armor rings.”^3
What were the particular segments or armor rings? Reich discussed these in rough-
ly the order he would deal with them in therapy. He started at the top of the body, or the
“ocular” ring:
In the ocular armor segment we find a contraction and immobilization of
all or most muscles of the eyeball, the lids, the forehead. ... This is expressed in
immobility of the forehead and eyelids, empty expression of the eyes or protrud-
ing eyeballs, a masklike expression or immobility on both sides of the nose. The
eyes look out as from behind a rigid mask. The patient is unable to open his eyes
wide, as if imitating fright Many patients have been unable to cry for many years.
In others the eyes represent a narrow slit^4.To illustrate more precisely how Reich worked with a particular segment, when I
was in therapy with him, he would have me follow his finger with my eyes as he moved his
finger sideways and up and down, now slowly, now rapidly. At the same time he would note
whether I was breathing naturally, as well as other aspects of my emotional expression.
Sometimes he would make direct eye contact, asking me to open my eyes wide in fright as
he made a threatening look or gesture. On a few occasions the wide-eyed, frightened expres-
sion brought up childhood memories of my fear of being kidnapped as I lay in bed looking
anxiously around me. We then discussed this fear and some of its psychological as well as
bodily connections.
It is worth noting once again the continuity in Reich’s therapeutic work, in spite of
some real differences to be described later. His goals remained the same: the establishment
of the orgasm reflex in therapy and of orgastic potency in sexual life. The underlying con-
ceptualization was also similar. We recall that in character analysis he worked from the sur-
face to the depths,from the more superficial character traits (e.g., politeness) through to
deeper emotions (rage, love). Now in psychiatric orgone therapy—as he began to call his
therapy—he also worked from the top down, but with a difference. He started literally from
the top ofthe body to loosen the horizontal armor rings in the way of the vertical flow of
energy. Yet he was never mechanical in therapy.
He worked on the totalbodily expression, emphasizing different segments at differ-
ent times.
The second armor segment, which Reich termed the “oral,” included the muscula-
ture ofthe chin,the throat, and the back of the skull. Once one advanced to the second
ring, the functional interplay of the segments became more apparent. Reich stressed that a
particular emotional expression, such as crying, would not fully emerge unless several armor
rings were released. Working with the armoring of the chin might release the impulse to cry;
but if armoring in the ocular segment had not previously been loosened, it would be diffi-
cult fully to liberate the crying impulse.
Reich retained an earlier interest from character analysis in the tone of voice. He
23 : Psychiatric, Sociological, and Educational Developments: 1940-1950 291