Reichian Therapy: A Practical Guide for Home Use Perfect Paperback – August 21, 2013

I picked this book up when I heard somewhere that Reichian breathing is more efficient at releasing and contacting kundalini energies than kundalini yoga. So I was set off on a path of figuring out how to practice western somatic and breathwork.Having studied and practiced qigong and yoga for years I found this type of work (as well as Bioenergetic work) is a completely different animal than the eastern and traditional body practices. Bruce Frantzis characterizes fire and water methods of body/breath/movement work. Reichian work could be characterized as a boiling water method. Instead of tradition and mystical tantric practices, these western methods have not BS and get straight to the point. Some have said that body armor work is a first step before doing the supposedly deeper spiritual work of qigong and yoga. I disagree.I am generally a skeptic who studies many spiritual approaches and the only time I have had bodily felt experiences that I could almost characterize as subtle energies was this type of work. Of course the breathing changes the status of the ions in one's blood and interstitial fluids and that probably accounts for so called subtle energy experiences. I'm not saying that they don't exist, only that somatic therapies have a tendency to go to abstract energies and spiritualities way too easily and underscore their credibility.I believe that this Reichian work significantly more efficient in removing the blocks to the flow of a person's true personality. Yoga simply helps me relax and qigong just helps me feel present.The book itself is huge with many bodily techniques. This is rare. The majority of western somatic books out there speak abstractly about bodywork but usually only give you hints on how to actually do it. Most refer you to a bodyworker if you are lucky enough to have any close and have the money to pay for it.On the downside of this book, the author, although wants to help the reader let go of control, emphasizes doing these techniques in an almost anal retentive fashion. Compare to Dr. Lowen's work, where his techniques are more fluid and do not have to be practiced perfectly. This author also emphasizes going extremely slowly and systematically through the body segments and spending a long time with each technique. The traditional Reichian or Orgonomic therapist believe in this slow and head down approach whereas the Bioenergetic school emphasizes more whole body exercises and not so much of a systematic pattern, other than beginning from standing and grounding.I'm not particularly sold on either being more correct, so I tend to combine the practices in this book with some Bioenergetic poses.The last section of the book is an excellent part on summing up much of neo-analytic thought. Recommended if you haven't already have gone through much psychodynamic or cognitive work already. As a psychotherapist myself, I find emotion focused-experiential type work to be significantly more efficient than traditional psychodynamic work of any school, except for ISTDP.I have had several neat experiences while practicing this breathwork and these techniques:-Once I experiences something like bands of electricity go through my shoulders and arms and for weeks felt myself in a joyful/spontaneous state like a child would feel.-The daily exercises are indispensable. If I don't practice them at least every other day with the breathing, I go back into my old subtle-schizoid character, but when practiced, I'm highly outgoing. It's like a 180 difference.-When I don't practice these techniques, I feel my spontaneity slowing and stopping and get stuck in my head again. When I resume, I feel a sense of aliveness and contact with others that is highly rewarding.-I feel like my old facial mask is gone when I practice, in that my face and eyes are highly expressive in a discontinuous way than in the past.Overall, highly recommended for anyone interested in a secular wisdom path or who wants to supplement contemplative work or therapeutic work. Just be aware that this is not the only way to go about this type of somatic self-therapy.**Update**(After several years of toying with other approaches, I'm back to following this book and adding some stretching from a "Stretch Therapy" approach by Kit Laughlin. The approach outlined in this book is the only approach that consistently yields feelings of complete joy and spontaneity, such as like a child experiences. No other body oriented or expressive approach has yielded such results.)

As a somatic/body, licensed therapist,I found this book to be a game changer to my private practiceI spent three years training to be certified In IBP a psychological therapy very similar to Reichian therapy as outlined in the book. It is somewhat misleading as a "practical home guide'. I cant imagine doing this work without a competent therapist , that said , This book has reignited my work with clients. I haven't been this motivated in years.

Profound, effective exercises for psychological and actual personality change. Dr. Willis seems a bit draconian at times, especially concerning his exhortation to "do what he says" but this is understandable considering the profundity of the practices. The exercises lead to deep results. With an established meditation practice, these teachings are incredibly useful. Read the whole book through, do the morning exercises and practice the breathing once a week. Loosen the pelvis for dramatic results. Have no fear -- whatever appears is the result of past activity, signifying nothing in particular. Practice non-judgmental awareness and all shall be well.