The term “Body Psychotherapy” began to establish itself in the field of psychotherapy in the 1980s.
Its scientific and administrative body in Europe, the EABP, was founded in 1988, while the USABP is active in America. We are now in the fourth “generation” of Body Psychotherapists, starting with Reich and Raknes.
Body Psychotherapy encompasses a set of psychotherapeutic approaches that share the same basic principles:
- The body plays an important role in a person’s mental state
- Mind and body are interconnected
- The involvement of the body and the emphasis placed on it increases the therapeutic
- The possibilities of psychotherapy
Dr. Pierre Janet (1889)
Another important researcher in the history of Body Psychotherapy was Albert Abrams (1891–1910), who based some of his theories on the work of Franz Anton Mesmer (1779) and Armand-Marie-Jacques de Chastenet and Marquis de Puységur (1784) on the connection between mind and body.
As Boadella (1997) notes, Freud researched Janet’s findings and was influenced by his ideas, but then ignored the study of the body and focused exclusively on verbal communication.
Freud initially described the concept of the ego as “first and foremost a physical ego” (Freud, 1923), implying a connection between body and mind.
Also, his initial conception of libido was within a framework of homeostasis with a strong support for the release of the body’s energy.
However, he later changed his mind, considering instead that the body represents the dangerously dominant force of instincts that must be kept under the control of the mind.
The mind became the focus of classical psychotherapy as the means by which a person can express their core self by processing their thoughts and beliefs.
Wilhelm Reich (1897–1957)
The Austro-Hungarian physician and psychoanalyst Wilhelm Reich (1897–1957), a student and later collaborator of Freud, gradually became the most important pioneer of Body Psychotherapy.
Reich focused on the “character” of the analysand—the individual’s unique way of being—which forms the basis of the symptoms that manifest themselves.
He introduced the concept of “armouring,” which refers to the defence mechanism that a person develops to cope with intense sensations and unbearable emotions.
Armouring has a characterological and physical component. He also developed “Neurophytotherapy,” a method of restoring the healthy functioning of the Autonomic Nervous System (ANS) through specific physical techniques and exercises followed by verbal expression and processing.
Reich’s ideas about “character” and the processing of resistance and negative transference became widely accepted in the psychoanalytic world, while his emphasis on working with the body, emotional release, and sexuality was continued and developed by various Neo-Reichian and Bioenergetic schools.
Later, Reich further developed the concepts of orgasmic capacity and sexual energy into what he called “orgone energy,” which made him even less popular in psychoanalytic circles.
Groddeck and Ferenczi
Other innovators such as Groddeck and Ferenczi also experimented with working more directly with the body, while Adler, Jung, and others explored how psychic energy is distributed within the body and the relationship between body and mind.
Several psychotherapists, contemporaries of Reich, were greatly influenced by his work with the body, particularly Fritz Perls (1969), founder of Gestalt therapy, Arthur Janov (1970), who established Primordial therapy, and Stanislav Grof (1986), who named his technique Holotropic Breathwork. However, none of them acknowledged this.
Reich
Reich’s work with the body, muscular armor, and resistance attracted many followers. In Norway and the United States, Reich worked with many professionals who incorporated his theory into their work.
An international movement of Body Psychotherapy developed with many variations that either stemmed directly from Reich’s work or added something substantial to it, or at least owed much to it.
Elsworth Baker
In America, Elsworth Baker and his colleagues—known as “ergonomists”—founded the College of Ergonomics (1968) and published the Journal of Ergonomics, continuing the tradition of Reich’s Medical Ergonomics.
The second generation of Body Psychotherapists, trained by Reich in America and called “Neo-Reichians,” includes Alexander Lowen, John Pierrakos, Myron Sharaf, and Eva Reich.
Alexander Lowen (1910-2008)
Dr. Alexander Lowen (1910-2008) created Bioenergetic Analysis (1975), developing and adding very important concepts and techniques to Body Psychotherapy: “grounding” in therapy, therapeutic work in an upright position, and the expansion of breathing.
John Pierrakos (1921-2001)
John Pierrakos (1921-2001), initially Lowen’s collaborator, developed Core Energetics (1987), which aims to facilitate the liberation of the core self, combining his therapeutic experience in Bioenergetics with a type of spiritual meditation practiced by his wife and focusing on the joy of living.
Eva Reich
Eva Reich, W. Reich’s youngest daughter, developed Gentle Bioenergetics or Gentle Infant Massage (1996), a type of gentle massage that mothers can perform on their premature babies to help restore the bond with them, which has been disrupted.
Ola Raknes (1887-1975)
In Norway, psychoanalyst Ola Raknes (1887-1975) was also trained by Reich in Character-Analytic Neurophytotherapy and went on to train other scientists such as A.S. Neill, Paul Ritter, Peter Jones, David Boadella, Gerda Boyesen, and Malcolm Brown.
Several of them developed their own type of Body Psychotherapy and became the third generation of Body Psychotherapists.
David Boadella (1931-2021)
Thus, David Boadella created Biosynthesis, which delves into how the three embryonic layers—endoderm, mesoderm, and ectoderm—affect current structures in the body.
Boadella was a very important figure in the field of Body Psychotherapy, especially from 1970 to 1990.
She created the first journal on Body Psychotherapy: Energy & Character, which helped it gain an independent identity as a scientific field and internal coherence. She also helped establish the European Association for Body Psychotherapy (EABP, 1988) and became its first president.
Gerda Boyesen (1922-2005)
Gerda Boyesen (1922-2005) founded Biodynamic Psychology (1980), adding the understanding that the system of self-regulation of emotional intensity lies not only in the reflex of orgasm or the relaxation of muscular armor, but also in the parasympathetic activity of the digestive system.
He introduced the terms “emotional assimilation” and “psycho-peristalsis” and developed a theory and techniques for relaxing connective tissue armor and Reichian muscle armor.
He also developed a type of very gentle massage that relaxes and balances the ANS, thereby enhancing the expression of emotions behind physical tensions.
Her son, Paul Boyesen, later created his own method, which he called Psychoorganic Analysis.
Malcolm Brown & Katherine Ennis Brown
Malcolm Brown and his wife Katherine Ennis Brown, influenced by Gestalt psychotherapy and Charlotte Selver, Carl Rogers (2003), Reich, Lowen, Boadella (1987), and Boyesen (1980), developed Organismic Psychotherapy.
The Browns delved into the effect of the therapist’s touch and how it differs depending on whether the therapist is male or female. Malcolm Brown investigated the different functionality of “vertical grounding” (standing position) versus “horizontal grounding” in therapy.
Lillemore Johnsen (1981)
Lillemore Johnsen (1981), influenced by Freud and Reich and through a more existential perspective, developed a unique method of “reading the body,” gentle touch, and restoring breathing, with a precise diagnostic process. She called her approach Integrated Respiration Therapy.
Lisbeth Marcher (1989)
Lisbeth Marcher (1989), using some of Johnsen’s ideas, created the Bodynamics approach, which considers that personality problems and elements of character structure are created as a result of conflicts in relationships. Her techniques aim to transform old and persistent patterns of behavior through training and activation of motor and psychological resources.
Charles Kelley (1922-2005)
Charles Kelley (1922-2005) created the Radix method (1970s), a kind of ” training in emotion, purpose, and vision improvement,” combining Reich’s techniques for emotional release and William Bates’ method for improving vision.
Stanley Keleman (1986)
Stanley Keleman (1986), a student of Alexander Lowen and Ola Raknes, differed significantly from Reich, demonstrating that the concept of armoring, the flow of energy and its restriction, extends not only to the muscles but also to the soft tissues of the body, the viscera.
Ron Kurtz (1990)
Ron Kurtz (1990), combining his influences from Gestalt therapy, Arthur Janov’s primal therapy, Rolfing, Bioenergetic Analysis, and J. Pierrakos, Al Pesso, and Moshe Feldenkrais, developed the Hakomi method, which helps individuals bring out what they have the potential to be or what they “should be.”
Jack Lee Rosenberg (1996)
Jack Lee Rosenberg (1996) created Synthetic Body Psychotherapy by incorporating elements from yoga, Bioenergetic Analysis, Reichian analysis, psychoanalysis, Interpersonal Analysis, and object relations.
Jerome Liss (1986)
Psychiatrist Jerome Liss (1986) developed the Biosystemic Approach, which combines various ways of working with the body to explore the relationship between the parasympathetic and sympathetic sides of the ANS. The resulting emotional deepening helps the individual return to a healthy balance.
Jacob “Jay” Stattman (1989 και 1991)
Moving on to the next generation of somatic psychotherapists who had no contact with Reich’s colleagues and students, Jacob “Jay” Stattman (1989 and 1991) founded Integrative Psychology, combining elements of Humanistic Psychology with Reich’s theoretical work and some psychodynamic elements of Character Analysis.
He used various body techniques focusing on breathing, movement, and touch, influenced by Gerda Boyesen, Reich, Lowen, and Feldenkrais.
Yvonne Maurer (1993)
Influenced by Gestalt and Bioenergetics, psychiatrist Yvonne Maurer (1993) developed Body-Centered Psychotherapy.
Luciano Rispoli (2008)
Luciano Rispoli (2008) developed Functional Psychology, which examines the functionality of the individual at all levels: cognitive, emotional, physical, and physiological. The therapy aims to mobilize and reintegrate altered functions and restore early fundamental experiences.
Arnold Mindell
Arnold Mindell, who was originally a Jungian analyst, developed his own approach, Process Oriented Psychotherapy, in the late 1970s, which follows the psychological process of the individual as it develops and moves through many different channels.
Contemporary Dance-Movement Psychotherapy
Another important trend is Contemporary Dance-Movement Psychotherapy, a physical psychotherapeutic version of Dance-Movement Therapy developed by Elsa Gindler between 1910 and 1920.
Ilana Rubenfeld (1998)
Ilana Rubenfeld (1998) developed the Rubenfeld Synergy Method, which uses a type of touch with the hands that is quite similar to Gerda Boyesen’s gentle biodynamic massage technique.
There are also quite a few who have engaged in some form of “body therapy” to which they have subsequently added psychotherapeutic elements to transform it into Body Psychotherapy.
For example, in Europe, Jack Painter’s Postural Integration method (1987) was transformed into Psychotherapeutic Postural Integration with the incorporation of Gestalt psychotherapy.
Similarly, in America, Susan Aposhyan (2004) transformed Bonnie Bainbridge Cohen’s Body-Mind Centering into Somatic Psychotherapy.
Albert Pesso and his wife Diane Boyden-Pesso (1961), who came from the field of professional dance, studied how movement can facilitate the expression of emotions.
Thus, they developed the Psychokinetic approach, which has now evolved into a type of physical psychodrama.
There are also several people who have been involved in some form of “body therapy” to which they have subsequently added psychotherapeutic elements to transform it into Body Psychotherapy.
For example, in Europe, Jack Painter’s (1987) Postural Integration method was transformed into Psychotherapeutic Postural Integration with the incorporation of Gestalt psychotherapy.
Similarly, in America, Susan Aposhyan (2004) transformed Bonnie Bainbridge Cohen’s Body-Mind Centering into Physical Psychotherapy.
Albert Pesso and his wife Diane Boyden-Pesso (1961), who came from the field of professional dance, studied how movement can facilitate the expression of emotions. Thus, they developed the Psychokinetic approach, which has now evolved into a type of physical psychodrama.
It took 70 years, from 1934 to 2004, when the conference “For the Body: Working with the Embodied Mind in Psychotherapy” was held in Cambridge, for the body to regain its place in psychotherapy.
Neuroscience is also now helping to move towards a unified approach to the science of psychology in relation to humans and their bodies.
Body Psychotherapy has benefited from psychoanalysis in terms of integrating the concept of the therapeutic relationship and the proper use of transference and countertransference.
On the other hand, the concept of somatic resonance as a type of “somatic transference,” essential for many body psychotherapists, is now becoming increasingly accepted in the field of psychotherapy in general as an important aspect of the therapeutic relationship.
The psychotherapist’s body is now recognized as an important element in the therapeutic process (Shaw, 2003).
Text source: https://www.pesops.gr/swmatikh-psychotherapeia/paron-kai-parelthon/h-istoriki-exelixi-tis-somatikis-psichotherapias/
