Reichian Therapy - Orgonomic Psychotherapy   Top

Developed by the Austrian psychiatrist Wilhelm Reich MD.  Reichian psychotherapy; also referred to as Orgonomic Psychotherapy or Orgonomy, is the forerunner of many of today's body oriented therapies. The word Orgone was coined by Reich and refers to the Organic life force energy found in all of nature – in Eastern Philosophy known as Qi, Ki or Prana.  Reichian Psychotherapy aims to relieve learned patterns of negative behaviour and chronic muscular tension using metacognition, bodywork, eye focusing techniques, breathwork, sound and movement.  In this way natural Orgone energy is liberated.  

Reichian Psychotherapy recognises the interwoven nature of mind and body. It can create profound character transformation and somatic wellbeing, reducing both physical and psychological symptoms. With Reichian Psychotherapy you become the instrument of positive change in your life, finding new levels of emotional health, revitalised life energy, autonomy and authenticity in your relationships.

As we grow and struggle with adversity, we can develop repetitive coping strategies to avoid difficult feelings and impossible situations. These strategies may once have allowed us to survive but now as adults hinders our development and enjoyment of life. These behaviours can alienate others, keep us from our true feelings, needs and desires by inhibiting our ability to actualise who we really are. Our creativity and success, in an increasingly urban world, are minimised and problems with depression, anxiety, phobias, insomnia, emptiness, loneliness, eating disorders or addiction can rule our existence. These patterns have their roots in chronic character styles and muscle armouring which have developed throughout our lifetime, often through traumatic incidents. As these behaviour patterns are confronted, the character defences are dislodged and the muscle armor is melted away. The traumatic response will be soothed, so that we no longer define ourself from the past but live with awareness in the present, having discovered our true, natural life affirming and spiritual nature; to live in a state of grace.

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To be totally alive with one's senses, fully perceptive, emotionally unrestricted,

to have a mind free to explore and make new connections

and a strong, agile body is to live in a state of grace.

Morton Herskowitz - Orgonomist

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Post Traumatic Stress Therapy    Top

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Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) occurs when a person has either witnessed or experienced an actual or perceived threat to their personal safety; such as serious injury, combat stress, death, surgery, sexual abuse, emotional or physical attack, domestic violence, road accident or similar events.  PTSD has a ripple effect often implicating others, far beyond the person who has suffered the trauma.  An easy way to differentiate stress from trauma is that any event is considered traumatic when the symptoms of arousal do not settle down, even after the incident has passed.

PTSD has a complex symptomatology. The tentacles of trauma reach into all areas of people’s lives filling them with shame and a belief that they are broken or damaged.  People who have been traumatised hold an implicit memory of traumatic events in their brains and bodies which can cause symptoms such as nightmares, flashbacks, startle responses, emotional numbness, detachment, anxiety, hyper-vigilance, sleep disturbances, fear and feeling dissociated from life. Central to the experience of trauma are the feelings of shame, anxiety, helplessness, isolation and the loss of power and control.  The nervous system and the reptilian brain will react to an actual threat or a perceived threat in the same way.   Stress and trauma occur in the body, not in the event, as they are the body’s reactions to past unresolved “threatening experiences.” It is our survival instinct, the fight, flight or freeze response, that attempts to keep us safe. Although there may be psychological implications, trauma is inherently a physiological condition; a physical feedback loop that can get stuck in the past. Consequently employing specific trauma recovery techniques and developing awareness of body sensations and reactions, can safely and gradually allow the autonomic nervous system to unwind, discharge, reorganise and return to resilient homeostasis and equipoise.  Effective post traumatic stress therapy involves both metacognition and bodywork.

Shame is one of the most painful of emotions.

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You will explore how to quieten the inner critic, stop the blame game and self-shaming.  It begins with learning how to recognise shame so that you can work through it and move on, feeling more whole and empowered with a greater sense of your true self. Post traumatic stress therapy can help you reclaim your life and your sanity.  Imagine feeling safe, joyful and excited about your future for the first time in ages. You will learn how to reconnect with feeling grounded, cantered, embodied and empowered. Be in charge and in control of your own life.  Live life the way you always wanted to.  Make good choices accepting responsibility for your actions.  Create a realistic and meaningful life with curiosity and vitality.

People affected by trauma tend to feel unsafe in their bodies and untrusting in their relationships with others - so our first job is to create a reasonable and achievable sense of safety and stabilisation. Only then will we move towards processing the trauma, putting words and emotions to it and making meaning of it. Pacing and timing are crucial, you will learn to 'apply the brakes' when things become overwhelming, to honour and respect how you actually are in each moment and to re-establish flexible, safe boundaries. This is a complex journey so it is important to be kind, patient and compassionate with yourself as you heal.  

Above all believe yourself !

Post Traumatic Stress recovery and healing are achieved when you have re-established the ability to live in the present without being overwhelmed by the thoughts and feelings of the past and can define yourself in the context of a meaningful life and authentic relationships.  Communicating fully is the opposite of being traumatized.  Post Traumatic Stress therapy can take from a few sessions to several years.

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Eroticism resides in the ambiguous space

between anxiety and fascination.  

And when we can harness it, we remain interested in our partners;

they delight us, and we're drawn to them.

Esther Perel