Reich developed a variety of techniques for dissolving the muscular armoring, including:

1) Deep massage of spastic areas, especially while having the client breath deeply and expressing the pain with his or her voice, facial expression, and when appropriate, his or her body. Reich believed this to be a powerful route to the unconscious. Occasionally, maintains Hoffman, pressure on a single muscle spasm will produce a spontaneous outburst of repressed emotion, with a specific memory of a forgotten traumatic event.

2) Deep breathing, which according to Hoffman, may produce energy streamings, prickling or tingling sensations, spasms, tremors or spontaneous emotional releases.

3) Pushing down on the chest while the client exhales or screams is thought by Reichians to assist in loosening up energy blocks.

4) Work with facial expressions in order to assist in unblocking emotions since the face is a major organ of emotional expression.

5) Work with the gag reflex, yawning, the cough reflex and other convulsive reflexes tends to break down rigid armoring, according to Hoffman.

6) Maintaining "stress positions", particularly while engaging in deep breathing and expressing pain with one's voice and face, are said to loosen armor by stretching it, inducing tremors, irritating it and tiring it.

7) Active "bioenergetic" movements, such as stamping, pounding, kicking, tantrums, reaching out, shaking the head, shoulders, or other body parts. It is stressed that these movements should be accompanied by full breathing and appropriate sounds and facial expressions. Done over a period of time, Hoffman states that these movements tend to break down inhibitions and liberate genuine feeling.

Reichian bodywork is methodical; there is a definite order to it. Its fundamental law is to start with the most superficial defenses and work gradually into the deeper layers at a rate that the client can tolerate.

ROLFING

In his book, Hymns to An Unknown God, (1994), Sam Keen describes his experiences with bodywork. During his days as a reporter for Psychology Today, Keen submitted himself as a guinea pig in order to investigate Rolfing (structural integration) at the Esalen Institute. Rolfing involves manipulation of the connective tissue of all the major muscle groups in the body and is often very uncomfortable in the beginning.

When Ida Rolf began working on Keen's chest with her fingers, fists, and elbows, Keen reports that he felt himself begin to panic as it "hurt like hell." He later learned that the chronic tension in the muscles of his chest had formed a defensive armor that was physically, emotionally, and spiritually limiting. However, as he was not aware of this at the time, the first hour was an ordeal that led him to curse, moan, and wish for salvation. Once the trauma of the first hour gave way, Keen recalls that slight and yet unmistakable changes began to appear in his posture and stance in life. He noted that his leg muscles seemed freshly lubricated, allowing him freer movement and that his feet made more substantial contact with the ground. Encouraged by these observations he opted to continue with the process.

"…With my release from this and other long-held psychosomatic-spiritual defense systems, I experienced a new openness, ease, and expansiveness. My body became looser, as did my mind…There were other changes…Most important, I gained a direct sensuous and kinesthetic awareness of my total body."

YOGA

Yoga is an ancient Indian practice that is a way of life versus a series of body postures. The literal meaning of the term yoga is "union". Renee Taylor, in his book, The Hunza-Yoga Way to Health And Longer Life, (1969), maintains that Yoga is a means of controlling one's thinking and moods, stating that:

"Yoga is an ancient yet still unsurpassed science of living. In Yoga, relaxation is an art, breathing a science, and mental control a means of harmonizing body, mind, and spirit."

Yoga utilizes such methods as deep rhythmic breathing, physical postures that serve to tone and strengthen various body parts, promote calmness, increase circulation, and includes relaxation methods and vocal and concentration exercises.

While my knowledge of Yoga is limited, I often suggest that clients consider attending a Yoga class. It has been my experience that our progress is enhanced by their participation in Yoga. I have been particularly impressed by the positive impact of Yoga on clients whom I have worked with in the past suffering from anxiety, depression, and eating disorders.