Module II:
Bioenergetic Psychotherapy
Course description
Offered over four years of IHC Psychotherapy Training Program
Time commitment
Students meet one Saturday per month, 10 months a year for a total of 320 Hours
Course Overview
This course prepares students for clinical application of Bioenergetics psychotherapy. Active class participation is a necessary component for the integration of theory, principles, techniques and practical processes for safe and effective therapeutic practice. A previous or concurrent study of Module I Client centered psychotherapy is an essential prerequisite to learning Bioenergetics psychotherapy. Students must be very conversant with understanding the basic character structures learned in Module One in order to benefit from studying the particular physiological body armouring that is associated with each structure.
Bioenergetics work is based on the premise that emotional, mental and physical disturbances are symptoms of blocked energy due to an individual’s adaptive responses to environmental deficits, injuries in childhood and trauma across one’s lifespan. This course develops student's ability to notice and access maladaptive patterning and to use bioenergetics methods to support transformation, completion of arrested impulses and an integration of a new and positive experience. This work can expand one’s ability to process past experiences in order to develop a new and greater range of choice as well as healthier relational dynamic with the self and with others.
Each training weekend, students somatically explore one of the character structures in detail. The trainer guides them through exercises and experiences designed to help the students embody that character structure through recreating possible scenarios within the family of origin that have contributed to trauma at the developmental stage associated with that structure. Students experience a felt sense of the trauma, and observe and process the emotions that arise within them during these experiences. They also gain a felt sense of the armouring that was put in place for protection. Each structure is examined in detail in each of the four years.
Students are required to complete course work to compliment and accelerate in-class learning. Course work includes a midterm exam, class presentations, case studies, group exercises, in class discussion of theoretical framework and literature, guest lectures, in class therapy sessions followed by group supervision and thesis research and presentations.
Course work prepares students with the necessary knowledge to safely and ethically support client processing of presenting issues. Students will learn to identify and work with underlying character structures formed early childhood trauma.
Components of the Training and Learning activities:
Learning Activity: Group Exercises
In the first two years of training, students are guided through a series of Bioenergetics exercises that are techniques and interventions designed to gently activate somatic awareness. These exercises help build students’ own connection between body and mind, enabling greater consciousness around a felt sense of self. Increased awareness around personal unprocessed trauma and working bioenergetically to clear the trauma from the body helps to inform student therapists about each character structure, and how to identify these structures In their work with clients.
These somatic interventions are used to access previously unprocessed material and implicit memory that may be difficult to access through talk therapy alone. These can include preverbal material from very early developmental stages, and trauma that results in fight, flight, freeze responses leading to disconnection to pre-frontal cortex processing.
This practical and experiential learning helps students integrate theoretical teachings and offers first hand exploration of one’s own body armour, defenses, past traumas and developmental interferences. As students become conscious of their own embodied history they become aware of personal defenses that could affect their ability to work objectively within the therapeutic context. This training supports students’ ability to work through some of their own issues and creates greater awareness around aspects that could cause blind spots in future clinical work.
Student participation in-group exercises allow access to early developmental stages and exploration of specific phase-based needs in order to gain a deeper understanding the original injury. Students learn by experience how to work with their own unmet relational needs and experience what is required in the therapist role to assure effective treatment. Students are encouraged to write about, reflect upon, and discuss their personal experiences of connecting to and activating their stored disruptive processing.
Acquired skills and competencies:
Integrate the intersection of human psychological functioning and development with client-centered and bioenergetics psychotherapy
Work within the framework of an established psychotherapeutic theory.
Integrate an expanded awareness of self.
Learn the appropriate professional language particular to Bioenergetics therapy
Learning activities: Class Presentations
In year three and four students are expected to present a minimum of three class presentations and group processing workshops on at least three different character structures. Class presentations are submitted initially in written form in order to assure accuracy of knowledge and appropriate use of Bioenergetics techniques and exercises for work on a particular structure. Students are expected to provide detailed information on observing and assessing specific structures with thorough explanations of manifestations physically, emotionally and cognitively, along with corresponding relational dynamics, patterns of behaviour, beliefs and core fears.
This helps to solidify the link between biology, brain development, and somatic structures. There are patterns of posture, muscular tension, skeletal formations and accessible or inaccessible movements associated with each structure. Students learn through experience how physical aspects are developed through learned perceptions, belief systems, and patterns of relating.
These are discussed in detail and provide an in-depth understanding of the particular expressions of different structures. Students will conduct and lead group processing of a particular structure while highlighting coinciding muscular tensions, physical blocks and body armouring.
Students will also cover therapeutic goals and necessary relational dynamics needed to support processing of specific needs of the developmental stages. Students map out the common environmental aspects and early relational dynamics that contribute to such formations. This experiential exploration promotes awareness of one’s own underlying emotional states, bringing unprocessed feelings to the surface for examination on a cognitive and emotional level and to recover the lost expression of natural or interrupted impulses for re-integration.
These workshops provide first hand learning around the effectiveness of Bioenergetics interventions and creating the necessary container for effective therapeutic treatment.
Acquired skills and competencies:
Demonstrate competency with integration of the theories of human development and functioning between client-centered therapy and body-based Bioenergetics psychotherapy.
Demonstrate effective knowledge and use of established bioenergetics psychotherapeutic theory.
Integrate knowledge of human and cultural diversity in relation to psychotherapy practice
Maintain a strong sense of self in the sessions, employing safe and effective practices.
Use effective professional communication when seeking on going permission during sessions
Establish a treatment plan with the client, and gain client permission for executing the plan
Establish a therapeutic alliance.
Apply ethical decision-making
Learning activities: In class discussion of Theoretical Framework and Literature
Bioenergetics was founded by Alexander Lowen whose work is at the forefront of in class discussions and required readings for this module. John Pierrakos also made many significant contributions to our understanding of Bioenergetics theory in his development of core energetics. Both Pierrakos’ and Lowen’s works are rooted in character theories first written about by Wilhelm Reich; whose works will al will also be examined at length. The contributions to a more recent understanding of character analysis is reviewed in the works of Stephen Johnson and Anodea Judith, who provide important perspectives on our understanding of character structure, and build entry-level introduction and knowledge to the more extreme forms of structure leading to serious disorders which fall under major diagnostic categories, as described in the current DSM V. Body based psychotherapy may be contraindicated for these disorders, and may require psychopharmacological treatment that needs referral to medical professionals who can diagnose and prescribe.
Another area of importance to the clinical application of this work is attachment theory, which provides deep awareness and understanding of human development and functioning. Early attachment relationships and environmental factors will be discussed in detail as many clients will present with unresolved issues of childhood trauma, abuse, neglect and other exposures to violence. Research has shown that childhood trauma is a common experience and depending upon the severity of the trauma, can result in profound impact on many areas of functioning and perception in adulthood.
Developmentally based coping mechanisms, relational dynamics and environmental factors will be studied in order to work effectively with complex trauma. Working with other forms of trauma recovery is also examined in relationship to bioenergetics psychotherapy and somatic processing of fight, flight freeze responses.
Teachings cover:
Stabilization and grounding techniques
Working with regressed and traumatized parts safely
Ensuring therapists can bring clients back fully into present awareness
Guarding against re-traumatizing the client through building a strong therapeutic alliance, and drawing a comparison between past experiences and present-day safety.
identifying when somatic body work is contraindicated
Acquired skills and competencies:
Reinforcement of IHC’s course being built on a blended modalities model, and integration of these comparative modalities and theories of human psychological functioning and development.
Integrate knowledge of human and cultural diversity in relation to psychotherapy practice.
Identifying when somatic modalities are inappropriate, and knowing when presenting disorders require referral to other medical support such as psychiatry.
Use research findings to inform clinical practice.
Learning activities: In class therapy sessions
Instructor lead in class therapy sessions
This course emphasizes the critical safeguards required for procedural applications including instructor lead demonstrations of therapeutic process to showcase:
Safety check ins
Continued permission seeking
Risk assessments
Creating appropriate and effective treatment plans in partnership with the client, and in the moment therapy direction that always ensure clients’ wellbeing.
Demonstrations cover procedural aspects of therapists practice including:
Openings and closings
Informed consent
Explanation around benefits and contraindications to somatic forms of therapy.
In instructor-led Bioenergetics therapy sessions, students witness how a safe container is created for the therapy. The therapist creates safety by asking permission at each step of the treatment and provides an overarching client-centered approach to the somatic processing. The therapist encourages but never forces, supporting client’s agency and choice.
Teachers are seasoned therapists who can showcase the necessary attunement towards client’s needs and total support for their wellbeing while ensuring client safety above all else. Instructors implement the necessary forms of verbal and non-verbal communication skills that impart compassion, respect and honesty, as well as the upholding of professional boundaries in the building of an effective therapeutic alliance. In the first two years in-class therapy sessions are led by instructors or third- and fourth-year students in order to ensure ethical practice and interventions that explore safe and effective ways of working.
These demonstrations show students the necessary ingredients for creating safety for deep emotional processing, as well as the tools for aiding clients to reconnect to the interrupted impulses so they can find healing in the completion and integration of these impulses. Instructors and upper level students pause sessions briefly at the beginning of therapeutic work to describe their assessment of structure and issues they will be working with in the session in aid of increasing student's assessment skills.
Acquired skills and competencies:
Integrate the blended modalities of human psychological functioning and development.
Work within a framework based upon an established Bioenergetics modality
Integrate awareness of self in the professional role.
Integrate knowledge of human and cultural diversity in relation to psychotherapy practice.
Conduct an appropriate risk assessment
Develop a treatment plan with client, and gain client permission when appropriate in the session
Student lead in class therapy sessions
Toward the end of year two, students are ready to step into the role as therapist in supervised Bioenergetics therapy sessions. These sessions are witnessed in small group class sizes and are utilized as practice sessions and teaching opportunities for process-based learning. It is understood that students will require significant supervision and guidance in their initial introduction to practicing the therapeutic
role and undertaking somatic client work. Students are expected to implement learned typical therapeutic procedures and apply assessment tools to gauge character structure and make note of other important presenting factors noticeable in the client. This is briefly discussed towards the beginning of the session and prior to deep processing with the supervisor/trainer who can comment on accuracy and provide any necessary directional support. Students may also share any cues they noticed both verbal and non-verbal suggesting areas of importance to the client that indicate possible direction of the work. Students have the opportunity to explore and implement a range of Bioenergetics techniques and interventions to support client's ability to access important material and connect to repressed memory, somatic sensations and any corresponding emotional and cognitive aspects. Students are encouraged to implement the necessary relational dynamics called for to effectively meet clients' needs and assist them to find agency to express any repressed of cut off aspects of personality, difficult emotions and processing of interrupted or incomplete body impulse responses. An atmosphere of non-judgmental support and authentic curiosity is encouraged and student therapists are instructed to utilize inclusive, thoughtful and respectful therapeutic language that values individual differences, culture, and unique subjective experience. Student therapists adopt grounding techniques during somatic sessions in order to remain present, centered and objective in their ability to support clients and maintain professional roles.
Acquired skills and competencies:
Integrate the blended modalities model of theories of human psychological functioning and development as taught across all three modules.
Work within a framework of the Bioenergetics psychotherapy theories.
Integrate awareness of self in relation to the role of therapist.
Integrate knowledge of human and cultural diversity in relation to psychotherapy practice.
Develop a treatment plan in partnership with the client
Establish a therapeutic alliance.
Apply safe and effective use of self.
Conduct an appropriate risk assessment.
Structure and facilitate the therapeutic process.
Use effective professional communication.
Ensure CRPO ethical guidelines are upheld
Obtain clinical supervision & consultation when necessary.
Conduct an effective closure process to end a course of therapy appropriately.
Learning activities: Group Supervision
Immediately following each therapy session be it instructor-led or student-led group supervision takes place. Each supervision session begins with reflections by the therapist on their experience of the session and any noteworthy aspects or places that warrant deeper discussion, explanation and analysis. This provides students an opportunity to discuss any areas of difficulty, issues of transference and counter transference that require attention in order to continue to provide safe and effective therapeutic work. The supervisor has an opportunity to point out areas of strength, resources used and ways the therapist showed up for their client, aswell as any misses. All students have the opportunity to participate and ask questions around therapeutic processing and offer any feedback they see as relevant.
Acquired skills and competencies:
Integrate the blended modalities model of theories of human psychological functioning and development as taught across all three modules.
Integrate awareness of self in relation to the therapist’s role.
Integrate knowledge of human and cultural diversity in relation to psychotherapy practice.
Apply safe and effective use of self.
Conduct an appropriate risk assessment.
Design a treatment plan in partnership with the client
Obtain client permission throughout the session where appropriate
Ensure upholding CRPO code of ethics.
Obtain clinical supervision & consultation when necessary.
Learning activities: Practicum
As in Module One, Students are expected to attend weekly practice somatic therapy sessions. They will alternate Bioenergetics sessions with energy healing sessions, (Module III). They meet once a week in pairs to conduct a session in the role as therapist and once a week with a different student to participate in sessions as a client.
Students are encouraged to give feedback on the session to the therapist immediately following the work and help impart what worked and what didn’t work, areas of attunement, misses or places where they did or did not feel supported. The experience of both roles helps integrate awareness around therapeutic process the implementation of somatic therapy and the roles of client and therapist.
Ultimately such experiential learning offers practical insight into the need for safe and effective approaches to therapeutic work. Practicum partners change three times per year to allow enough time to deepen the work and practice procedures such as openings and closings and other procedural requirements such as informed consent, explanation of methodology, limits and contraindications to Bioenergetics Psychotherapy, client history intake and ongoing permission seeking which is at the forefront of somatic work. It is expected that students take notes on sessions and develop treatment plans in conjunction with their clients, and seek supervision for therapeutic work.
Acquired skills and competencies:
Integrate a blended modalities model of theories of human psychological functioning and development.
Become comfortable and familiar with working somatically.
Integrate awareness of self in relation to the therapist’s role.
Develop a treatment plan with the client and acquire client permission when appropriate.
Integrate knowledge of human and cultural diversity in relation to psychotherapy practice.
Establish a therapeutic alliance.
Apply safe and effective use of self.
Conduct an appropriate risk assessment.
Structure and facilitate the therapeutic process.
Use effective professional communication.
Comply with CRPO code of ethics
Maintain self-care and level of health necessary for responsible therapy.
Obtain clinical supervision & consultation when necessary.
Conduct an effective closure process to end a course of therapy appropriately
Learning activities: Personal Psychotherapy
Students are expected to seek regular and frequent personal therapy with a registered Psychotherapist as an essential component of practicing the safe and effective use of self. This is to process any personal issues or counter-transference material that arises from course exercises or clinical work. Working with a graduate from IHC is strongly encouraged but not mandatory to help students further integrate the teachings and blended modalities of the program.
Acquired skills and competencies:
Ensures the processing of any personal material that may arise within the classroom, or within client sessions to ensure future sessions and encounters can be dealt with professionally and cleanly. It is an essential element of safe and effective use of self, and personal therapy can shine a light on any shadow material, blind spots, or judgmental biases that can arise in the course of clinical work, and help the student therapist take responsibility for their reactions and adjust behaviour appropriately.
Learning activities: Clinical Practice and Clinical Supervision
Many students begin practicing as therapists in training outside of school by the end of year two and beginning of year three. If this is the case student therapists are required to follow all CRPO therapeutic protocol on procedures and obligations for client work and are encouraged to seek regular and frequent supervision. It is recommended that students obtain supervision at a ratio of one supervision hour to every four clinical hours, or when necessary to support best practice of therapeutic process and the safe and effective use of self.
Acquired skills and competencies:
Further Integration of a blended modalities model and theories of human psychological functioning and development.
Heighten awareness and knowledge of human and cultural diversity in relation to psychotherapy practice.
Establish and maintain a therapeutic alliance.
Apply safe and effective use of self in the therapeutic relationship.
Conduct an appropriate risk assessment.
Structure and facilitate the therapeutic process.
Create a treatment plan in partnership with the client
Ask for permission when changing the course of the session
Use effective professional communication.
Comply with CRPO guidelines.
Obtain clinical supervision & consultation when necessary.
Provide reports to third parties.
Identify when and how to refer clients appropriately.
Conduct an effective closure process to end a course of therapy appropriately.
Access and apply a range of relevant professional literature.
Use research findings to inform clinical practice.
Learning activities: Guest Lectures
A number of guest therapists will be invited to present workshops and seminars to students in class, and students are encouraged to take outside courses on subjects such as pharmacology. Guests vary each year and are invited to speak on topics to fill in any noticeable gaps in competencies. Past lectures have included Dr. Andrew Toplak on Gender Issues, Dr. Elinor Dickson on working with dreams from a Jungian perspective, Judy Archer M.A., teaching TRE (Trauma Release Exercises)