In this presentation I discuss the formation of character structure and have participants to exercises that will help them understand the experience of different characters.

1. Introduction to Somatic Psychology
Homayoun Shahri, PhD, MA, LMFT
http://www.ravonkavi.com
Homayoun.shahri@ravonkavi.com

2. Life Viewed as a System
● Open, Complex, Dynamical, and Self Organizing Systems

3. Drive, Repression, and Identification
1. Impulse (drive) seeking expression
2. Environmental negativity
3. Redirection of the original drive
4. Drive turning against itself
5. Drive seeking alternative expression
6. Muscular Armor blocking the drive
“I came to consider the instinct as nothing more than the motor aspect of pleasure.", Wilhelm
Reich, The Function of the Orgasm

4. Old Object Relations, and Introjects
7.Identification with environmental negativity, and introjection
“And the truth must finally lie in that which every oppressed individual feels within himself
but hasn't the courage to express”, Wilhelm Reich

5. Mother, Father, Child Triad
● Formation of the psyche of a child
“Psychic illnesses are the result of a disturbance of the natural capacity for love.”,
Wilhelm Reich

6. Character Structure
● Sum total all repressed ego instincts (drives) and their
frustration, resulting in introjects, formation of false
self, and formation of muscular armor
“The root cause of all neurosis is disappointment in love”, Wilhelm Reich

7. Character Armor
The CHARACTER is the totality of the mechanical, automatic
and unconscious ways of reacting, by which the individual maintained
his or her psycho-physical balance; a balance that makes
sure that the feelings, emotions and bodily impulses which
for various reasons have been blocked, remain separated
from the consciousness of the individual. (Alexander Lowen)
Reich named this CHARACTER STRUCTURE -
the Character armor, because of its function as a defense.
This armor has a bodily side in the form of chronic
muscular tensions, where the repressed material is hidden.
(Alexander Lowen)

8. Early Bioenergetics (Alexander Lowen, M.D.)
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Or8UGnIy1o4)

9. Wild Geese (Mary Oliver)
You do not have to be good.
You do not have to walk on your knees
For a hundred miles through the desert, repenting.
You only have to let the soft animal of your body
love what it loves.
Tell me about your despair, yours, and I will tell you mine.
Meanwhile the world goes on.
Meanwhile the sun and the clear pebbles of the rain
are moving across the landscapes,
over the prairies and the deep trees,
the mountains and the rivers.
Meanwhile the wild geese, high in the clean blue air,
are heading home again.
Whoever you are, no matter how lonely,
the world offers itself to your imagination,
calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting --
over and over announcing your place
in the family of things.

10. A Body Model

11. The Schizoid Character Structure
● Spastic muscles (and/or stringy muscles)
● Usually walks awkwardly
● Split in the body (top and bottom half, or twisted, or split around the center)
● Breathing is very shallow
● Feelings are repressed
● Eyes are dull that do not connect
● Tensions in the joints
● Tendency to live in the head and fantasy
● Has sex to feel alive

12. Exercise 1
● P & C Sit facing each other. C closes his eyes.
● C brings his head down in fetal-like position.
● Slowly C opens his eyes, lifts his head, and reaches for P.
● P remain rigid and expresses hostility and resentment toward C through eyes.
● Eventually C with eyes open says “I am”, and meets the rejecting eyes of P.
● The more C expresses “I am”, the more he faces rejection – Schizoid structure.
● P contacts C out of guilt, and C contacts P out of desperation.
● P & C become aware of what they have to deny in themselves to get affirmation and
what they want from environment.

13. The Oral Character Structure
● Elongated and narrow body
● Child-like face and body
● Dependent personality
● Knees are locked
● Not much body hair (child-like)
● Complains of lack of energy
● Breathing is not full
● Collapsed chest
● Has sex to seek contact

14. Exercise 2
●
P & C breath while standing and reach out to each other with their arms.
● Both experience vulnerability while reaching out.
● C sits down and reaches for P, and takes P's hand, who is standing over him, and
allows C to take his hand and bring it toward himself, while C says “I need you”.
● P without awareness of C's feelings take his hand and walks away.
● P returns and C reaches again. This time P smiles at C but only touches the tips of
C's fingers not allowing C to hold on or take his hand.
● P then walks around C as if he is preoccupied with something glancing around the
room while C tries to follow P with his eyes and uplifted head.
● C eventually gives up the struggle.

15. Narcissistic (Psychopathic) Character
Structure
● Body is top heavy (energy in the upper half of the body)
● Tends to control using power or manipulation
● Tension in the neck (resulting in disconnecting from body)
● Tension in the waist separating two halves of body
● Tension in genital disconnecting it from feelings
● Inflated chest in Power Psychopath, and raised shoulders
or squared shoulders in manipulative type
● Grandiose image of himself
● Has sex to control and manipulate

16. Exercise 3
● C sits while P stands over him. C reaches toward P and says “I need your help.” P
responds with a conning and manipulative smile and says “Of course, I'll help you”,
and reaches down and touches C.
● C again says “I need your help”, but this time his helplessness feelings are not
responded to by P, who instead acts indifferent. C begins to complement P on being a
good parent (to inflate his ego). P then comes to help C.
● When C asks for help, P uses C's helplessness to meet P's own ego needs.
● When C says “I need you”, P responds by telling C how big he is and how proud P is
of him, thereby defending P position as a good parent and causing C to deny and turn
against his own helplessness.
● C is conned into believing P and rises up on shaky legs with illusion that he is strong,
and moves around in this position.

17. Masochistic Character Structure
● Body is muscular and big (may also be fat – stagnant energy)
● Tendency to complain
● Holds in feelings
● Thick/short neck
● Peripherals of the body are not charged
● Pelvis is tucked in, and back is collapsed
● Has a lot of energy but bound in his structure
● Does not enjoy sex!

18. Exercise 4
● C sits and says to P “I don't need you.” P while standing, responds by reaching down,
and touching C and saying “I understand”.
● C expresses to P some deep feeling such as “I am lonely” or “I am frightened” or “I
feel sad.” P then says “I understand”, picks some food and attempts to put the food in
C's mouth as a response to what what C expresses. Regardless of C says, P
responds with “I understand” and forces food.
● C says “I don't need you” and P loos very sad and distraught and says “Don't think
about me.” P leans over C and C pushes on his chest or shoulders and says “I don't
need you”, while P continues to put his weight on C's arms. Eventually the arms are
forced to collapse and P falls on C's chest.

19. The Rigid Character Structure
● Body is well proportioned
● Very energetic and industrious (achiever)
● Heart and sexuality are not connected (diaphragmatic tension)
● Suffers from sexual anxiety
● Holds tension in long muscles of the back to “stand tall”
● He is free (in energetic sense), but cannot “let go”,
else he has to open his heart!
● Has sex to conquer

20. Exercise 5
● C is sitting down and reaching up to P and saying “I want you” or “I love you.”
● The first time C says it, P responds by making contact with C. C then slowly move his
pelvis front and back while reaching and days “I want you” or “I love you.”
● P sees the pelvic movement connected with the statement and this time turns his
back on C (usually resulting in immediate freezing of C pelvis). When C again makes
the statement without the movement fo the pelvis, P responds.
● Now C moves his pelvis and says “I love you,” and then P standing over him move
his pelvis with C, and responds with “I love you too.” (this overwhelms C and results
in freezing of his pelvis)
● Now C stands, reaches out to P and says “I love you,” and P, without moving toward
C and in a self-assured way, says “of course you do”.

21. Character Structure - Energy
● Schizoid – hold together (existence vs need)
● Oral – hold on (need vs independence)
● Psychopathic (Narcissistic) – hold up (independence vs
closeness)
● Masochistic – hold in (closeness vs freedom)
● Rigid – hold back (freedom vs letting go)

22. Relational Somatic Psychotherapy (Robert Hilton, PhD)
"We are whole beings, heart, soul, and sexuality. This
wholeness and sense of well-being is maintained through the
empathic core relatedness of our caregivers, and more
importantly, in their desire to repair misattunement. When this
repair does not take place, we become divided and split from
our original spontaneous selves ... If misattunment divided us,
it is empathic attunement that gives us the possibility of
recovery. This kind of attention causes us to feel the
preciousness of our souls and the true value of our love ...
We slowly become free to choose, love and express our
separate and true selves."

23. Rumi
THROUGH LOVE all that is bitter will sweet
Through Love all that is copper will be gold.
Through Love all dregs will turn to purest wine
Through Love all pain will turn to medicine.
Through Love the dead will all become alive.
Through Love the king will turn into a slave!

24. Reference
● Shahri, H. (2014). Toward an integrative model for
developmental trauma. International Body Psychotherapy
Journal, 13(1), 52-67. (http://goo.gl/UahNKP)