-IBIS-1.5.0-
tx
reproductive system
impotence
psychospiritual approaches

metaphors and correlations

• Sexual pressure, tension, guilt; social beliefs; spite against a previous mate; fear of mother. (Hay, 1984, p. 170)
• Behind all sexual difficulties there stands fear; fear of the obligation and responsibility a child would bring; fear of loss of control (and ecstasy or rapture unleashing the repressed psychic contents which are socially unwelcome), fear of one's own manhood and aggression, fear of being potent, fear of femininity, fear of achievement. Impotence should serve as a cue to take stock of one's attitudes to such themes as power, achievement, and aggression, and to the fears that are associated with them. (Dethlefsen, p. 190-194)
• Spectatoring: Instead of being able to relax and lose themselves in the sensual delights of the sexual experience, individuals may be constantly outside themselves, wondering how they are doing and judging their sexual expertise, and involved in self-consciousness and self-observation. They may also be especially conscious of their partner's degree of involvement and enjoyment. "Societally imposed standards of sexual performance reach almost mythological proportions for some people. They become convinced that all normal men get rock-hard erections on demand and have sexual intercourse for hours in every imaginable position without reaching orgasm, while their female partners writhe about in the throes of one orgasm after another". (Kelly, p. 375)
• Performance pressure is often rooted in an excessive need to please a partner. It is not unusual for a heterosexual man to assume that he is responsible for bringing pleasure to a woman. One may also have a nagging insecurity generating continual worry that one's partner may become sexually bored or interested in someone else. All sources of anxiety are likely to interfere with sexual responsiveness at some level. These real or imagined pressures may result in fear of failure, which in turn leads to anxiety that interferes with some phase of sexual response, which ultimately produces sexual dysfunction, thus creating a cycle of continuing dysfunction reinforced by fear of failure. (Kelly, p. 376)
• Communication: Many dysfunctions are rooted in relationship problems. Communication difficulties may be relatively uncomplicated at first, such as failure to let partner know which types of stimulation are particularly enjoyable and which might be better avoided. Loving relationships have complex dynamics, and both the joys and discord of relationship usually get played out in the sexual arena. If power struggles, trust issues, or a pattern of rejection has emerged, the possibilities of sexual dysfunction are enormous. Subtle games of sexual sabotage designed to tease, frustrate, anger, and turn off one's partner, will mask some of the deeper relational problems in couples. Effective therapeutic outcome may depend on untangling of a complex web of physical, psychological (childhood learning, unconscious intrapsychic factors, etc.), and relationship causes. (Kelly, p. 377)
• Inhibited sexual desire (ISD): Characterized by loss of attraction for formerly exciting stimuli and lack of pleasure even in directed stimulation of the genitals. These people rarely seek sexual activity, and although they may still function normally when sexually stimulated, the physical pleasure they derive is limited and fleeting. (Kelly, p. 367)
• Sexual phobias and aversions: These are generated by more severe anxiety about sexual contact, which develops into exaggerated fearful reactions toward sex or its consequences, and eventually the person becomes unreasonably afraid of becoming sexually involved. This may occur as the levels of intimacy and commitment deepen, and may manifest in ways of sabotaging the relationship or finding fault with the partner, so that the person will not feel obligated to go any further with sex. (Kelly, p. 367)
• Behavioral sex therapy, basic principles:
» Gaining a sense of permission to value one's sexuality - placing a higher priority on enjoyment; positive attitudes toward sensual sensations and emotional reactions.
» Eliminating elements that are blocking full sexual response - accomplished by relaxation, communication, counseling, and resolution of relationship conflicts.
» Reducing performance pressures - shifting emphasis from spectatoring and feeling responsible for giving pleasure toward working on personal own sexual satisfaction.
» Using specific sexual exercises to develop more positive ways of sexual functioning.
(Kelly, p. 382)

Chinese psychophysiology:
Heart ~ Xin houses the Shen (Spirit) and reveals itself through the brightness in the eyes; governs Fire and Heat; and relates to the integration of the organs and the personality.
» Healthy expressions are warmth, vitality, excitement, inner peace, love, and joy.
» Heart Xu (Deficiency) signs include sadness; absence of laughter; depression; fear; anxiety; shortness of breath (Seem, p. 28); cold feeling in the chest and limbs; palpitations; cold sweat; inability to speak; memory failure; nocturnal emissions; and restless sleep.
» The Heart is the Emperor of the bodily realm so that when the Heart is disturbed all the other organs will be disrupted.

Liver ~ Gan is the home of the Hun (Ethereal Soul); it relates to decisiveness, control, and the principle of emergence; maintains smooth flow of Qi and Xue (Blood); reflects emotional harmony and movement; and has an intimate relationship with the genitals and Lower Warmer.
» Healthy expressions are kindness, spontaneity, and ease of movement.
» Liver Xu (Deficiency) signs include impotence; frigidity; pain in thighs, pelvic region, and throat; ready tendency to "the blahs" (Seem, p. 28); timidity; depression; irritability; vertigo; pruritus; dry eyes, skin, and/or tendons; asthma; aching at the waist; hernia; and difficulty raising head up and down.
» Liver Qi Stagnation reflects and accentuates emotional constraint as the Liver's function of facilitating smooth flow in the body is constricted. Stagnation is associated with frustration, irritability, tension, and feeling stuck. With time this pattern tends to produce a gloomy emotional state of constant resentment, repressed anger or depression, along with tightness in the chest, frequent sighing, abdominal tension or distension, and/or a feeling of a lump in the throat with difficulty in swallowing. (Maciocia, p. 216)

Kidney ~ Shen stores Jing (Essence) and governs birth, growth, reproduction, development, and aging; houses the Zhi (Will); expresses ambition and focus; nourishes the brain to sustain concentration, clear thinking, and memory; and displays the effects of sexual dissipation (especially excessive ejaculation), overwork, chronic degenerative processes, and extreme stress.
» Healthy expressions are gentleness, groundedness, and endurance.
» Kidney Xu (Deficiency) signs include indecisiveness; confused speech; dreams of trees submerged under water; cold feet and legs; abundant sweating (Seem, p. 28); fearfulness; apathy; chronic fatigue; discouragement; scatteredness; lack of will; negativity; impatience; difficult inhalation; low sex drive; lumbago; sciatica; and musculoskeletal irritation and inflammation, especially when worse from touch.
» Intense or prolonged fear depletes the Kidney. Overwork, sexual dissipation, parenting, simple aging, and a sedentary or excessively indulgent lifestyle all contribute significantly to Kidney Xu (Deficiency).


therapies

behavior modification:
• systematic desensitization: Person gradually unlearns the tension-producing behaviors that are causing problems. (Kelly, p. 380)
• Sensate focus: Begins with nondemanding body stroking (without direct contact with the genitals) to increase awareness of ways of sensual pleasuring without any demand for sexual performance. A day or two later, include the breast and genital areas in sensate focus, and continue discovery process of what is most pleasurable to each partner. The day after full erection is developed, the woman is instructed to stimulate the male to erection, cease stimulation until the erection subsides, and return to sexual play to induce another erection. This teasing exercise is to be repeated for a full half hour in a slow, nondemanding fashion. This in not only enjoyable and stimulating to both partners, but helps establish confidence that the erection will return easily even when temporarily lost during sex play. When erections occur spontaneously, the woman kneels astride the man's body before beginning sex play. When a full erection develops, she inserts the penis into her vagina in a slow, nondemanding manner, while continuing manual penile stimulation. After insertion, she is to move slowly up and down on the penis. Then she remains quiet and the man is encouraged to thrust slowly, concentrating on the sensual pleasures derived but with no concern for bringing about orgasm either for himself or his partner. In this way he is distracted from performance concerns. On subsequent days the couple continue the slow pelvic movements with no pressure to achieve orgasm until it occurs naturally and involuntarily during coitus. (DeLora, p. 478)

imagery:
• victory with joy (Chavez)
• darkwood brightmeadow (Chavez)

affirmation:
• I now allow the full power of my sexual principle to operate with ease and with joy. (Hay, 1984, p. 170)

theotherapy:
Cronus, Hades (Lemesurier, p. 100)

hypnotherapy:
Uses relaxation and suggestion; often used as an adjunct to other treatment techniques. (see above) (Kelly, p. 379)

psychotherapy:
• Masters and Johnson treat both partners at the same time, using a marital-unit approach to any sexual dysfunction, as it is not a concern of only the husband or only the wife. They utilize a therapy team composed of both a male and female therapist to facilitate communications and rapport, as each patient has an ally of the same sex. During an intensive two-week residential program all couples are seen each day, and are free from the usual demands of their everyday world, leaving them the time and energy to focus on resolution of their difficulties. The problems they encounter in carrying out their assignments may be dealt with immediately and resolved before they create yet another round of fears of failure. (DeLora, p. 473)
• Every human being has both a masculine and feminine psychological aspect, and each of us, woman or man, needs to develop both of these inner aspects fully. Nevertheless, this difficult path demands that we first achieve total identification with the particular aspect that is represented by our physical gender. Only when we are capable of living out that one pole to the full is the way free for us to awaken and so to integrate consciously the alternative aspect of our psyche via the encounter with the opposite sex. (Dethlefsen, p. 194)

process paradigm: (experientially oriented)
• What is the symptom preventing me from doing? What is the symptom making me do? (see process interview: male reproductive system)

related materia medica listings:
the shadow and physical symptoms
converting a symptom to a signal
state-dependent learning
behavior modification techniques (see also: systematic desensitization)
imagery: precautions
imagery: techniques
affirmations: guidelines and precautions
theotherapy
hypnotherapy
process paradigm


footnotes

Reprinted from The Foundations of Chinese Medicine, Maciocia, Giovanni, 1989, by permission of the publisher Churchill Livingstone, a division of Elsevier Limited.