Reich's Great Gift: Health in 2012

Those of us involved in carrying on the work of Wilhelm Reich often discuss the significance of his contributions and question which of them will resonate most with those new to his work. Is it his discovery of the life energy and his attempt to place it on scientific footing? Is it his insight into the workings of humankind on the grand scale with his discovery and exposition of mass psychology? Or is it the unique therapy he developed with its ability to enable those who undertake it to lead more all-embracing and joyful lives, to have better relationships, to be better parents, and to take pleasure in their work?

Solid arguments can be made for any one of these three major contributions as being the most significant. The energy provides the basis for understanding life’s processes; mass psychology provides a means for understanding everything from the politics of the playground to the politics of nations; and orgone therapy is able to provide immeasurable benefit to individuals. 

Except for the interest of a handful of investigators across the globe, the scientific community remains either unaware of, or unconcerned with, Wilhelm Reich’s discovery of a universal energy, one which he explained flows through all living things and drives the cosmos. At least for now, Reich’s orgone energy remains a virtually unknown and yet untapped scientific resource, one that awaits recognition and acknowledgement so that it can be built upon for the betterment of humankind. 

I think it probable that Reich will never be credited with his discovery of the energy he called “orgone,” as this energy has already begun to be recognized by one branch of today’s scientific establishment--with never a mention of Reich. Just last year three astronomers were awarded the Nobel Prize in physics for invalidating decades of accepted knowledge in the field of cosmology. They demonstrated that so called “dark energy” is causing our universe to expand at an ever-accelerating speed. Just as the connection between Reich’s work and current astrophysics waits to be made, so does the connection between the dark energy in the universe and the life energy that flows and pulsates within us.     

Reich’s understanding of mass psychology is of great import, and it has the potential to one day reform the structure of political and social institutions. Here too, as in the case of orgone energy, his sociopolitical work stands for future generations to “rediscover” and explore. 

It is not possible to predict which aspect of Reich’s vast body of work will eventually be rediscovered to open doors for tomorrow’s research. However, the reality is there is only one contribution he’s made that can improve YOUR life, right now, in a very real way--and that is therapy. 

To Our Health in 2012

Across the globe we rang in the new year with toasts to health. “Salud!” “L’chaim!” “Prost!” Many of us resolved to eat healthier, exercise, or take vitamins and other supplements. All of these resolutions, if put into action, are wonderful things to do. However, I’m always surprised by how few of the people I know--who are very knowledgable and enthusiastic about Reich’s discoveries--are actively engaged in orgone therapy. There are many “armchair” advocates of Reich, individuals who have “had some therapy” and declare they benefited greatly, but who stopped treatment somewhere along the way.

I hope to write more extensively about stopping therapy as there is much to say on the subject. Some people report having stopped because they felt “good enough.” They used therapy to get themselves through difficult times, and when they could again walk--or limp along--continuing treatment became no longer a priority. There are also often largely unrecognized factors responsible for the decision to dropout. Sometimes the relationship with the therapist grows stale, or therapy ceases to progress and prove beneficial, or resistances develop which are not properly overcome. (“Resistance” is the term for the forces within the patient, conscious and unconscious, that oppose the purpose of the therapy. It is something that almost always occurs to some degree in the course of treatment.) 

If you are reading this and are someone who has had some therapy in the past, or if you have never tried orgone therapy, consider giving yourself the gift of therapy, a unique treatment that doesn’t rely on medications. Reich’s mind-body method of treatment is not just for those who are experiencing significant emotional problems. It’s for anyone who wants to feel increasingly better, with more energy to do what they love--with greater clarity of mind and an increased feeling of inner calm. 

Barriers to Therapy

Of course there are real barriers to undertaking treatment, as well as “good,” well-rationalized excuses to put it off, or abandon the idea entirely. One real barrier is the difficulty in finding a traditional orgonomist, someone who was trained to practice the therapy as it was conceived by Reich. For this reason travel, sometimes long distances, may be required. Embarking on a course of this treatment requires a commitment of time and financial resources. It requires an emotional commitment as well, but it’s one that has a tremendous payoff. Barriers to therapy have always existed and therefore only those with a strong desire to feel better and lead a happier, healthier life get into therapy and stick with it. Individuals with this kind of motivation are my patients and I admire their courage and tenacity--and love them for it! It is enormously gratifying to see virtually every aspect of their lives improving. It is why I do the work that I do. I am honored to have second and now third generation patients, the children and grandchildren of individuals who embarked on a course of therapy with me more than 35 years ago.  

Short-Burst Therapy

I have long been an advocate of what I call “intermittent intensive orgone therapy,” a cumbersome sounding designation which is better termed “short-burst therapy.” With this approach the patient does not come for treatment on a weekly or every-other-week basis (the traditional model) but rather has a number of consecutive sessions with long intervals in between. Years ago, in the 1980s, I was asked to treat patients in Italy and then Germany, and would travel there regularly to Europe for that purpose, as well as to train orgone therapists. At first I was unsure about the effectiveness of seeing patients for a series of sessions only four or five times a year. However, what I discovered was that my short-burst therapy patients in Europe did as well, if not better, than the patients I saw back home on a very regular basis. 

On my long list of things to do is to update my article “Intermittent Intensive Orgone Therapy,” which was based on a lecture I presented in New York in 1986. In the years that have followed since the publication of that article, I have become even more convinced of the benefits of a spaced, intensive treatment approach, and today I have more evidence that confirms its effectiveness. 

Short-burst therapy has proven to work well for almost all patients, but it particularly fits the needs for those who wish to embark on a treatment program with an orgonomist not in their area. I have a number of such patients who see me for fifteen or twenty sessions over the course of a year. They combine a week of therapy with a vacation away from home and their daily routine. In the interim, between visits, we can address any important issues that might arise by telephone. Recently, thanks to the wonder of technology, I have also been using Skype’s video-calling service to hold sessions with some of my long-distance patients.

It is always distressing when I hear from people that they have stopped seeing their therapist before reaching their full potential for feeling well and leading a satisfying life. I don’t in any way find fault with these individuals. While some cannot tolerate the new feelings and emotions that come up during the process, I believe the vast majority of those who enter this therapy can be helped and would stick with it, if treated appropriately. I have often wondered how many individuals who have had some therapy could have not only led fuller lives for themselves, but also could have gone on to make a real contribution to the future of orgonomy, had treatment not disappointed them. If you are among those who made it a resolution in 2012 to live healthier, and if you are not currently in orgone therapy, consider jumping back in or trying it out. While legitimate barriers exist to embarking on a journey of therapy, they all can be overcome with a willing spirit. 

To your health in 2012! 

There are very few orgonomists worldwide, although there are hundreds, if not thousands, who call themselves “Reichians” or who practice some offshoot of the mind-body treatment Reich originated. If you are interested in traditional orgone therapy, you can contact me directly at (215) 862-9939 and I will try to recommend a therapist in your general area. 

Reich and Marcuse

Wilhelm Reich and Herbert Marcuse were contemporaries and each sought to understand the workings of humankind as sociologists and political theorists. Both men were Jewish and were born a year apart in Eastern Europe: Reich in 1897 in a Galician village, then part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and Marcuse in 1898 in Berlin. Both came from affluent families. Both served in the First World War--in 1916 Reich joined the Austrian Army and ultimately became a lieutenant at the Italian front. Also in 1916 Marcuse was drafted into the German Army but did not see combat. When Hitler came to power in the 1930s, both men fled Germany, Marcuse coming to the United States in 1934, and Reich in 1939. 

Wilhelm Reich, in his lab 1944.

Although very different in their interests, approach and the scope of their work, Reich and Marcuse each, in their own way, felt sex was a key to human liberation and both advocated non-repressive societies. The ideas of Reich and Marcuse were embraced by young radicals in the 1960s. Both men have been maligned, heralded as saviors, dismissed as insignificant, and--even recently--blamed for the decline in modern America*. They share the distinction of having their complex ideas reduced to simple axioms by those who do not have the desire or patience to really read them, and both are remembered, in large part, for their discussions of human sexuality.                

In my last post, I wrote of an upcoming lecture by David Brahinsky, Ph.D. titled The Relevance of Wilhelm Reich’s “The Mass Psychology of Fascism” to the Struggle Against Fascism, a Project Shared by Herbert Marcuse. The lecture was given at the 2011 conference of the International Marcuse Society. It is now my pleasure to publish this important document online, in its entirely. 

Herbert Marcuse

Marcuse was highly critical of Reich. In his preface to the 1998 edition of Marcuse’s Eros and Civilization, Douglas Kellner says, during a 1978 interview, that Marcuse stated he and others within his intellectual circle believed Reich “moved too fast from subjective conditions to objective conditions” and “vastly oversimplified” fascism in claiming that sexual repression created personalities that were susceptible to fascism, and in explaining that fascism succeeds by manipulating repressed personalities and providing sexual surrogates. Indeed, in Eros and Civilization Marcuse states: “Reich’s notion of sexual repression remains undifferentiated; he neglects this historical dynamic of the sex instincts and of their fusion with the destructive impulses....Consequently, sexual liberation per se becomes for Reich a panacea for individual and social ills.”  

For Marcuse, the value of Reich’s work lies only in his early writings in so far as they are an attempt, as he puts it, to develop the critical social theory implicit in Freud. Even so, Marcuse feels this effort falls short because of Reich’s “sweeping primitivism” which he says foreshadows “the wild and fantastic hobbies of Reich’s later years.” (See Eros and Civilization.)

Like so many others, Marcuse diminishes and then dismisses Reich. Also, like others, he refuses to even entertain Reich’s idea that there exists a biologic energy that determines how humans function. But Brahinsky sets the record straight in his important paper. He begins by explaining that Reich and Marcuse had the shared goal of attempting to understand the roots and functioning of fascism. He goes on to state, “neither Marcuse himself nor Marcuse scholars, as far as I can tell, have shown that they understand or appreciate the full measure of Reich’s contribution to this important project.” Brahinsky then explains in stepwise fashion the development of Reich’s key ideas, correctly refutes Marcuse’s assertion that Reich saw sexual liberation as a panacea, and effectively demonstrates the importance of Reich’s later scientific work, namely that biological factors determine social and political conditions.

In addition to being of interest to Reich and Marcuse scholars, The Relevance of Wilhelm Reich’s “The Mass Psychology of Fascism” to the Struggle Against Fascism, a Project Shared by Herbert Marcuse also serves as a splendid overview of Reich’s work. I consider it an excellent addition to today’s scholarship on Wilhelm Reich and the science of orgonomy.


*See Patrick J. Buchanan's New York Times bestseller "The Death of the West" (2002).

Lecture on Reich's Influence on Marcuse

David Brahinsky, Ph.D. will be presenting his paper The Relevance of Wilhelm Reich's ‘The Mass Psychology of Fascism’ to the Struggle Against Fascism, a Project Shared by Herbert Marcuse at the University of Pennsylvania on Saturday, October 29th. His lecture is part of the 2011 conference of The International Herbert Marcuse Society. 

David Brahinsky, Ph.D.

Dr. Brahinsky is a professor of Philosophy and Comparative Religion at Bucks County Community College and has had an interest in Reich’s work since the 1960’s. He earned his Ph.D. in Philosophy from S.U.N.Y. Binghamton. 

Dr. Brahinsky told me the focus of his lecture will be twofold. “First to express the fact that Reich's later work (the discovery of orgone energy and all that this entails) has been casually dismissed and ignored by Marcuse and Marcuse students and followers; the second that this later work is central to understanding the significance of Reich's contribution to our understanding of Fascism and so how to overcome it. I do this by tracing the evolution of Reich's understanding from his early days with Freud and onwards,” he said.

Herbert Marcuse (1898–1979) was a German Jewish philosopher, sociologist and political theorist associated with the Frankfurt School of critical theory. His best known works are Eros and Civilization, One-Dimensional Man and The Aesthetic Dimension. 

Dr. Brahinsky’s lecture will be held at University of Pennsylvania’s Houston Hall, located at 3417 Spruce Street. The conference is open to all however advance reservations are required. The link to the conference is www.MarcuseSociety.org.

The King’s Speech: A Portrayal of Childhood Trauma as a Cause of Stuttering

The King’s Speech, winner of four Academy Awards this year, including best film, impressed me for many reasons. It’s my kind of character-driven film, with a straightforward plot and no dizzying special effects or sex scenes thrown in to spice it up. The story line is simple: the plight of King George VI of Britain, a severe stutterer, and his struggle overcome his affliction.  

The King’s Speech is not the first film of this genre to win wide acclaim, or best picture. Rain Man (1988) did much to make the public aware of the plight of the autistic and A Beautiful Mind (2001) portrayed the painful struggle of a paranoid schizophrenic. A theme in all three films, one that resonates with audiences, is the suffering caused by disorders that defy medical understanding and the attempts we make to help those so afflicted.

The outcome of the film is fairly predictable. King George demonstrates remarkable determination and does get the best of his speech impediment. However, it’s how this was achieved that I found most interesting. Lionel Logue, an “unqualified” speech therapist with an unorthodox approach, proves successful where others have failed. The audience roots for the King to bring his stammer under control, and for Lionel to succeed in treating his difficult celebrity patient, but there is another important element that resonates with audiences. 

Viewers empathize with King George because they understand, at a deep level, that his stuttering is a physical disorder rooted in an abusive childhood. We learn that as a very young boy he suffered severe traumas. His nanny withheld food from him, and pinched him to make him cry before greeting his parents, so his parents would grow to dislike him. He was forced to wear iron leg braces several hours a day as a treatment for his bowlegs. Furthermore, as he was left handed, he was forced to use his right hand and punished when he used his left. 

Current View on Stuttering

Today, the prevailing theory on stuttering is that it has no link, whatsoever, to emotional or physical traumas experienced in early childhood. This view has been expressed by organizations such as the nonprofit Stuttering Foundation, which states: “Children and adults who stutter are no more likely to have psychological or emotional problems than children and adults who do not. There is no reason to believe that emotional trauma causes stuttering.” 

Thus, a major theme in the film, that King George’s stuttering was related to the trauma of having his handedness switched, and that Lionel Logue accepted this as a well-established fact, is considered by today’s medical establishment as pure fiction. Yet the audience of The King’s Speech immediately understands, and is willing to accept, that the King’s stuttering is related--in some way--to his traumatic childhood. They are also willing to accept that his stuttering can be helped by an unconventional therapy, one that takes into account an emotional component, along with the physical manifestations of the disorder. 

What the audience of The King’s Speech understands, at a gut-level, and what they are willing to accept as true, is correct in my experience. Stuttering does have an emotional basis. I have treated a number of individuals with speech impediments with psychiatric orgone therapy, including many stutterers. Almost all have shown significant improvement and the majority have had their voice completely restored. This is so despite an ever-increasing trend in medicine to discount clinical experience in favor of “evidence-based medicine.” Today, a therapy is considered acceptable only if it can be backed up with references that have been published. These must have appeared in peer-reviewed medical literature, supported by randomized, placebo controlled, double-blind studies that have yielded statistically valid outcomes. 

Now that genetic explanations are replacing external causative factors, with the body being viewed as nothing more than a complex machine, the continued mechanization of medicine is inevitable. Given the shift away from recognizing the value of a physician’s personal experience with patients, it is unfortunate that unorthodox treatments are unlikely to be explored, let alone ever accepted.

Wilhelm Reich, M.D.

How traumatic childhood events produce changes in the body is one of Wilhelm Reich’s pivotal discoveries. What he found is that specific areas of the body contract in an attempt to handle emotional shocks. These areas of holding, that he called armoring, all too often become chronic and remain for life--unless they are removed with therapy. Understanding the process by which armoring forms, and how it can be eliminated, allows sense to be made of the relationship between the mind and the body. Thanks to Reich’s discovery, this often mystified connection has been made comprehensible. 

Central to Reich’s theory is that the traumas of childhood remain locked away in the body as armoring. They are out of conscious awareness. The function of these bodily contractions is to prevent painful emotions associated with past events from reemerging into consciousness. Unfortunately, that there is an unconscious and that there are forces at work to keep it concealed, is not really much accepted. In spite of an enormous amount of evidence, most people still believe that if an event, or an emotion, cannot be consciously recalled, it cannot possibly have produced a lasting effect. This is not true. The emotional shocks and suffering of childhood are never truly forgotten. To quote William Faulkner, “The past is never dead. It’s not even past.”

What we know from Reich is that stuttering is an affliction affecting two discrete areas, the jaw and throat, or as Reich called these areas, the oral and cervical segments. Both are associated with speech production. Reich explains in Children of the Future that: “Stammering and stuttering are direct expressions of armored jaw and throat muscles.” He goes on to say: “Later on, once the stuttering is established, shame, feelings of inferiority and apprehension are added and aggravate the symptoms, making it chronic. But the core is simple acute armoring of the muscle group which is used in speech. Thus the core of stammering and stuttering is of a physiological, bioenergetic nature; it has been brought about by an emotional upheaval and is maintained by emotional complications.”

As an orgone therapist, the method I employ in treating speech disfluencies differs markedly from traditional speech therapy. It is not possible to fully explain my method here, but I can say that it involves breathing, emotional release in a safe environment, and some direct work on armoring, principally in the jaw and neck. It is quite different (but also not entirely unlike) Lionel Logue’s technique! Indeed, I was amazed to see a film that introduced--and did it so well--some of the very methods orgone therapists employ to loosen jaw and throat armor. Logue had the King shake his head, loosen his tongue and jaw, move his shoulders, swing his arms about, and breathe deeply. He also encouraged him to shout out and curse.

The film’s most memorable scenes are those in which King George is releasing his pent-up emotions in Logue’s office, as part of the therapy. I believe these scenes are so striking not just because King George was acting in ways that are out of character for a monarch, but because people know, from their own experience, that emotional and physical release are cathartic. 

The King’s Speech has many elements that resonate with audiences. One that bears final note is that Logue, a speech therapist without official qualifications, practicing an unconventional therapy, is successful where accepted techniques have failed. His antiestablishment approach had the audience rooting for him to prevail even though the “experts” said he couldn’t. This aspect of the plot fits well with the public’s growing interest in alternative treatments such as acupuncture, homeopathic remedies, vitamins and other supplements, organic foods, and a host of natural approaches that continue to gain ground. 

I have written three case studies of patients with speech disorders treated with psychiatric orgone therapy. They are: Stuttering, A Case of Spastic Dysphonia, and Treatment of a Stuttering Child. 

An Orgonomist's Response to Radiation Concerns

The recent disaster at Japan’s Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant has shocked people the world over, and a number of patients and blog followers have been contacting me since the event with their questions and concerns. People want to know about Reich’s experiences with radiation and also have asked my advice about what measures might be taken to prevent and treat radiation sickness. I will address these topics here.

First, let me say that I believe that for those of us not in the immediate area, there is, and will be, no great danger. So long as the radiation from the damaged Japanese reactors can be brought under control, and I am sure it will, this event will become an important lesson that can only result in safer energy production. 

External events such as this cause justifiable concern, so it’s difficult to know if one is reacting rationally and appropriately, or overreacting. However, at least in part, the panic now sweeping the world is being fed by people’s general fearfulness, the result of early childhood experiences. My advice is to remain calm, avoid watching too much news, and act sensibly when and if there is something to do. 

As to Reich’s experiences with radiation, his Oranur (Orgone against nuclear radiation) experiment proved immensely important because it brought an understanding of just how nuclear energy produces its effect on living organisms. In the late 1950s, Reich placed a small amount of radium in an orgone accumulator to test his hypothesis that cosmic orgone energy would reduce and neutralize the effects of radiation. He did this hoping to find a powerful antidote against radiation sickness.

This was only five years after atomic bombs were dropped on Japan and the threat of atomic warfare with Russia was very real. School children practiced bomb drills as today they practice fire drills, and many people thought stocking food and water in bomb shelters wasn’t at all a crazy idea.

The results of Reich’s experiment were disastrous! Geiger counters went wild with readings off the scales. Reich, and those in the vicinity of his home and laboratory in Rangeley, Maine, became dangerously ill with all the symptoms of radiation sickness. The effects continued even when the radium was removed from the accumulator. The atmosphere in the immediate area became extremely oppressive, and three weeks after the incident the New York Times reported unusually high radiation counts in a circular area three hundred to six hundred miles in radius with Rangeley as its center. 

Reich had certainly not found an antidote to radiation sickness! However he did discover that the effects of radiation are not a direct result of radiation on living tissue, but rather a reaction of one’s orgone energy against the action of nuclear energy. By exposing the concentrated orgone energy in the accumulator to radium, Reich had transformed nature’s pure energy into a form that was life-threatening. He called it “deadly orgone energy” (DOR). He referred to the changes that had taken place in the surrounding area as having produced a “DOR atmosphere.” The physical reaction people had sustained he termed “DOR sickness.” 

Out of this disappointing and disastrous experiment came one of Reich’s most important inventions, a device to siphon DOR out of the atmosphere, which he called a “cloudbuster.” It is a made up of pipes grounded in running water. On a visit to Organon, more than 30 years ago, I recall asking the caretaker, Tom Ross, how Reich had come up with the idea of the cloudbuster. Ross said Reich had told him that during World War I he had noticed that rain often followed antiaircraft shellings. Reich modeled the cloudbuster, in part, after the antiaircraft guns. 

Following the Oranur disaster, Reich was able to use the cloudbuster to effectively draw off the DOR from the Rangeley atmosphere. This allowed rain clouds to form, and rain to fall, with its beneficial effects.*  

Turning to the subject of radiation sickness, let me emphasize that I’m not an expert qualified in preventing or treating the effects of nuclear radiation. Additionally, I also do not feel that such interventions will become necessary for the vast majority of the world’s population as a consequence of the Japan disaster. I can, however, tell you of measures Reich felt valuable in treating DOR sickness, what is recommended in some of the literature I’ve read, and what actions might be worth considering.   

Reich advised, understandably, to remove oneself from a DOR atmosphere if possible. At this point, he had not yet invented the DORbuster, which is really just a smaller version of a cloudbuster to be used on one’s person. Should one have access to a Reich DORbuster, it should certainly be used. Reich also said that taking baths and drinking tea was helpful. The orgone accumulator (ORAC) should NOT be used in a DOR atmosphere because it will accumulate DOR--not orgone energy!

While I don’t advise any of the following, and encourage everyone to do their own research, I have read a number of recommendations, both in the medical literature and elsewhere. These include taking potassium iodide; taking certain vitamins, antioxidants, and supplements; and eating certain foods. 

Potassium iodide appears to be the most important, but it has its hazards and is not to be taken as routine measure. If taken, it must be administered in exactly the recommended dose. I have read that kelp is quite beneficial, as are vitamins C and E. Calcium, B complex and lecithin have also been recommended. Brewers yeast has been shown to prevent a drop in hemoglobin following radiation exposure. The National Cancer Institute found that taking bone marrow tablets is protective against the effects of radiation. In at least one study, cod liver oil was found to extend the life of mice exposed to radiation. 

I have read a bath with Clorox added is beneficial, as is an Epson salt bath. I, myself, would recommend adding a pound of baking soda and a pound of sea salt to a warm bath, and to bathe at least daily. Showers are always an excellent way to draw off stale or toxic energy, and if you live by the ocean you might consider spending some time in it. It seems to me that eating at least some raw, organic foods daily would be good thing to do. 

All forms of electromagnetism affect our body’s orgone energy and can cause reactions ranging from feeling not quite well, to feeling sick, to the development of diseases. This explains, for example, why overhead power lines, with their high voltage and strong magnetic fields, have been linked to leukemia. For this reason, if there has been exposure to nuclear radiation, I would advise individuals to not make things worse and avoid, as best they can, further damage to their body’s orgone energy. It would be prudent to stay away from, or limit exposure to, electromagnetic fields generated by high voltage or microwave devices. Cathode ray tubes (CRT), fluorescent lighting, and cell phones are also common sources of unnatural energy. Exposure to any man-made energy, not just nuclear, can produce emotional and physical effects. Certainly nuclear energy is by far the most dangerous, but these others should not be considered harmless.

Finally, I will relate an experience I had that just might indicate there is a silver lining on the way. When I was treating patients on a regular basis in Hamburg, Germany, I arrived there about two weeks after the radioactivity from the Chernobyl meltdown had passed over. When I got off the plane I was amazed to find myself in the most glorious atmosphere I have ever seen or felt. The sky was brilliant blue, the air almost palpable, and my vision three dimensional. I felt wonderful. Given my usual and rather extreme jet lag, this was astonishing. To this day, I don’t know if my experience and the marvelous atmosphere were related to the passing radiation or some other phenomenon. I’d appreciate learning if any of my blog followers in areas exposed to Japan’s radiation can report a similar experience.

*Readers of this blog may wish to read about the Oranur Experiment, which can be found in “Selected Writings: An Introduction to Orgonomy.” 

The Cost of Censoring Wilhelm Reich

Dr. Schwartzman’s Note: 

The internet continues to amaze me with its power to both disseminate information and bring people with like interests together. In this guest post, blog follower Ed Malek shares his thoughts on why the failure of society to recognize one of Wilhelm Reich’s most important discoveries has helped keep humanity in chains. I have never had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Malek face to face. He lives on the West Coast, and were it not for Wilhelm Reich Today we might well have never established contact. Yet, he has been on board with my blog from the beginning, sharing his insightful comments along the way. I am confident that readers will enjoy the following post. 

                                                        BY ED MALEK 

  

While vacationing in France this summer, I witnessed an unusual display of mental disorder and pondered its implications from an orgonomic standpoint. I was strolling with my family through a charming town, when a woman approached us suddenly and started shouting into the air. Much to my surprise she then proceeded, with some force, to slap her face. I could see that she was embarrassed at what she had done and wished it did not happen; it was as if she had no choice in the matter. Later on I had the opportunity to pass by her again, and could see that she was still flustered and had an air of oppression—her face was red and she looked sheepishly around. Was she suffering from schizophrenia, Tourette’s syndrome or some other disorder, or was it an uncontrollable outburst due to life’s difficulties?

As an orgone therapist, I saw that her behavior had logic to it; in other words, it made sense from a bio-emotional standpoint. Wilhelm Reich proved the existence of a biological energy from the close study of his patients and scientifically through experimentation. He stated there is a lawful rhythm to an individual’s energy and found that virtually all his patients had a significant disturbance in their bioenergetic pulsation, while relatively healthy people did not. Those healthier were able to adequately charge and discharge their energy. Food, the air, and sun charge the body, while work, exercise, play, emotional expression, and orgasm discharge it.

Health, according to Reich, requires that there be a natural pulsatory charge and discharge, and it is this regular pulsation that sustains feelings of well-being. If a person cannot discharge their excess energy because of armoring (which represses feelings and emotions) they will feel stuck and frustrated and seek relief in some way from their unbearable tension. This is almost always done unconsciously and either has societal approval or not. Two socially acceptable ways of veiled release--that not too long ago were considered bizarre--are body piercing and extreme sports. Unacceptable ways include inappropriate emotional outbursts, lawlessness, and other behaviors that disrupt social functioning. What the French woman accomplished by her shouting and slapping was a discharge of her stuck emotional state. It was an unconscious act that occurred involuntarily. Would not it have been better if her rational self--her ego--took an active part in this discharge?

The question I would like to pose is why does this woman, and others in similar states of emotional distress, have to rely solely on unconscious signals from their body to take action, when such actions are inadequate to bring relief and can even be harmful? Why do troubled people resort to vomiting, or cutting themselves, seeking alleviation from their unbearable state? Unfortunately, virtually no one understands what underlies such behavior, and this includes the psychiatrists who should be at the forefront in comprehending emotions. The world is filled with unfortunate victims who are isolated and confused and could be helped tremendously were it not for society’s censorship and dismissal of Reich’s discoveries.

If it were common knowledge that at times of stress “blowing off steam” (in a safe and appropriate manner as occurs in orgone therapy) could be of such benefit, much human suffering could be alleviated. It is also possible that more serious mental, and even some physical, disorders might be prevented. If knowledge of Reich’s work was widely known, relatively healthy persons could use his discoveries to help them deal with the stresses that produce states of acute armoring.

Dr. Schwartzman defines armor as:

“The chronic (italics added) muscular spasms and character attitudes which an individual develops that act as a defense against the breakthrough of feelings and emotions. Muscular armor serves, principally, as a defense against anxiety, rage, and sexual excitation. Character armor is the sum total of all the character attitudes which an individual develops in an attempt to defend against anxiety. Character armor causes emotional rigidity, impaired contact with others, and a feeling of ‘deadness.’ Muscular armor and character armor are functionally identical. They are two sides of the same coin.”

Acute armoring, on the other hand, develops when present-day stresses produce disturbing biophysical reactions. The understanding of the function of this temporary form of armoring, and why it manifests as it does, could open the door to alleviation of much distress. Relief through appropriate intervention could be afforded to someone who, say because of abusive criticism, develops neck pain or a throat spasm. If Reich’s discovery of armoring were common knowledge, such an individual could seek a short-term course of treatment and not continue to suffer. They would be able to understand what was happening, and hopefully be better prepared next time so they could again, quickly, seek relief.

If Reich’s discovery of human armoring were common knowledge, there could be another approach, one that requires no intellectual understanding, or even a therapist. Reich’s finding that feelings and emotions are physically held in the body’s armor, and that they need to be released, has enormous potential and could benefit people everywhere--the billions of people who never heard of Wilhelm Reich, and even those who firmly believe any talk of a universal energy to be sheer nonsense.

People could self-treat. That is, they could give themselves very short “mini” treatment sessions that could reduce their tension and suffering. They could shout out, curse, make faces, spit, stamp on the floor, hit a bed (or the like), choke or bite a towel, give in to crying or express virtually anything else they were feeling. This, of course, would necessarily have to be done in a safe manner, to prevent loss of control and injury.

If people everywhere felt it not “wrong” to express what they were experiencing, especially rage or crying, and could feel uninhibited doing so, they could gain at least some measure of relief. Such brief discharges of pent-up emotions would have to take place in situations where there’s privacy. If such emotional release were widely practiced there would certainly be less need for psychotropic medication--people would be able to make themselves feel better.

Having said this, I want to make the point that educating the masses about the value of emotional release has its downside. Promulgating Reich’s teachings in a reckless manner would lead to harmful distortions, abuse, and widespread commercialism. Reich was very much aware of the dangers inherent in misusing his theories and discoveries, and I see this as a form of what he called “freedom peddling,” where the gospel of truth is spread without understanding all its ramifications. 

The censorship of just one of Reich’s monumental discoveries--his theory as to the formation and function of armoring--has diminished human potential by so much. One can only now pleasantly imagine how the world could be if just some of his other discoveries were seriously researched, especially by universities and nonprofit institutions. Weather could be modified and we would be closer to harnessing free energy from the atmosphere; and the cancer process would be better understood, and hopefully sooner controlled. The list could be multiplied by a hundred-fold since orgone energy is the creative force behind all that exists in the universe. We can only hope that over time Reich’s discoveries will be taken seriously and applied to help people everywhere.

Ed Malek is a licensed marriage and family therapist practicing in Oakland California. He holds a master’s degree in counseling. You can visit him on the web at: http://www.edmalekorgonetherapy.com

New Credibility for Reich’s UFO Claims

As a psychiatrist who employs Wilhelm Reich’s method of treating emotional disorders, the primary focus of my work is treating patients. However, therapy is just one small part of Reich’s vast legacy, the center point of which is his discovery of what he termed "orgone" energy. All of his later work hinges upon this pivotal finding.

Reich’s central assertion is that space is not an empty vacuum, but rather is filled with an energy that permeates the universe and flows in all living things. The idea that such an energy exists, and is the foundation for all natural functioning, is dismissed as nonsense. This is so despite considerable evidence to the contrary.

Nobel prize winner Max Planck, the founder of quantum theory, postulated just such an energy, whose presence was everywhere all the time. Hendrick Casimir’s experiments performed in 1948, and confirmed in 1996, are now widely cited as proof that the universe is indeed filled with a sea of energy. This “vacuum energy” is called zero-point energy, or ZPE, and is theorized to be infinite. 

Dark energy is now a widely accepted, yet hypothetical, form of energy that is said to permeate all of space and is hypothesized by today’s astronomers to be driving the universe’s expansion. These astronomers have long sought a unification theory that would explain dark energy in the context of general relativity and quantum physics. In my view, neither general relativity nor quantum physics will provide the understanding needed to explain dark energy. I believe orgone energy physics will be necessary bring about an understanding of the nature of dark energy. 

To my knowledge, Reich’s claims have never been disproved by objective scientific evaluation. Dark energy theory is one more confirmation, among many, that Reich’s “crazy” idea of an all pervasive energy isn’t so crazy after all. In this post, I want to address UFOs, another “crazy” idea of Reich’s. Recent remarks at a National Press Club conference lend credence to Reich’s claim of space ships at Rangeley, Maine. 

In 1952 Reich said he saw UFOs at Rangeley, where he lived and worked. He regarded extraterrestrial visitors and their space ships with the same open, unprejudiced approach that characterized every area of his scientific research. He theorized about why beings from outer space were visiting our planet, as well as their means of propulsion. He even asserted that he was able to affect the their crafts using equipment he designed to influence atmospheric orgone energy.

Although I’m not a UFO enthusiast, I have sometimes cast my eyes upward on cloudless nights in search of something unusual, but have never seen anything I thought was a UFO. Nevertheless, Reich's statements regarding the existence of UFOs seem reasonable to me. For example, he writes in CORE (Cosmic Orgone Engineering) Vol. VI, NOS, 1-4 July 1954: “I was not surprised at the reality of visitors from outer space, since I have never believed in the theories which for no factual or logical reasons attempted to restrict Life to the tiny, insignificant planet, called Earth.” 

This September, the National Press Club held a disclosure conference broadcast live on CNN. A number of retired military men went public with their sightings of UFOs. Many recounted seeing them when stationed at nuclear weapons facilities. Some even told that nuclear weaponry stored at these sites was temporarily disabled when UFOs were in the area.   

According to Retired Lt. Colonel Dwynne Arneson, communications center officer-in-charge, who spoke at the Press Club, on more than one occasion UFOs were reported seen over Loring Air Force Base. This top secret base was built by the U.S. Military in 1953, in the Maine woods, and was located less than 300 miles from Reich's Rangeley home! We now know Loring was the first U.S. site specifically constructed for the storage, assembly, and testing of atomic weapons. 

One of the most well documented sightings of UFOs took place at Loring in the 1970s. According to then Staff Sergeant Danny K. Lewis, who was assigned to hidden weapons, he was on duty when he noticed a UFO, with red navigation lights, hovering about 300 feet above ground. Reich notes in “Contact with Space” glowing red lights emanating from the UFOs he observed. In more recent years others also report having seen UFOs around Loring. Independent confirmation that UFOs have been seen in area of Rangeley should be of great interest to anyone familiar with Wilhelm Reich’s UFO work. 

I feel the many recent UFO sightings worldwide are not just swamp gas, weather balloons, or hoaxes. What I find particularly remarkable is that many of these sightings have been captured and posted on the web and they depict crafts that move and behave just as Reich reported! Reich believed UFOs were able to travel through the vastness of space, and operate as they do, using orgone--the mass-free, pre-atomic energy he discovered that extends into the furthest reaches of the cosmos. 

Reich, apparently like the visitors from space who were attracted to our nuclear sites and disabled our weaponry, was concerned about human beings devastating planet Earth. Sixty years ago, Reich wrote in The Oranur Experiment, First Report (1947-51): “A government of nations, bent on abolishing the threat of atomic warfare, on securing peace in the world and bringing health and happiness to people everywhere, could do untold good.” He went on to say, “No single man or organization could accomplish this end; only allied social institutions could do it[.]” Reich’s optimism may yet be realized. 

It would be great if the recent sightings of UFOs and the disclosures by credible military sources and others helped to awaken a serious interest in Reich’s work. Should this happen, it will be the next generation of scientists who will seriously explore and examine Wilhelm Reich’s legacy.

Those who are interested in viewing the National Press Club conference referenced in this post can do so at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3jUU4Z8QdHI.

A Complaint Free World

I came across an interesting book, “A Complaint Free World: How to Stop Complaining and Start Enjoying the Life You Always Wanted” (Doubleday 2007). It’s written by a fellow named Will Bowen and his idea of living complaint free has become an international challenge to “leave the toxic communication of complaining behind.” According to Bowen’s web site, he’s distributed over six million purple “Complaint Free World” bracelets ($10 for a pack of 10) to people across the globe who want to stop complaining. The method he’s come up with is simple. Just move the bracelet from one wrist to the other every time you catch yourself complaining. When you have gone 21 days in a row without complaining, you’ve completed the program. Bowen’s message, that the world would be a better place without complaining, and his technique to achieve this goal, clearly resonates with people. He’s appeared on Oprah, The Today Show, ABC Evening News, and in hundreds of TV and radio interviews. 

I’m not much taken with self-help gurus, being committed as I am to the practical application of Wilhelm Reich’s discoveries for the betterment of individuals and humankind. However, I agree fully with Bowen’s premise that chronic complaining isn’t helpful and is often destructive. It doesn’t solve problems or alleviate one’s unhappiness. Complainers annoy and frustrate those around them with their self-involved griping and are bound to lose friends, or to end up with ones who are complainers like themselves.

I support Bowen’s crusade and his method to control complaining. To the extent this works, great. However, even if one is able to entirely extinguish a particular undesirable behavior, in this case complaining, it doesn't resolve the underlying emotional problem giving rise to it. This is the principle shortcoming of behavioral modification approaches. 

Complaining: Cause and Function 

Much can be said about why we complain. Well-known reasons include to gain sympathy, reassurance and understanding from others; to get others to agree with us; and to voice how we've been mistreated. Complaining also serves to place the blame for our unhappiness on external factors, including other people. Complaining eliminates of the need for self-examination to identify our own role in the cause of our problems.

To understand the nature of complaining, we can look to Wilhelm Reich’s discoveries related to masochism, a specific aspect of human behavior. The first trait Reich cites in his description of the masochistic character type is “a chronic sense of suffering, which appears objectively as a tendency to complain.” (Italics in original. See Chapter XI, The Masochistic Character, “Character Analysis,” 3rd ed. New York: Orgone Institute Press, 1949.) Today’s prevailing definition of masochism tells us only that it is the tendency to derive pleasure from one’s own pain, or the enjoyment of that which appears to be painful. It tells us nothing about how the disorder presents in those so afflicted or how such a bizarre condition occurs. Why would anyone derive pleasure from pain? It makes no sense. When Reich discovered the mechanism underlying masochism, these mysteries were solved. 

Reich observed that individuals who suffered from masochism in its most severe form--those with the perversion to actually be beaten--had a particular kind of extreme biophysical tension. This was the cause of their distress and their endless complaining. He also noticed such individuals would put others in a bad light. They did this without conscious awareness, to annoy with the hope they would so infuriate their target that they would be hit, or at least be given a “tongue-lashing” by them. Reich determined that masochistic characters complain, annoy and make others angry with them because want to be relieved them of their distress. They want to be hit, not to feel pain, but rather to gain relief from the enormous tension inside them. They are like taught, over-inflated balloons that seek to be burst open.

From an energetic perspective, the driving force behind most complaining is inner tension. People whine, grumble and complain as a way to express their distress in a relatively socially acceptable way. Doing so provides a small measure of relief, a weak and temporary discharge, akin to a pressure cooker or steam engine that periodically releases its built-up internal pressure. 

It is important to note that complaining is expressed in many non verbal ways, such as attitude, tone of voice, sighs, rolling of the eyes, and silences. The question this raises is, what’s beneath the suffering that causes complaining? The answer is plain and simple: repressed anger. Frustration and outright anger, almost entirely from infancy and early childhood, has to go underground when it cannot not be expressed. Such angry feelings don’t disappear, although they are no longer remembered. They remain alive, stored away in the armor out of conscious awareness.*

Treating Complaining With Psychiatric Orgone Therapy

Complaining is so common and widespread because armoring is universal. Psychiatric orgone therapy removes armor and in so doing strikes at the cause of the suffering that leads to complaining. During therapy, patients who are chronic complainers are made aware of their behavior, how much they engage in it, and they are encouraged to stop voicing their unhappiness. Stopping this neurotic behavior forces them in the direction of taking more responsibility for, and resolving, their dissatisfaction, wherever it may present itself in their lives. As complaining is controlled, the “leak” of anger is reduced. This increases inner tension. At this point, the therapy is able to move away from a strictly verbal character-analytic approach to one that allows emotional release. Patients, who are now in better contact with their underlying feelings, especially anger, can express the rage they are feeling that has long been kept inside. When patients are comfortable enough to rage with full expression, they reduce their inner tension, and the need to complain, with every session.

In sessions such strong feelings are released in the controlled setting of a specially designed treatment room. Patients can shout out, hit the couch or a pad on the wall, kick, bite (or choke) a towel, stamp on a rubber mat, and in other ways release their intense, sometimes violent, feelings in a safe environment. What might surprise many is that the emotions arise spontaneously in each session, usually without any special actions on my part. 

Those unfamiliar with this therapy might expect patients to leave my office angrier than when they walked in. However, just the opposite is true. After the release of any emotion, but especially rage, the experience is one of well-being and relief. Most people usually leave the office smiling. It’s very important in this form of treatment that patients exert strict control outside of therapy sessions. Anger must not be discharged inappropriately and destructively in social situations. Out in the world, patients must restrain themselves; in therapy sessions they have free rein to express all they feel.

Unfortunately, there are a great number of emotional release therapists, some of whom call themselves "Reichians." I have learned largely from some of my own patients, who have come to me for treatment after having had therapy with such individuals, that their primary modality is getting people to rage. Evoking rage is bound to make something happen. However, without considering all aspects important in treating patients, the results are ineffective at best and can even be disastrous. Anybody can take apart a broken bicycle, but it is something quite different to fix the bike and put the pieces back where they belong. 

Will Bowen’s dream of a complaint-free world is admirable. However, human suffering cannot be eliminated just by stamping out its symptoms. It is necessary to resolve the underlying cause. For those new to Wilhelm Reich’s method of therapy, and the science of orgonomy, I encourage you to explore with an open mind.

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*For a definition of armoring, see the note at the end of my post “Exerting Parental Authority.”

Those wishing to learn more about psychiatric orgone therapy may wish to read “Man in the Trap” by Elsworth F. Baker, M.D. and “Emotional Armoring: An Introduction to Psychiatric Orgone Therapy” by Morton Herskowitz, D.O.