TOWARD A PATIENT-CENTERED UNDERSTANDING OF ORGONOMIC (REICHIAN) THERAPY by Neil Schierholz PsyD San Francisco, California Copyright © 2011 by Neil Schierholz PsyD Los Angeles (310) 866-0440 San Francisco (415) 821-2345 [email protected] Abstract THIS STUDY EXPLORES the experience of patients who have been treated with orgonomic (Reichian) therapy. The purpose of this study is to shed light on the experience of undergoing this therapy from the perspective of patients who benefited from it. A brief history of Reich and his theory and practice of orgonomic therapy is chronicled along with clinical and autobiographical accounts of treatment cases. Seven current or former patients who have been treated with and benefited from orgonomic therapy were interviewed using a qualitative, heuristic method yielding rich experience-near descriptions of the subjective experience, conscious and unconscious meanings, and functions/experience of orgonomic therapy. Interview data were inductively coded producing individual depictions for each research participant, a composite depiction, and six core themes of the experience: (a) entry into orgonomic therapy, (b) orgonomic therapist attributes, (c) orgonomic biopsychotherapy, (d) experience of the therapeutic process, (e) therapeutic results, (f) thoughts and feelings about orgonomic therapy. The results are consistent with Reich’s theory and practice of orgonomic therapy and provide a broader, deeper, and richer understanding of the patient experience directly from the aggregate voices of those who have experienced and benefited from it first-hand. The results also indicate that patients who are treated with and benefit from orgonomic therapy feel innately and intuitively drawn to it. Clinical implications are offered along with recommendations for future study. iii Contents ABSTRACT ........................................................................................................................................................................ III INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................... 1 REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE ................................................................. 4 Understanding Reich: His Personal History .................................................... 4 Reich’s Theory ................................................................................................. 9 What is Character? ............................................................................................ 10 Unity of the Body and Mind: Armoring ............................................................ 12 Discovery of the Orgone ................................................................................... 14 What is Orgonomic (Reichian) Therapy? ...................................................... 15 Character Analysis ............................................................................................ 16 Biopsychotherapy .............................................................................................. 17 Goals of Orgonomic (Reichian) Therapy .......................................................... 17 Dissolving Armor ................................................................................................. 17 Orgastic Potency ................................................................................................... 17 Genitality .............................................................................................................. 18 Application in Clinical Practice ........................................................................ 19 A Note on Touch .................................................................................................. 21 The Patient’s Experience: What We Know So Far ....................................... 22 Therapists’ Single-Case Accounts..................................................................... 23 Therapists’ Multi-Case Accounts ...................................................................... 24 Patients’ Autobiographical Accounts ................................................................ 24 Moving Toward a Patient-Centered Understanding .......................................... 26 RESEARCH METHOD ............................................................................ 27 Design ............................................................................................................ 27 Qualitative Research Design and Methodology ................................................ 27 Heuristic Research Design and Methodology ................................................... 29 Participants .................................................................................................... 31 Sampling Strategy ............................................................................................. 31 Recruiting Procedures ....................................................................................... 32 Demographics ................................................................................................... 33 Instrumentation .............................................................................................. 34 Data Collection .............................................................................................. 34 Data Analysis ................................................................................................. 36 Thematic Coding and Analysis ......................................................................... 36 Verification Procedures ..................................................................................... 38 iv CONTENTS RESULTS .............................................................................................. 40 Introduction to the Individual Depictions ...................................................... 40 Individual Depiction 1 ....................................................................................... 40 Individual Depiction 2 ....................................................................................... 44 Individual Depiction 3 ....................................................................................... 48 Individual Depiction 4 ....................................................................................... 51 Individual Depiction 5 ....................................................................................... 54 Individual Depiction 6 ....................................................................................... 58 Individual Depiction 7 ....................................................................................... 62 Introduction to the Composite Depiction ...................................................... 65 Composite Depiction ......................................................................................... 66 Core Themes of the Experience ..................................................................... 72 DISCUSSION ......................................................................................... 73 Theme 1: Entry Into Orgonomic Therapy ..................................................... 74 Theme 2: Orgonomic Therapist Attributes .................................................... 77 Theme 3: Orgonomic Biopsychotherapy ....................................................... 81 Theme 4: Experience of the Therapeutic Process .......................................... 86 Theme 5: Therapeutic Results ....................................................................... 89 Theme 6: Thoughts and Feelings About Orgonomic Therapy ...................... 96 CONCLUSION ........................................................................................ 98 Clinical Implications ...................................................................................... 98 Limitations of Current Study and Suggestions for Future Research ............. 99 Final Reflections .......................................................................................... 101 REFERENCES .................................................................................................................................................................. 102 APPENDIX A: INTRODUCTION LETTER TO RESEARCHER’S COMMUNITY ...................................................... 108 APPENDIX B: INTRODUCTION LETTER TO PROSPECTIVE ORGONOMIC THERAPISTS ................................. 110 APPENDIX C: INTRODUCTION LETTER TO PROSPECTIVE RESEARCH PARTICIPANTS ................................ 112 APPENDIX D: INFORMED CONSENT FOR RESEARCH PARTICIPANTS .............................................................. 114 APPENDIX E: BILL OF RIGHTS FOR RESEARCH PARTICIPANTS ........................................................................ 117 APPENDIX F: DEMOGRAPHIC FORM FOR RESEARCH PARTICIPANTS ............................................................. 118 APPENDIX G: SEMI-STRUCTURED INTERVIEW QUESTIONS .............................................................................. 119 ABOUT THE AUTHOR ................................................................................................................................................... 120 v INTRODUCTION Soul and body, as it seems to me, are affected sympathetically by one another: on the one hand, an alteration of the state of the soul produces an alteration in the form of the body, and contrariwise an alteration in bodily form produces an alteration in the state of the soul. (Aristotle,