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Genuine Discharge may often be triggered by the client going through some of the characteristic physical actions that would take place with Discharge. In order to do this the client needs to know, or suspect, what the Distress is--anger or fear for example. Thus Acting Into will be useful in a session for intensifying feelings when the client knows what the feelings are. Acting Into Discharge exercises are also a form of Control Loosening, and therefore can be worth doing on their own. If done in this way, or in a teaching group for demonstration purposes, it is helpful to suggest to people that they set off with an image likely to produce the appropriate emotion:
e.g. "Think of a person who has recently made you angry." or "Scan things that frighten you."
When Acting Into is used in this way then at the end the client should do two minutes of random pleasant memories or equivalent to make sure they are out of any distress brought up.
Most people have not entirely suppressed laughter discharge, so it is a case of giving permission and encouraging people to make their laughter louder and more prolonged. Nevertheless as an exercise it is worth doing. Take a deep breath to start with and try to laugh loudly and as long as possible. Try different types of laughing, giggling, tittering. Unlike some growth methods, co-counselling does not value one form of discharge more than another. With co-counselling experience, people laugh much more than is usual. After we had been co-counselling for several years we went to an encounter group and in the closing resentments and appreciations were much resented for laughing too much!
1. Imagine you are a baby and lie down on the floor in a suitable posture and think of being miserable and abandoned. Try crying as you think a baby does; screw up your face and make noises.
2. Think of a major loss in your life, deliberately loosen your jaw muscles and also try to loosen forehead muscles. This can be aided by placing hands on the top of head and sliding scalp around. (Shutting off crying can cause headaches so that the corresponding relaxing of the muscular tensions can aid crying.) Again try to make some kind of miserable noise.
1. Hitting a cushion is a popular way of Acting Into Anger. There are several recommendations about this. Firstly, to kneel up rather than remain sitting. Secondly, to use both hands simultaneously to hit with (a precaution against wrenching back muscles). Thirdly, to start lightly and aim to hit several times with each blow getting harder, ending with the final hit being as hard as you can. Then start the sequence again. Fourthly, get your voice to join in; make a noise, or, if you want to use a word, make it a short one like, "No" or, "Me."
The reason for the suggestion about working up to a climax is because anger is very easily patterned; a stereotyped repetitive pounding is unlikely to be discharge. Anger discharge is an explosive and relatively short-lived action pattern, appropriately called 'storming' in Re-Evaluation Counseling. Any sustained monotonous action or noise is unlikely to be discharge. Similarly, whole body movement with tense muscles is not discharge. It is more likely to be the kind of acting out of distress that results in smashing up telephone kiosks and similar vandalism.
2. Tearing up cardboard boxes is a releaser of anger for many people; the noise made by the tearing is very satisfactory. Alternatively, kicking or jumping on the box can be very potent. Where the anger is with particular people a name or face can be put on the box. Sometimes people feel it appropriate to burn the pieces. As with the other Acting Into methods, try and let out noise, or say 'What's Left Unsaid.' Where there seems to be an intensity of hate that is difficult to discharge, then the use of a blunt knife to attack a cardboard box can be effective for releasing discharge. John Heron recommends to all parents that they symbolically murder their children at least once a month, on the basis they can then remain sane and loving with them the rest of the time.
3. Yet another method of Acting Into Anger is to pick a small cushion that can be twisted in the hands and "wring its neck." A point illustrated by the variety of methods is that each person needs to explore different ways of Acting Into, and see which are the most powerful for them.
1. Many people find that fear discharge is the most difficult one to learn how to release, and that it only starts to happen after many months of co-counselling. Moreover some people find fear discharge starts without any aware knowledge of what it is about. This was Rose's experience. After a group session on a Gestalt weekend she found herself upset and had a bout of shaking and teeth chattering for 45 mins, with no images during or afterwards. This was the start of fear discharge for Rose. Further episodes culminated in teeth chattering all through a film in a Norwegian cinema. A counselling session afterwards resulted in Rose being able to come to terms with fear. Afterwards more awareness of what her fears were about accompanied discharge. For Rose such discharge has led to a more specific awareness of fear, and a corresponding reduction in chronic anxiety. She can also handle fear much better.
An exercise which will give you some idea of how shut down you are likely to be is to try shaking your body, starting in one place--hands or shoulders or knees--and try to get the shaking to spread throughout your body. What happens? Typically some parts of the body are stiff and won't move or aren't co-ordinated with the rest.
2. Some useful Acting Into can be done with parts of the body. List things that frighten you and try one or more of the following after each item. (With all of these keep mouth open and allow noises out.)
As an aid to control-loosening and encouraging Discharge in the rest of your life it is worth doing one or more of the above whenever you notice you are anxious or frightened.
3. Safety is particularly important for fear Discharge and usually some form of touch and support is needed in a co-counselling session. This should be provided in a way which doesn't hinder the client's movements. A useful position for within-session fear Discharge is as follows:
Both client and counsellor stand up and face each other. The counsellor places arms around the client, either under the client's arms or over the client's shoulders depending on their relative heights. The counsellor makes contact with the client's back, with their hands cupped so that only the fingertips actually touch. The counsellor is thus providing contact and support without restricting the client's movements. The client also supports themself, with their fingertips on the counsellor's back in a similar fashion. The client's arms should be horizontal with elbows bent outwards. The client leans slightly forward and puts their weight onto the ball of the foot and lets their head hang down. In this position it is easier to let the arms shake and the rest of the body join in. Client should let their jaw go loose and encourage the emergence of noises.
Disgust appears to be concerned with getting rid of poisons or avoiding contamination and this applies psychologically as well as physically. Disgust noises, which seem to be low level retching, can be used for Acting Into exercises. Scanning people or situations which make you feel sick and making appropriate noises can be useful. These differ for different people. At a recent skills course one woman reported she felt sick when she sat in front of the computer screen. Note that some people do actually vomit as the Discharge of psychological poison.
We are uncertain whether vomiting or vocal noises of the 'Ugh', 'Yuck' type do constitute a separate discharge process or not, but they certainly exist as a component of other types of Discharge and they are psychologically powerful. We would certainly recommend the making of appropriate noises when the feelings are in this area; most people will have no difficulty thinking of suitable yucky situations for Acting Into.
The popularity of a certain "Green Slime" is probably due to the Discharge opportunity provided, as well as its appeal to junior sadists. Another Acting Into which specializes in this area of contamination consists of painting with the seven shades, or with bilious greens, or with your own favourite colour evocative of contamination, vomit, shit etc. Make appropriate noises. This exercise could also act as a source of material for a session. (We saw a couple doing this many years ago in an art room, when we were on a growth holiday. We discovered afterwards that they were co-counsellors.)
John Heron suggests an exercise for Acting Into called 'Mad dog.' Imagine a mad dog has got hold of one foot, and try to shake the dog off, using voice and arms to emphasize your efforts to get rid of it. Trying to get something nasty away from your body, or outside of it, seems to be a special kind of fear--mixed up with the getting rid of poisons by vomiting perhaps.
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