What is bioenergetic psychotherapy?
Bioenergetics is body-based psychotherapy, recognizing that the physical body exists in a dynamic relationship with the mind. The body cannot exist without the mind and the mind cannot exist without the body.
A trained bioenergetics therapist has an understanding of character structure development, defense mechanisms and how the body internalizes personal life traumas and experiences into the musculature of the body. The body's holding pattern is a source of valuable information and offers an unconscious "voice". Discovering and understanding the body's experience of emotional sensation is helpful in embracing and acceptance of self in the integrated healing process
The therapist, gently works with both the physical and emotional components to help loosen and release held tension, increasing and restoring energetic flow and life force to the body and the mind. A combination of basic breathing techniques, grounding and various bodywork exercises are used to release chronic physical tensions and emotional blocks held in the body as a result of trauma. The body integrates with the mind to allow space for new patterns of movement, thoughts, and feelings. The result is an improved sense of well-being and joyful wholeness.
Somatic experiencing (Peter A. Levine, Ph.D.) is a more commonly used term referring to developing body awareness and coming into relationship with one's body as part of an integration and healing of experienced trauma.
A trained bioenergetics therapist has an understanding of character structure development, defense mechanisms and how the body internalizes personal life traumas and experiences into the musculature of the body. The body's holding pattern is a source of valuable information and offers an unconscious "voice". Discovering and understanding the body's experience of emotional sensation is helpful in embracing and acceptance of self in the integrated healing process
The therapist, gently works with both the physical and emotional components to help loosen and release held tension, increasing and restoring energetic flow and life force to the body and the mind. A combination of basic breathing techniques, grounding and various bodywork exercises are used to release chronic physical tensions and emotional blocks held in the body as a result of trauma. The body integrates with the mind to allow space for new patterns of movement, thoughts, and feelings. The result is an improved sense of well-being and joyful wholeness.
Somatic experiencing (Peter A. Levine, Ph.D.) is a more commonly used term referring to developing body awareness and coming into relationship with one's body as part of an integration and healing of experienced trauma.
“Feeling is the life of the body, just as thinking is the life of the mind...peace of mind depends on peace of body. The struggle between the ego and the body robs man of the peace of mind he needs to experience the joy that life offers....No thought is right for a person unless it also feels right to his body”
- Alexander Lowen in The Spirituality of the Body -
- Alexander Lowen in The Spirituality of the Body -