The Embodied Self

Reviews / Votes

'In every analysis one has to arrive at the body-self if one wants to achieve deep and enduring change" (Rey, 1994). Combining her understanding of movement therapy and psychoanalysis in writing The Embodied Self, Katya Bloom beautifully describes ways of sinking into this body-self to discover the most painful, repressed and neglected layers of the infantile psyche. This highly recommended book is essential reading for therapists and hospital professionals who need to develop more comprehensive understanding of the often neglected primitive spontaneous gestures of the body-self which are not yet able to be put into verbal dialogues.'- Dr Jeanne Magagna, Ellern Mede Centre for Eating Disorders; Head of Psychotherapy Services, Great Ormond Street Hospital, London'The Embodied Self is a remarkable work written with the sensitivity and kinesthetic intelligence only such a brilliant movement artist as Katya Bloom could bring to it. It speaks with equal relevance to both the informed lay person and the advanced scholar. Bloom has achieved a three dimensional work that includes inviting conscious shifts into the reader's bodily experience while reading. In describing her patient-therapist interactions with such artistry, Bloom enables us to live the experience and achieve embodied knowledge. Most importantly, Bloom provokes, incites and leaves one with many questions. I experienced many paragraphs as open invitations for intense discussion. This book informs and inspires. It is an invaluable resource for dance movement therapists, movement analysts and students of both. Readers will be truly moved!'- Virginia Reed, President of the Laban/Bartenieff Institute of Movement Studies Faculty, Dance Movement Therapy program, Pratt University, New York'Katya Bloom, movement psychotherapist, has created a uniquely valuable exploration into the relationship between body, mind and emotions in her book, The Embodied Self. Primarily an overview of how dance movement therapy and psychoanalysis can inform and benefit each other, Bloom's book takes the reader into a fascinating exploration of how the language of movement can enhance therapy for both infants and adults. ...Bloom's work on transference will significantly advance the understanding of the therapeutic community in these areas and is a worthy addition to the field. In an age that is increasingly focusing on whole systems rather than a Cartesian split into separated parts, it is perhaps inevitable that the broad field of data provided by the human body and its movements will be increasingly incorporated into therapeutic settings. The Embodied Self makes an important step towards building a vocabulary and structure of thought for this purpose.'- Andrew Wells in Psychotherapy and Politics International