Psychotherapeutic aspects of the martial arts.
Formerly understood by Western thought as only a set of fighting skills, the Martial Arts (MAs) have come to be seen, in the psychological literature about the MAs, as a comprehensive approach to both physical and mental health. The MAs enhance self-esteem through the provision of physical activity and group experience, and the teaching of relaxation, concentration, assertiveness, and directiveness and honesty in communication. Thus, they are understood to be a legitimate form of therapy, for both "neurotic" and some chronically mentally ill patients. It is proposed in this paper, that the MAs can also be a useful supplement to verbal psychotherapy, as they foster and expose feelings through a physical modality, which can then be observed and analyzed in the modality of verbal psychotherapy. A case report illustrates how the MAs produce feelings and reveal problems, which are brought into the psychotherapy arena and analyzed.
Weiser
M
M
Shalvata Mental Health Center, Hod Hasharon, Israel.
Kutz
I
I
Kutz
S J
SJ
Weiser
D
D
D000328:Adult; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000523:psychology; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D016139:Martial Arts / Q000523:psychology*; D009497:Neurotic Disorders / Q000628:therapy*; D011613:Psychotherapy / Q000379:methods*; D012063:Relaxation; D012649:Self Concept