The treatment method bioenergetics belongs to the body therapies, which were founded mainly in the USA. In the sense of the holistic principle of naturopathy, bioenergetics tries to bring body, mind and spirit back into harmony, so that the life energy, also called „bioenergy“ is increased and flows freely through the whole body. This promotes health and joie de vivre and allows us to recognize and take advantage of the fullness of life’s possibilities again.
Since today many people live mainly „out of their heads“ but neglect their feelings and physical needs, this therapy can be used mainly for basic treatment of psychosomatic diseases, supplemented by various natural therapies. In psychosomatic medicine, bioenergetic body therapy is considered one of the most important therapeutic approaches.
1. Origins and theoretical foundations of bioenergetics
Bioenergetics was founded by the American Alexander Lowen, born in 1910. In the 1930s, he first discovered a connection between physical activity and mental and spiritual well-being. He contacted Wilhelm Reich, the „father“ of body therapy and became his student. Lowen began to develop his bioenergetics in 1947.
In 1956 he founded the Institute for Bioenergetic Analysis. The theoretical basis of bioenergetics is the assumption that there is a „fundamental energy“ which is best described as life force. This bioenergy determines.a. the posture and the state of tension of the musculature decisively with. If it flows freely through the body, there is an upright, good posture, while disturbances of the energy flow lead to bad posture and tension in the muscles.
From this, the experienced therapist can draw reliable conclusions about the life-historical development and current life situation of a person.
Beside the changes of the body attitude are thereby above all „Verpanzerungen“ of the musculature significant. In them the life energy accumulates, becomes „frozen“ and is no longer available for physical and mental-emotional activities.
As causes of such energy blockages Lowen gives mostly negative experiences already in the early childhood; they can develop however also only in the later life by unfavorable influences or be aggravated. Consciously and willingly these can no longer be dissolved. A typical cause is the rejection by the parents, which leads to the fact that the natural need for affection and tenderness, love must be suppressed.
Bioenergy is bound in the muscle armor „and kept under control. Chronic painful tensions, for example in the back muscles, are the frequent result, but also numerous other psychosomatic complaints can arise in this way. If one frees the „frozen life energy“ by lifting the energy blockade in the muscle armor through physical exercises, the repressed needs and feelings can d.h. lived and permanently processed.
The body work the bioenergetics consists mainly of the following forms of exercise:
– Stress positions, that are certain, at the beginning uncomfortable body positions, which are kept as long as possible; it comes u.a. to deepen breathing, good blood circulation and vibrate the stressed body parts, whereby the muscle armor is released and the energy flows freely again.
– grounding exercises (grounding), in which one consciously establishes and perceives contact with the ground, i.e. learns again to stand with „both feet firmly on the ground“.
– deep breathing with the help of breathing stool or foam cube. Movement and expression exercises make the body more flexible. The expressive exercises consist of.a. in kicking, kicking, pushing with hands and feet, where also feelings (such as aggression, anger, sadness), which have been suppressed for a long time, can be acted out. Falling exercises are supposed to temporarily switch off the self-control by the mind and release the associated tensions. Massage-like manipulations on the muscle armor and individual tensions dissolve them. This massage also works with targeted, external pressure until the blocked energy finally discharges spontaneously when the pressure becomes too strong.
The physical exercises are accompanied by emotional reactions, because with the release of the energy blockages, long repressed feelings and painful memories, which have been frozen in the muscle armor, are released. As soon as a person becomes aware of his/her body, he/she gains a new relationship to himself/herself and finds ways to more balance and well-being. Through breathing and movement, feelings are expressed physically, by tensing the muscles and restricting breathing, these are controlled.
Bioenergetics uses body techniques that restore deep and unobstructed breathing, as well as movement and expressive exercises that revive held emotions, re-experience them to the conscious mind. The perception and release of burdensome energy blockages ultimately leads to more joy of life and self-determined action.
What our body needs or. what harms him and how it could go better in life, we slip again and again into old learned behavior patterns and ensure that we „bad“ are doing.“
2. Body expression and character structures
The expressed energy often shows little of what is at work in the living life forces behind the scenes, unconsciously. It is important to perceive which attitudes, internalized measures are useful for the present life or are old relics against the present existence. With the help of Bioenergetic Character Work, „achievements“ that used to arise as necessary defensive reactions against, for example, painful influences on the person, are made perceptible, recognizable.
The readiness to break down encrustations and to remove blockages is promoted. Curiosity about the unrestrained life force, the dynamic behind the blockages is awakened. The soul has its correspondences in the body and is expressed in the body.
The character determines the life history. Under unfavorable life constellations, the vitality in the body was allowed only little room to develop. The soul wasted away, the unity of body and soul is disturbed. Instead of flowing vitality, this person experiences stress, dissatisfaction, depression and unconscious being driven. Life processes present themselves in four phases from a bioenergetic point of view:
Character structures describe energetic disturbances in personality development in one or more of the four phases: Affirmation is the drive of every healthy life process (primordial trust). In taking we fill up enough energy (also emotional saturation) to be able to shape life energetically. Through the holding capacity we gather and store strength. In giving we are then able to share, to give away, to give ourselves in love.
In summary, this means the following:
If the life impulses emanating from the infant have been affirmed, if it has received enough and stored up sufficient strength, then it can surrender itself. It has developed so much life substance to enter into contact with „the world“ in a balanced and bountiful way. This described optimal course of development only presents itself in such a way, if no early disturbances have seriously influenced the personality development.
In the conflict between drive structure and social reality, between „inner and outer world“, depending on the course of development, certain character manifestations, tensions and blockages of the musculature occur. In Bioenergetic Bodywork (individual and **group therapy), these blockages, mainly in early childhood (up to the age of 8 years), are identified.The defensive reactions that developed during the first year of life are revealed and their life-limiting effect is reduced or eliminated. degraded.
„The group offers a protected space and is at the same time a practice field for you, in which you can show your emotions and feelings and deal with them in the relationship with other people.“
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