Iatrogenic Theory?

Iatrogenic means the treatment causes some or all of the problems itself.

An important question to consider is, is there a deterioration of life following the reading and believing in Dr Arthur Janov’s books?

The reader and believer comes to feel there is no hope except for primal therapy, the whole world is messed up, and the only real job to do is to be a primal therapist (or an artist of some type, something expressive).  Janov achieves this by attacking every human activity as potentially neurotic (every reader  is going to find something about themselves that Janov claims is due to Primal Pain).  Janov’s next tactic it to claim that post primal patients achieve a permanent tension free state, unusually good health and effortless success.  He then goes on to explain how these deep feelings or “primals” should only be done at his primal center and that any attempts to feel without his staff may be disastrous.

The new patient then arrives at the primal center or institute often with many years of unhappiness after they first read The Primal Scream, often dropping out of school or their profession as a result of Janov’s drop out and tune in, anti-intellectual diatribe, often hurting their relations with their family, sometimes permanently. 

They come to the center blaming their parents and childhood for these years of misery, often not realizing that things took a turn for the worst shortly after they first read Janov’s book(s). They come believing that the therapy could be almost like a miracle for them.

Then they get to the therapy, and have rude awakening, they see people who are not perfectly healthy who have been doing primal therapy for years.  They come to see that it is not what they thought it was.  But here is what is diabolical, they then are told that the reason they had such “unreal expectations” is not because Janov’s books hint at miracle cures; no, they are told they had such “unreal expectations” because of their own childhood pain.  As a result, they stay in therapy to feel that pain.

The patient, now knowing that primal therapy is not such a miracle after all, may then plan for the future in more realistic way.  The horrible thing is that this change is then attributed to the patient’s primal therapy, to his deep feelings or birth relivings, whatever had transpired in therapy.   Even though the patient now realizes primal therapy is not such a universal miracle as is suggested in The Primal Scream, they do not usually leave because they made a commitment (and justification of effort effects) and have interpreted their previously unrealistic ideas as proof of deep childhood pain, and the attitude of “it may not be a miracle, but I still have to feel my pain even if I feel worse initially”

It really is diabolical.  It can be better understood with the social psychological factors such as “justification of effort”, commitment and cognitive dissonance, all of which have large experimental bases supporting there theories, and are brilliantly described in the widely respected college textbook The Social Animal by Elliot Aronson.

I personally do not think there is much efficacy to the techniques of Primal Therapy that are specific to Primal Therapy alone (such as birth primals and encouraging prolonged deep feelings).  However, I may be wrong, because well controlled replicated independent studies have not been done.  If in the future really good studies repeatedly show efficacy to some aspect of Primal Therapy then that data should not be ignored. 

However one might predict these controlled, independent and replicated types of studies will be avoided by primal therapists for various reasons.  Just as 37 years has gone by without well designed, peer reviewed, replicated experimental studies, repeated by different psychologists. One might predict that in another 37 years there still will be no such studies.  Equally, one might predict that primal therapy will persist on and on due to its unfalsifiable belief system that explains everything (including why you can’t do proper experimental studies with primal therapy!).

Iatrogenic Therapy?

The therapy itself is also iatrogenic in so many cases. Many wonderful innocent people had their self esteem damaged at the primal center.  This usually comes about from rough or even cruel treatment from the therapists (who the person often idolizes, making it just awful for the person), or from other patients.  It can often involve labeling or threats of labeling.  In some cases the two come together, because when the community learns the patient is now out of favor with a senior therapist, they can turn on the person.  It can be a bizarre and surreal experience for the patient. Sometimes partners damage the self esteem of their partner by suggesting they did the therapy wrong.  Some of these people often even stop trying to find love or a good job, and the primal community labels it as “parasympathetic overload”.  The cure? You’ve guessed it, more expensive primal therapy. 

To say it simply, it is abusive. It creates a psychological injury.  Most primal participants were victims and perpetrators of this at some point.  The sad thing is those who attacked others the most seem to retain good or even grandiose self esteem; whereas those who thought it wrong to attack others often had their self esteem damaged.