The well (of distress)

Just as Freud spoke of humans creating psychological defence mechanisms to protect us from uncomfortable truths, Wilhelm Reich saw our body developing an armour as a way of storing up tensions and strong emotions. This, he believed, needs to be addressed if we are to reacquaint ourselves with our own life-force.

See what you think of the following passage:

There is a well within each and every one of us that has so far gone undetected by x-rays and autopsies.

The well is where all our unwanted memories and emotions end up, alongside all our hurt, pain and traumas (if we were unable to sort them out at the time they happened).

The well starts at the mouth and can reach right down to the stomach or the intestines.

Sometimes, when people are unable to carry the heavy burden of their distress any more, they release bits of it in the form of a huge sigh, or a series of sobs or judders.

Sometimes, if people choose to purge themselves of the distress that lies at the bottom of the well, they may wish to do so with the help of a therapist or a group of people they trust. Here, they may seek to revisit or re-enact the time of their painful experience(s). Or they may be able to tap into the well by talking about their hurt in the present moment.

When the distress rises to the top of the well, some people burst into a flood of tears, some people shake, while others find screaming and hollering a good way of releasing these deep-rooted emotions. There is no right or wrong way to do this, so long as you are safe – and are prepared to be exhausted for some time afterwards.

The rewards for doing this can be immeasurable.

What do you feel about this? Might this be useful to you in some way? If so, you might also be interested in checking out embodied relational therapy, primal screaming, primal therapy and ‘amplification’ – an exercise from gestalt therapy.