftness in structured situations, but still
not intrinsically lead to strong human contact. As a product of the mind and ego,
self-consciousness is at great risk of distortion by ego images and goals, and it
wanders quickly from the present reality to future fantasy and past memories. The
tendency to hold back is also mistaken for self-possession. Holding back is
considered a great virtue in our culture, almost regardless of context. While some
self-consciousness is inevitable in a complicated culture, high self-consciousness and
low self-esteem go hand in hand.
A product of self-consciousness is frequent self-measurement, which impedes
growth (usually the opposite of its intention) because it redoubles use of the will and
muscular tension.
No one's self-awareness is perfect. Everyone can benefit from an occasional
confrontation from others. A self-aware person will never be too surprised, because
his or her self-perception will not have been too far off the mark. A self-conscious
person is often hurt and surprised by these challenges and has difficulty
incorporating the information.
Effective empathy requires self-awareness. Self-consciousness may produce
solicitude toward other but contact and connection is poor because contact comes
from the bodily effects others have on oneself. Mindfulness is a concept taken from
Buddhism that is quite popular in psychology today. Clearly it is meant to denote
self-awareness, but when approached as a moral or ethical precept will be often
mistaken for self-consciousness. It is self-regulation and not self-consciousness
that best underlies pro-social and loving behavior.
Beyond this many people are pre-occupied with ideas about what they believe they
are, and what they believe they should be, how they should act and what they should
do, and what they should have done to become what they believe they should be.
They can discourse on this at length and in fine detail. This is self-absorption or
perhaps more precisely, mind-absorption. Conversational therapies in which
dis-embodied and ungrounded beliefs such as these are generated endlessly and
explored exhaustively do not increase self-awareness.
There is an extreme state beyond self-consciousness when feeling is so low that the
mind no longer recognizes the body when looking from the outside. This
is depersonalization.
It is natural for thinking creatures to develop ideas about themselves. If these ideas
are grounded in self-awareness and the truth of the body, then they will have a
trueness to them and further life. If they are based on ego ideals, they will alienate
one from his life and body.
Self Expression
Emotions and meanings are not fully experienced unless they are expressed.
Sensation and contact occurs at the surface. Expression is not complete unless it
comes to the surface. The eyes, the face, the mouth (including the jaw), the throat,
and the arms are the main conduits of self-expression.
Speech, at its best, is a union of ego and body. Words and word choice (voluntary)
represents the ego, and voice quality (involuntary) represents the body. Most modern
democracies pride themselves on free speech, but increasingly, what is meant is free
word choice. A loud or emotional voice is considered inappropriate in many forums.
Untrue statements are fairly easily detectable by a discrepancy between the words
and the voice, but few people are able to do this because we have been conditioned to
ignore the voice quality. A great deal of deception happens over the internet because
it is much easier to lie when a keyboard and not the voice is used. Of course word
choice can be at the service of feelings but mostly word choice is aimed at affecting
the reader or listener.
Self-expression is certainly biological, if not only biological. One definition of
psychology is biology plus expression. Ideally, in self-expression, heart mind and
belly are together. Honest and felt self-expression helps maintain one's integrity
apart from the effect on the other person. However, honest self-expression is
unexpectedly powerful in relationships. Often, early experience of having selfexpression punished or ignored instills a hesitancy to express anything that is not
'certain to work.' Without early positive experience it is very hard to weather those
adult occasions (hopefully infrequent) in which expression is punished. But what can
come to be understood is that self-expression is an end in itself. It supports
the life process.
Self-expression also requires freedom. That is, both a reasonable amount of
actual freedom to act in the world and an internal sense of freedom to act are
required. Actions are part of self-expression. If there is no intention or
willingness to act at all, self-expression becomes at best, an
intellectualization. A mental or verbal reservation is not adequate expression
either. For instance, if a person facing a demand he or she does not wish to comply
with, says as much to themselves or others, but complies anyway, he or she is then at
war with themselves. The salutary and harmonizing aspects of self-expression are
only available where stated beliefs and actions line up.
Self-expression is not just blurting everything out that comes to mind. In any
situation, especially when several people are involved, there may be several things to
express. For instance annoyance for a person's actions and respect for a person may
be both expressed in a measured but sincere expression. This is what tact is:
truth and empathy together. Putting the truth off to later just sets a mold in
which there never seems room for one's own truth. Taking other peoples likely
reaction into account can figure in final expression, as long as the self is not
essentially negated.
Self-expression is more a matter of quality than of quantity. It does not seem possible
to achieve the same effect of full-blown self-expression with any quantity of partial
'leaking' type expression. That is because the value of self-expression is in the
unifying of the person. 'Leaking out' what one really means, or hinting, may
pass along the 'idea' but it is fragmenting for the person. Some people leak
hostility on an almost continual basis. The expression never seems to resolve. This
type of choked or incompleted expression is just one type of 'mis'-expression that
gives self-expression a bad name. Below are some others.
Mis-Expression
Intoxication: Alcohol is known for changing or increasing expression, but not in a
helpful way. The problem is not, as commonly thought, that people say what they
don't mean. When intoxicated, people tend to express what they really mean, albeit
distortedly. Rather alcohol disinhibits the expression but simultaneously deadens the
feeling (both the feeling intrinsic to the expression, and also the feeling of guilt for
feeling that way!). This allows for the expression because the unwanted feeling isn't
there. When sober, the person usually disavows the expressions because again they
are unable to handle the feelings that would arise. Some people seem to be emotional
when intoxicated, but the feeling is superficial (sentimentality), unrelated to
movement or action.
Vehement Emotions: Vehement emotions, usually anger or fear, appear suddenly,
are coupled with high arousal, are not very amenable to soothing, persist for a time
even if triggering events have ended, and afterwards the person repudiates the
emotions and cannot or does not integrate them, even in a more moderate form.
These are actually minor dissociative episodes, from approach-avoidance
conflicts or past trauma. Vehement emotions are not constructive expression,
there is a stuck or repetitive quality about them. If they arise in therapeutic work,
they may have a role in bringing the dissociation 'into the room', but attention should
be directed away from the content of the narrative, and into contact with the body
and with the present.
Acting out: This is behavior that is driven by repressed feeling that occurs without
'unrepressing' the feeling. It discharges tension and allows the repression to be
maintained. The term comes from psycho-analysis, where it was applied to an
increase in self-destructive behavior in the life of a client when things 'heated up' in
analysis. From this, it tended to be applied to things like promiscuity and drug use.
However, when someone is doing something 'seemingly uncharacteristic,' but does
not know why he or she is doing it, it is often acting out. If, in addition, they do not
seem to know they are doing it, it is even more likely acting-out. So too with 'stress
behavior.'
Dispersal: This is the use of speech to 'touch' on a subject, but diminish feeling or
avoid contact with real feeling. A common example is a statement beginning with "I
should.." It is often meant to ward off how one actually regards what "one should"
do. Another is "I have to.." (Fritz Perls combated dispersal by making clients say "I
want.. or I choose..") Another dispersal is saying the opposite of what one is likelier
to really mean. Or another example is repeating a truism like "such is life" or "people
is people" or "it's probably for the best" when a difficult subject comes up. Yet
another example is an excessive recitation of detail.
Gossip: Gossip is the enactment of a split, projecting unwanted or forbidden
feelings and thoughts, usually sexual, onto others. Gossip manipulates relief feelings
"Thank God its not me!" The release wastes tension that otherwise might be applied
to real concerns in one's life. The target is dehumanized, and the confidante is not
drawn into a real relationship because the relating is not based on feeling but rather
the repudiation of feeling.
Catharsis: Catharsis is akin to removing a splinter or expelling something noxious.
The ego may acknowledge that there was something 'to get rid of' but that something
is felt to have been a foreign object and not part of the self. Catharsis is expression,
but it is not self-expression. For instance after an angry outburst, a person may feel
relieved but then essentially disown the anger that was expressed. Catharsis is the
result of delayed and disowned expression. It is 'blowing off steam' that serves the
purpose of keeping the lid on. It can be exaggerated which seems to support the
back-tracking that happens afterwards. Catharsis does represent a small opening into
repressed emotion. If a person is so completely controlled that they do not have any
catharsis, then starting catharsis can be a start toward self-expression. However,
especially in psychotherapy, frequent catharsis can become a 'racket' or 'affect
defense', that is a lesser expression that actually avoids a deeper or more characterchanging self-expression. Change is actually blocked. It is perhaps this racket
expression that brings on a skeptical attitude, in the culture as a whole, toward the
expression of emotion.
Hysterical Outburst:An hysterical outburst implies a higher level of energy in the
body. It is an attempted solution to the stasis of that energy. A hysterical outburst is
less about the theme of the outburst than it is about the present energy state of the
person. The person is less likely to disown the outburst but at the same time, there is
less thematic material to own. Like catharsis, an hysterical outburst protects
character. It is a reaction to the limits of character armor, not a reaction against it.
Practice Toward Self-Expression
In Reich and Lowen therapy, there are exercises such as hitting a mattress that can
reasonably be called 'expressive' exercises. Especially in a group or workshop setting
with others watching, it can seem that the reason for these exercises is
to represent or show how one feels, and in so doing, an endpoint is reached.
Actually the purpose of exercises is to get freedom of movement, energy

and feeling into the parts of the body that are involved in self-expression.
The endpoint of this work is the actual, real time expression of the self to the actual
people in one's life. This certainly involves hitting them almost never. But if the arms
are freed in therapy, the expression, usually just involving voice and gesture, is
satisfying, convincing, and in line with the ego.
In healing traditions, the concept of self-expression tends somehow
always to be considered only a process of catching-up with past emotion
and experience. Where there has been considerable repression of expression,
some catching up will likely occur. This can become a stalling point or bad habit,
however, in which ongoing experience is stored in a buffer for dramatic expression
later in a 'therapeutic' or 'safe' setting. The real goal however, is prompt, spontaneous
expression.
Self Possession
Self possession is the capacity to possess strong feeling long enough to shape it into
a contactful response. It is self-possession that prevents desire and passion from
harming others. This is a very different quality than 'observing ego' in that it does not
expect the ego to be at war with impulses. About self-possession Alexander Lowen
writes:
What is wanted is an integration of the conscious and the involuntary and this can
only happen when every conscious act is infused with feeling and every involuntary
response is consciously perceived and understood (Pleasure, Chapter 11)
Self-possession is a natural quality within the person. If this capacity to possess
feeling is not present, then instead, the person either represses the feeling, side-steps
the development of feeling (compulsivity), or discharges small accumulations of
energy as soon as possible and almost randomly (impulsivity). Self-possession
should not be mistaken for the ego ideal of 'coolness' under all conditions. Strong,
emotional, unified, expression is made possible by self-possession.
Self-control is a more common term, but inadequate for the purpose of this concept.
First, self-control is often used in a puritanical sense to define a person stopping hisor herself from doing what they want to do. This is better described as selfnegation. Control really only means reasonable guidance of a force or
movement toward its fit or intended goal. Blocking is not controlling. Anyone
who disables the engine of a car cannot rightfully be said to be controlling anything
even if they are sitting behind the steering wheel. However, even this rehabilitated
definition of self-control does not convey the sensitivity and feeling of 'selfpossession.'
Adults are expected to respond out of thought as well as out of feeling. Young
children sometimes act thoughtlessly out of feeling such as grabbing a toy from
another child or biting a baby that is getting more attention. Because children at this
level cannot hold back actions in the face of feeling, to avoid being shamed or
punished, they must find a way of holding back feeling! But this is done by massive
muscle tension and shallow breathing which becomes permanent and unconscious.
As adults they are certainly able to hold back action, but they suffer from
pleasurelessness and inability to act creatively.
Traditional wise child-rearing did not expect a child to internalize control until six
years of age. Before this, supervision and 'environmental control' was used to keep
things safe. It was understood that yelling, shaming, and punishment only harmed
the child's spirit. That is why traditionally, formal education didn't start until six or
seven. This coincides, in the work of Piaget, with leaving the 'pre-operational stage'
and entering the 'stage of concrete operations'.
But in our complex culture which organizes potentially great rewards for adolescents
that have certain specialized achievement, parents feel pressure to give the child 'an
early start.' It is rationalized that the child needs to 'learn to control themselves
eventually' anyway. But if this self-management is only expected later, when the
timimg is right, then it can come about, very quickly, by much less harmful
mechanisms.
Flexibility
Flexibility has a double but related meaning. Flexibility is the freedom to move the
body in any direction. It is also the freedom to respond in many different ways to
situations. Personal flexibility is founded on bothautonomic flexibility, and
musclo-skeletal condition, which underpin ego flexibility. There is a functional
identity between the flexibility of the body and flexibility of the person. That is, in
loosening the body, by and large, one loosens the character.
There is concern even in the larger bodywork tradition, that, if exercises are
pursued mechanically without insight into character, it is possible to become flexible
physically but not emotionally or interpersonally. But bodily flexibility, while
valuable for athletics, is not mere athleticism. Bodily health and emotional health are
never too far apart. It is possible without flexibility, by heavy practice, to learn to
execute physical maneuvers in dance or sports that are legitimately called
skilled. But these movements are not spontaneous and are not in the
service of pleasure (though they may gratify the ego). It is unconscious,
unmanaged movement that is the key.
And of course flexibility is different than instability. In order to avoid instability,
many people distort their stance and posture in a way that limits flexibility greatly.
Often tight muscles and locked joints are involved. This is a large basis of clumsiness
which derives from fear of falling. Fear of falling is enormous in our culture. It
reflects, albeit at times in an exaggerated degree, a constant very real possibility
because few of us are neuro-muscularly prepared for the 'balancing act' that is
standing or the 'controlled fall' that is walking. Ironically, loosening up usually
increases stability but this requires both faith and bodily change to be experienced
where fear of falling is present.
Behaviorally, it is important not to confuse submission and tolerance for
flexibility. Accommodation is setting aside one's interests completely in favor of the
interests of another. This may make sense for instance with temporary house guests.
It may be realistic if the other is powerful. It may be convenient if the matter is small
and temporary. But as a way of life, accommodation is deleterious. Flexibility means
the ability to protest and resist where that is best for the person, or those he or she
represents. Flexibility implies freedom of response. In accommodation there is no
freedom because the self has been negated. Flexibility allows for collaboration, which
is the hashing out of mutually satisfying agreements with others.
"..and I told her [a client] that it was a misuse of the intellect to try to avoid
surprises."
Wilhelm Reich Character Analysis
Healthy tension is for us in the greatest contrast to constricting.We gladly give

ourselves a workout but we do not wish to wear ourselves out--and that is where
the difference lies. In reality whoever is able to truly relax is also capable of healthy
tension. This we perceive as beautiful changeability of energies that react to every
stimulus, increasing and diminishing as required. Above all it includes the strong
feeling of inner strength, of effortlessness in accomplishment.
Elsa Gindler Interview
Vulnerability
Vulnerability is not about organizing actions and relationships around weakness.

Rather vulnerability is expressing oneself without shame or apology, accepting
opposition and rejection by others, and willingness to take risks for one's belief's and
values. Said differently, vulnerability is willingness to live or to be in a way that
permits bad feelings to be experienced fully when bad things happen or
when contact is lost in a relationship. Naturally, to be vulnerable, ego and character
defenses need to be working at only a modest level.
Because pursuing modern life from a completely undefended point of view is
impractical, is reasonable to speak and think of 'allowing oneself to be vulnerable' on
suitable occaisions. Vulnerability will lead to less consistency in responses and
expression. This result can be difficult to accept, because most ego ideals include
consistency, as do most social ideals, liberal and conservative alike.
Vulnerability is a goal of many traditions of psychotherapy, but in the Reich and
Lowen tradition it has a biological meaning. Vulnerability is only possible if
automatic muscular armoring is decreased. Trying to live out a role of a 'sensitive
person' by being vigilant about emotional matters is not real vulnerability.
Vulnerability is not about manipulating others to limit themselves in ways that
protect us from bad feelings, nor is about forming mutual pacts along that line.
Body Based Practices
The Role of Bodywork in Change
It is a testament to our culture's alienation from the body, that any work towards
feeling better which incorporates the body at all has to be described as bodywork as
if to warn people that the body will be involved. Our present culture may seem to
'worship' the body as far as magazines and movies go. However, this is not
appreciation for the living surprises and felt joys of a body, but is rather the ego using
the body as 'clay' to form an image.
Within the modern Reich and Lowen tradition, the term bodywork is used to
separate active physical techniques from analysis. The ultimate goals are to
improve vibration, grounding, and breathing. Thus bodywork can lead to new
experience, but not all experiential work is bodywork. Bodywork is not just an
avenue of further knowledge or insight, but is actual neuro-muscular
and biological development.
Even within the sincere tradition of a feeling-based body orientation, there are
perhaps two large missteps possible. The first is the idea of 'laying on of hands.' A
clue to this is often that passivity of the transaction. In bodywork, the person may
sometimes be still (except for breath and vibration) but is never passive but rather
is actively receiving. That is why in the practices section of this website I use the
term participant. There is a group of passively experienced 'alternative' treatments
that are, I think, too hastily and casually lumped with bodywork traditions. Examples
are Thought Field Therapy, Reikki, or Non-Contact Therapeutic Touch. These
passive modalities may use 'somatic' language, but do not use bodywork as it will be
defined below. Being a healer, or laying on of hands, whether or not it is a
verifiable phenomenon, has never been an element of the Reich and
Lowen Tradition. This is certainly an angle ripe for charlatanism, witting and
unwitting. Pseudo-scientific gadgets have been developed that fill the same niche.
Body work is 'energy work, yes, but anything that is labeled 'energy work' but is
passively applied is suspect. It is the participants own bodily feeling that is the
authority on whether anything is happening.
The second misstep is depending two much on awareness alone. At any given level
of awareness, the subjective impression in all of our minds is that our awareness is
now maximum. New feelings increase awareness but awareness doesn't
increase feeling. There is often a border area of feeling that is present but
disregarded by the mind. Paying attention to and respecting such neglected feeling is
a necessarily first step in Reich and Lowen work. The habit or ideology of ignoring
feelings has to be set aside. But there are some therapy approaches that do not go
beyond this. These might be called 'focusing' therapies. They do avoid issues of a
trainer causing discomfort or issues of a trainer dominating someone. Practices that
increase conscious awareness of body importance, or body feeling, are no doubt very
useful for people that are reluctant to try bodywork or very vulnerable. Eventually
this will become circular. In the absence of bodywork as defined below, there is a
very real tendency to 'mentalize' the body and make it into just another
metaphor or idea, rather than an actual source of energy and good
feeling. The real work is increasing feeling, perhaps not always globally, but at a
minimum in suppressed areas. When strong feelings do arise, awareness
largely takes care of itself!(Grounding may be timely at this point)
I now think of bodywork being of two types: kinesiological and sensory.
Kinesiological work consists of causing some movement, perhaps just vibration.
Sensory work consists of creating sense impressions in a manner that reflexively
changes the functioning of sense organs or nearby muscles. Sensory work is
particularly fruitful for the face which is hard to reach with kinesiological work.
Sensory work is also especially important with thecreator character.
In the kinesiological area, very 'permissive', free-form approaches to movement have
a role in bringing expression to movement, but they usually fail to 'touch' a large
part of the restriction, since in the normal course of things, we all avoid some
movement (or more commonly we are incapable of it) and thereby miss some type of
experience unless we can be concretely guided in some movements, either by human
direction, or techniques that use props.
On the other side of the split, there are many physical training traditions of course
that move the body but without paying attention. Some attention may be paid to the
'shell' of a movement (end-gaining) but not the 'guts' of a movement. Attention is
paid to to final results, but attention is not paid to the movement details. No new
experience results.
Operational Goals of Bodywork
The work of Reich and Lowen implies a more or less universally desirable body
condition that is roughly 'un-armored enough.' That is the therapist seeks to provide
'correction', not just exploration. There are about five operational goals of bodywork
in this tradition:
Deepen, slow, and regulate respiration This is fundamental and where

body work starts. The other four tasks of bodywork depend on improving
respiration. Deepening respiration is not synonymous with sheer increase of
air exchange. There is some debate on the efficacy of deliberate breathwork on
changing the involuntary unconscious breathing pattern. Wilhelm Reich relied
on it, but Alexander Lowen disfavored direct manipulation. However, to me,
in this day and age, average breathing is so dysfunctional that some basic
exercises seem to constitute a very low-hanging fruit toward feeling better.
Balance the autonomic nervous system. Because most modern people

suffer from sympathetic shift, this usually entails increasing
parasympathetic innervation. Work on the autonomic nervous system also

seems to balance the immune and endocrine systems.
Improve alignment of the body, including the spine. This is a very

complex task since it will involve about every joint and muscle in the body.
Generally, it will require lengthening and relaxation of several muscle groups.
When alignment achieves a 'poised-enough' threshold movement seems to
become effortless and is largely pleasureable. Although the
word grounding has taken on a psychological meaning that cannot be
separated from the physical, grounding also very much refers to these
modifications of alignment in the body that allow the earth both to be felt and
to be used as a support and a springboard for movement
Reduce muscular tightness: This is done with shaking, massage, realignment, expressive, or lengthening techniques.
Increase the capacity for self-expression. This is done by working with

the voice, mouth, face, eyes, and arms. In expressive work done in sessions,
especially before a group, clients will often conceive the message expressed as
the purpose of expressive work. It can be. However, it is growth in a persons
ability to possess and shape expression that changes in-session catharsis into
self-expression that transfers well to daily life.
Bodywork Perspectives
Release: The approach of release is based on the concept of armor--muscular
rigidities that stop emotion and perception that the person is fully capable of, and
which would otherwise occur if not held back. The emphasis is on a 'natural'
completion, and only secondarily on form. The exercises of Alexander Lowen are the
epitome of this. There are perhaps a few 'subtypes': 1) Stress positions: this is putting
the body in a position which cannot be maintained for long, so in deliberately staying
in it, the participant' tight muscles 'must give way' 2) Pressure Massage: tight
muscles are painful when pressed upon. Applying that pressure 'forces' the tight
muscle to relax, 3) Priming the Pump: Starting to scream, tantrum or hitting on
purpose puts one in position where spontaneous feeling to do the same is likelier to
arise. Therapeutic massage, more gently, is about release. Hyperventilation
techniques are about release.
Neuro-Muscular Development: In this approach, exercises are used that gently
challenge the participant's abilities. The emphasis is on form, not completion,
because the goal is motor control not motor release. This perspective is based on the
idea that when organismic negation has occurred earlier, the ability for some feeling
and expression has never had its biological underpinnings developed, and so such
expression cannot be released but has to be 'built up'.
For an adult, with a mixture muscular tensions and muscular incapacities, any new
movement or expression will both stimulate new learning but also fight existing
rigidities. However, most traditions of bodywork emphasize one approach or
another. Awareness-based approaches like Feldenkreis, Alexander Technique are
permissive but developmentally focused. Pilates is not permissive, but very
developmentally focused, avoiding stress. Lowenian approaches to bodywork have
some elements of developmental focus, such as grounding exercises, but as suggested
above, are very much about release and to this end use some stress.
About Practices Listed Here
The practices listed here in the second, purple, horizontal menu are listed mainly so
that rationales and derivations could be listed. This is so that they do not have to be
practiced superstitiously ("I don't know why this works but I once saw Dr X do
this...") If someone finds a new exercise and tries it and finds it felicitous, so much
the better. I have tried to list (and of course this effort goes on is far from complete)
1) all solo practices whether some skill is part of it or not, because I assume any
sincere person can learn the skill, and 2) all practices where the participant may need
a helper, but the helper does not need skill but just instructions from the participant.
I have not listed specific exercises where the participant needs help from a skilled
person, for the self-evident reason that the essence may misconveyed. I am also not
listing exercises where there is a coherent, widely available, intact teaching tradition,
such as yogasana, deep tissue massage, Pilates, and many others. The teaching
tradition of Lowenian bioenergetics, at least in North America, seems, alas, not very
viable.

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Finding Feeling and Purpose by Michael Samsel

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Finding Feeling and Purpose

Everything I did in my life that was worthwhile I caught hell for.

Action has meaning only in relationship, and without understanding relationship,

About the Author-- Michael Samsel

I am a 51 year-old therapist living and working in Seattle Washington. I have

Love, work and knowledge are the well-springs of our

Growth and Therapy

In the Reich and Lowen

Principles for Change

In the Reich and Lowen

The Concept of Character

In the Reich and Lowen

Energy and Movement

In the Reich and Lowen

In the Reich and Lowen

Goals and Abilities

In the Reich and Lowen

Body Based Practices

In the Reich and Lowen

In the Reich and Lowen

In the Reich and Lowen

In the Reich and Lowen

In the Reich and Lowen

Real understanding rarely can get ahead of actual practice, but

Growth and Therapy

In the Reich and Lowen Tradition

Some Basic Presumptions

Attention to the Pleasure Function More than the Reality Function

Acceptance of Instinctual and Natural Forces, and Emphasis on Selfregulation

only to be informed by natural desires leading to an acceptably 'enlightened' form of

Goals are Outside Consciousness

Emphasis on Correction Rather than Exploration

Even humanists, however, accept 'correction' from general medicine physicians. No

Cognitive behavioral therapy is based on dissociating cognitions (the ego) from

Emphasis on Drive versus Object

Once the basic emotional economy is improved, then of course a developmental

Emphasis More on Unstructuring Than Structuring

'Cracking' character is a monumental task to do if it ever gets done at all. Lowen

Emphasis on Developing Good Feelings More than Removing Bad

Emphasis on Robust Emotional Interaction

Emphasis on Loving versus Being Lovable:

A great deal of achievement in our culture is spurred by the hope to be lovable.

By contrast, most casual, humanistic psychotherapy is oriented toward three

Emphasis on Social Results and the Body as a Guide

Focus on the Character Rather than the Symptom or Concern

lifestyle. It seems, that intangible as it is, character is the ultimate repository of

Emphasis on Good Feeling and Emotional Health Rather than Meaning.

Functionalism (or functional thinking) is a concept developed by Wilhelm

interest in understanding how that person is functioning. There is a dominant

Believes it is matter over mind

Fears subjective reality, the spontaneous, the unpredictable. Retreats outward

Life includes some essential element that is not explained by conventional

Focuses on what almost always actually happens, not what is desired or

Living organisms affect each other simultaneously. Joint experience is

Wilhelm Reich (1897-1957)

To give a quick biographical sketch of Wilhelm Reich is

Alexander Lowen (1910-2008)

This website was originally conceived as a resource for anyone

Pilates and Other Traditions

practices. These physical practices are varied and it is an oversimplification but