Monday, February 13, 2017

Changes and Alterations in Biochemical Functions During Primal Therapy Treatment

Here is a current patient retelling his overall changes and alterations in biochemical functions. It is not enough to relate numbers but also changes that accompany those changes. Changes can be exaggerated to please the doctor so we need corroboration, and external measures as well. 

We have studied vital signs changes, especially body temperature which is a measure of the continuing work of the body. Lower temperature that endures means far less work of the whole system. That can mean enhanced longevity according to some related studies.

When all signs drop together, we have a system change, very important. Vital signs are just that: signs of the vitality of the system.

When we pair his life changes with objective measures, we are confident of his improvement. He is enjoying his life. Isn't that the goal of what we do? No pain but joy. Unfortunately, we must go through pain to get to joy: the dialectic.

All those signs combined augur well for increased longevity.




Here is the patient's interpretation, in his own words.

I spent a bit of time extracting my Skype history to create some charts of my vitals from June 2013 to the present time.

My main conclusions:

- My blood pressure has dropped relative the age average
- My pulse has dropped relative to the age average
- My temperature has been constant and below the age average

At least for BP and pulse, my case appears consistent with others that Art has mentioned where vital signs get 'healthier' over time with therapy.

I have also been intermittently taking Dr Ingeborg Bosch's Personal Defense Profile Test as an indicator of neurosis, albeit self-reported of course. I've plotted my scores on this vs my investment in therapy. My defenses have also trended downwards with increasing investment in therapy.

All in all, this concurs with how I feel these days: more centered, less compulsive, more mature, more masculine.

Thank you all once again for your contribution to my transformation. Long may it continue!

It's been an extraordinary transformation - beyond anything I could have imagined in my first interview  in December 2009.

My sexuality has changed fundamentally, my relationships with women have completely transformed. I have a very different personality.

The vital signs do tell a story, but it's really about the emergence of a different human being. It's as if a new version of me has  arisen and taken over the body of the "old XXXXX".

I've gone from being sick, confused and under-confident, to someone striding out through the world, loving who they're being. Well most of the time! What a ride Art. What a ride.


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2 comments:

  1. KatarzynaFebruary 13, 2017 at 11:21 PM

    I wish I would

    ReplyDelete
  2. PaulFebruary 14, 2017 at 4:58 AM

    Hi,

    I just did the Personal Defense Profile Test.

    A depressing result as I seem to still be trapped in a 'symbolic child consciousness'. But it depends on which buttons you press and that depends on which 'reality' you are reporting on at the time. I find myself with a distinctly split opinion about myself as I seem to have a foot in two worlds simultaneously, self ambivalent indeed.

    But let me share the following with you, if I can. Firstly, I know we are all in a 'unique' situation and as Bob Marley once sang: "Every Man Feels His Burden Is The Heaviest". . . But my situation in life (out there) has been truly bizarre. Discovering this blog and trying to 'advertise Primal' has produced a very strange effect on me and a very great resistance against me PERSONALLY. I know I am not the only one. I mean, Art has had Primal Therapy too, but is he accepted widely in the world out there? NO. So, there you have it, better to be a patient at the Primal Center than to be it's founder (or promoter). . .

    Art knows I have had several 'run ins' with various authorities (several 'incidents' reported on this blog for all to read) and as an educated person (ha ha) I also find myself like a guinea pig in my own experiment 'out there'. It has been as if I am 'wading through' everyone else's symbolic ideation and it's rubbing off on me. I know other real qualified scientists have reported similar experiences when experimenting on themselves; you have to be careful not to become like the objects you 'study'. The 'proof' of your observations can get too close, the subject/object divide can blur. . .

    Yes I have a problem with blame but as a spy in the world 'out there' and a covert intelligence agent I have discovered that do be sane in an insane world you do have to frequently drink from the same poisoned chalice. I want to stop that.

    The 'truth', what is 'real' has been seriously obfuscated and it's hard to remain healthy and sane whilst the authorities upstage you daily and discard your worth for fear of realising their own worthlessness. . . (Frank talks about this a lot but we should know the Legal Situation will not change anything).

    It makes writing difficult. What book would it be? A fiction? A documentary? A Biopic? A Biography? A Novel?

    For as long as Art remains alive and kicking and I have this blog to report to, I really don't think I can do more than research and prepare material for 'later'. . .

    I could have lied to myself in this test and pressed different buttons. I'm too smart. These tests make more sense when in supervision and I am not, much to my chagrin. Oh yes, and the advice is, take the test regularly, over time to see how you change. It is a good test but be prepared for disappointing results at first. . .

    Paul G.

    ReplyDelete

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Review of "Beyond Belief"

This thought-provoking and important book shows how people are drawn toward dangerous beliefs.
“Belief can manifest itself in world-changing ways—and did, in some of history’s ugliest moments, from the rise of Adolf Hitler to the Jonestown mass suicide in 1979. Arthur Janov, a renowned psychologist who penned The Primal Scream, fearlessly tackles the subject of why and how strong believers willingly embrace even the most deranged leaders.
Beyond Belief begins with a lucid explanation of belief systems that, writes Janov, “are maps, something to help us navigate through life more effectively.” While belief systems are not presented as inherently bad, the author concentrates not just on why people adopt belief systems, but why “alienated individuals” in particular seek out “belief systems on the fringes.” The result is a book that is both illuminating and sobering. It explores, for example, how a strongly-held belief can lead radical Islamist jihadists to murder others in suicide acts. Janov writes, “I believe if people had more love in this life, they would not be so anxious to end it in favor of some imaginary existence.”
One of the most compelling aspects of Beyond Belief is the author’s liberal use of case studies, most of which are related in the first person by individuals whose lives were dramatically affected by their involvement in cults. These stories offer an exceptional perspective on the manner in which belief systems can take hold and shape one’s experiences. Joan’s tale, for instance, both engaging and disturbing, describes what it was like to join the Hare Krishnas. Even though she left the sect, observing that participants “are stunted in spiritual awareness,” Joan considers returning someday because “there’s a certain protection there.”
Janov’s great insight into cultish leaders is particularly interesting; he believes such people have had childhoods in which they were “rejected and unloved,” because “only unloved people want to become the wise man or woman (although it is usually male) imparting words of wisdom to others.” This is just one reason why Beyond Belief is such a thought-provoking, important book.”
Barry Silverstein, Freelance Writer

Quotes for "Life Before Birth"

“Life Before Birth is a thrilling journey of discovery, a real joy to read. Janov writes like no one else on the human mind—engaging, brilliant, passionate, and honest.
He is the best writer today on what makes us human—he shows us how the mind works, how it goes wrong, and how to put it right . . . He presents a brand-new approach to dealing with depression, emotional pain, anxiety, and addiction.”
Paul Thompson, PhD, Professor of Neurology, UCLA School of Medicine

Art Janov, one of the pioneers of fetal and early infant experiences and future mental health issues, offers a robust vision of how the earliest traumas of life can percolate through the brains, minds and lives of individuals. He focuses on both the shifting tides of brain emotional systems and the life-long consequences that can result, as well as the novel interventions, and clinical understanding, that need to be implemented in order to bring about the brain-mind changes that can restore affective equanimity. The transitions from feelings of persistent affective turmoil to psychological wholeness, requires both an understanding of the brain changes and a therapist that can work with the affective mind at primary-process levels. Life Before Birth, is a manifesto that provides a robust argument for increasing attention to the neuro-mental lives of fetuses and infants, and the widespread ramifications on mental health if we do not. Without an accurate developmental history of troubled minds, coordinated with a recognition of the primal emotional powers of the lowest ancestral regions of the human brain, therapists will be lost in their attempt to restore psychological balance.
Jaak Panksepp, Ph.D.
Bailey Endowed Chair of Animal Well Being Science
Washington State University

Dr. Janov’s essential insight—that our earliest experiences strongly influence later well being—is no longer in doubt. Thanks to advances in neuroscience, immunology, and epigenetics, we can now see some of the mechanisms of action at the heart of these developmental processes. His long-held belief that the brain, human development, and psychological well being need to studied in the context of evolution—from the brainstem up—now lies at the heart of the integration of neuroscience and psychotherapy.
Grounded in these two principles, Dr. Janov continues to explore the lifelong impact of prenatal, birth, and early experiences on our brains and minds. Simultaneously “old school” and revolutionary, he synthesizes traditional psychodynamic theories with cutting-edge science while consistently highlighting the limitations of a strict, “top-down” talking cure. Whether or not you agree with his philosophical assumptions, therapeutic practices, or theoretical conclusions, I promise you an interesting and thought-provoking journey.
Lou Cozolino, PsyD, Professor of Psychology, Pepperdine University


In Life Before Birth Dr. Arthur Janov illuminates the sources of much that happens during life after birth. Lucidly, the pioneer of primal therapy provides the scientific rationale for treatments that take us through our original, non-verbal memories—to essential depths of experience that the superficial cognitive-behavioral modalities currently in fashion cannot possibly touch, let alone transform.
Gabor Maté MD, author of In The Realm of Hungry Ghosts: Close Encounters With Addiction

An expansive analysis! This book attempts to explain the impact of critical developmental windows in the past, implores us to improve the lives of pregnant women in the present, and has implications for understanding our children, ourselves, and our collective future. I’m not sure whether primal therapy works or not, but it certainly deserves systematic testing in well-designed, assessor-blinded, randomized controlled clinical trials.
K.J.S. Anand, MBBS, D. Phil, FAACP, FCCM, FRCPCH, Professor of Pediatrics, Anesthesiology, Anatomy & Neurobiology, Senior Scholar, Center for Excellence in Faith and Health, Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare System


A baby's brain grows more while in the womb than at any time in a child's life. Life Before Birth: The Hidden Script That Rules Our Lives is a valuable guide to creating healthier babies and offers insight into healing our early primal wounds. Dr. Janov integrates the most recent scientific research about prenatal development with the psychobiological reality that these early experiences do cast a long shadow over our entire lifespan. With a wealth of experience and a history of successful psychotherapeutic treatment, Dr. Janov is well positioned to speak with clarity and precision on a topic that remains critically important.
Paula Thomson, PsyD, Associate Professor, California State University, Northridge & Professor Emeritus, York University

"I am enthralled.
Dr. Janov has crafted a compelling and prophetic opus that could rightly dictate
PhD thesis topics for decades to come. Devoid of any "New Age" pseudoscience,
this work never strays from scientific orthodoxy and yet is perfectly accessible and
downright fascinating to any lay person interested in the mysteries of the human psyche."
Dr. Bernard Park, MD, MPH

His new book “Life Before Birth: The Hidden Script that Rules Our Lives” shows that primal therapy, the lower-brain therapeutic method popularized in the 1970’s international bestseller “Primal Scream” and his early work with John Lennon, may help alleviate depression and anxiety disorders, normalize blood pressure and serotonin levels, and improve the functioning of the immune system.
One of the book’s most intriguing theories is that fetal imprinting, an evolutionary strategy to prepare children to cope with life, establishes a permanent set-point in a child's physiology. Baby's born to mothers highly anxious during pregnancy, whether from war, natural disasters, failed marriages, or other stressful life conditions, may thus be prone to mental illness and brain dysfunction later in life. Early traumatic events such as low oxygen at birth, painkillers and antidepressants administered to the mother during pregnancy, poor maternal nutrition, and a lack of parental affection in the first years of life may compound the effect.
In making the case for a brand-new, unified field theory of psychotherapy, Dr. Janov weaves together the evolutionary theories of Jean Baptiste Larmarck, the fetal development studies of Vivette Glover and K.J.S. Anand, and fascinating new research by the psychiatrist Elissa Epel suggesting that telomeres—a region of repetitive DNA critical in predicting life expectancy—may be significantly altered during pregnancy.
After explaining how hormonal and neurologic processes in the womb provide a blueprint for later mental illness and disease, Dr. Janov charts a revolutionary new course for psychotherapy. He provides a sharp critique of cognitive behavioral therapy, psychoanalysis, and other popular “talk therapy” models for treating addiction and mental illness, which he argues do not reach the limbic system and brainstem, where the effects of early trauma are registered in the nervous system.
“Life Before Birth: The Hidden Script that Rules Our Lives” is scheduled to be published by NTI Upstream in October 2011, and has tremendous implications for the future of modern psychology, pediatrics, pregnancy, and women’s health.
Editor