Ask Sam

1) If you are new to primal, I would strongly suggest reading the books in the "Essential Introduction" part of the Suggested Reading section of this site, and possible a few of the "How To" books. It is important to understand the theory and practice of the primal process before diving into the work. You will be better able to direct your process and get what you need.

2) Go to the IPA site at www.primals.org and click on Therapist Referral List. There may be a therapist nearby that you are not aware of.

3) Try to develop a dialogue, on email or telephone, with someone knowledgeable in primal (possibly me, or someone else in the IPA) to assess where you are at in your developmental process, and what your therapy needs are. Use your best judgment and ask for references.

4) If you have experience, you may only need a "buddy" (another experienced primaller) to continue with your work, and may find them by searching the lists mentioned above. If you need a therapist, you may be able to work with one at a distance by traveling for an intensive series of sessions every so often, and returning home to continue on your own with their supervision. It may even be advantageous to do phone sessions, where you do primal work while on the phone with your therapist. Although these long distance solutions are not ideal, with the right care and support, they can allow for an emotional release opportunity that is better than holding the feelings in.

5) Find a therapist in a related humanistic psychotherapy modality like Bioenergetics, Core Energetics, Radix, Psychodrama, Gestalt, Regression Therapy, etc., and see if they are open to the idea of facilitating deep feeling work with you. Be aware that therapists from other modalities have not always done their own feeling work and may tend to be overly directive. Remember that it's your time, money and life.

6) Find a good massage therapist or Cranial sacral therapist who understands and appreciates emotional release, and let some feelings out on the table. Again, be aware that some facilitators will try to direct you to what they feel you need.

7) Try to find an understanding friend who will simply sit and say nothing while you talk openly and express your feelings. They must understand how important it is not to judge and give advice. You need to be heard, and all they need to do is listen. I do not suggest that you attempt full-blown primal work, just take the opportunity to really talk openly and cry or get some anger out.

8) I do not recommend self-primalling, or primalling alone unless you have a great deal of experience in the process. If you are new to primal, self-primalling may dissolve your well-developed defenses and open up a Pandora's Box of feelings. This can be extremely dangerous and lead to serious depression, anxiety, psychotic episodes ("going crazy") or even suicide.

9) Be persistent!

Question 2: Why is primal therapy not more widely practiced?

Answer:

There are many views on this, and I will attempt to give what is only my opinion.

After the publication of The Primal Scream in the early seventies, there was a huge flurry of interest in primal, since the author, Arthur Janov, stated that it was the cure for neurosis. Many psychiatrists and psychotherapists jumped on the bandwagon and began to practice without much experience in proper facilitation and often without doing any personal therapy work of their own. Both at Janov's Primal Institute and in the offices of many "new" primal therapists, some clients were having successes, but many felt unresolved or came away feeling worse. In the wild days of the seventies, many therapists were experimenting with any new techniques they could get their hands on, and as can be expected, their clients were often the casualties.

The high expectations of primal were quickly attacked by the more conservative therapy and medical establishment, leading to a rapid decline in practitioners, and a general public opinion that "scream therapy" was just another wacky fad.

Anyone seriously practicing primal quickly realized that this process was not as simple or universally effective as had been promised. Those convinced of its great potential stuck with it and gradually developed the theory and practice. Like anything fairly new, primal needed time to mature. Arthur Janov continued his grandiose claims (and still does) that his center is the only location in the world where a person can be cured. The Primal Institute trained therapists, but for various reasons, they were rarely given the certification to practice outside the center. This strange policy retarded the growth and availability of qualified therapists. "Defectors" from the center started practicing in other locations, and primal grew, like the natural thing that it is - but very slowly.

Another problem is that the skills needed to facilitate a client's primal process cannot be learned at university. To be effective, every practitioner needs to go through the arduous process of personal primal therapy - which can take years - before any training begins. And then, there are so few training facilities that a trainee virtually has to find a willing therapist/mentor and return to the ancient tradition of apprenticeship. Some jurisdictions don't necessarily recognize this. It's almost like the Zen practice of "transmission of mind" from master to disciple. Not many established psychiatrists, psychologists and psychotherapists will want to do this. It's much easier for them to study books, get a degree, and then dispense drugs or sit in a chair, listen and nod their heads.

Although primal practice is relatively rare, it is based on a natural healing process that is pressing for resolution in every human being. Also, with new findings in brain research pointing toward positive evidence of early memory and repression, I believe that primal will gradually outgrow its early reputation, be recognized, and gain greater acceptance.

Question 3: Some of the modern brain research (e.g. Goleman, LeDoux) gives the impression that adverse circumstances during pregnancy, traumatic birth, or neglect and abuse in early life causes permanent damage to the brain. If so, is there any point in doing therapy?

Answer:

The latest research shows compelling evidence of what many of us in the field have experienced ourselves - that early neglect causes damage to the system and alters the original potential of the organism. This is physical damage - the death of cell structures - and it causes real physical suffering and pain, rather than just the so-called "emotional pain" we usually think it is. When a baby is left to cry too long and too often, that wail may be about the actual occurrence of brain damage - just as real, just as painful as cutting off a piece of their finger.