Medical Sciences | Charles Konia, M.D.

Massacre In Tuscon

The following is an excerpt of an article that will be included in an upcoming issue of the Journal of Orgonomy. It is being published here with kind permission of the author, Edward Chaska M.D.

Referring to the January 8th shooting of 20 people by accused gunman Jared Lee Loughner, Dr. Chaska writes:

“Overlooked in the media’s debate over the tragic shootings of Congresswoman Giffords and nineteen others is the deadly interaction between marijuana and mental illness. As a psychiatric consultant in a drug and rehabilitation facility I see dozens of young men and women who present in psychotic and violent states from the use of marijuana and other drugs. Often, after three or four months of treatment and abstinence from marijuana, they are entirely changed human beings. Marijuana users are three times as likely to develop a psychotic episode and twice as likely to develop overt symptoms of schizophrenia as are people who do not smoke marijuana. They also suffer higher rates of anxiety and depression. Marijuana inhibits brain development and interferes with natural empathic feelings for other human beings.

“In Pennsylvania, thanks to ‘children’s rights’ advocates, children over 14 can refuse psychiatric or drug and alcohol treatment, even if their parents insist they need it. If the media wants someone to blame for this tragedy they need look no further than the marijuana lobby and the ‘children’s rights’ advocates who interfere with a parent’s right to get treatment for their children with psychiatric and drug problems.”

With his knowledge of characterology, the trained medical orgonomist can accurately identify and effectively treat youngsters who are at risk for developing psychotic symptoms and are prone to destructive behavior long before they become violent. Mr. Loughner, who had a past history of drug use, may not have been suffering from classic schizophrenic symptoms prior to the attack but nevertheless his behavior indicated that he had a character diagnosis of paranoid schizophrenia with impulsive and homicidal tendencies. His history of marijuana use put him at greater risk to have a violent psychotic reaction. The ability of the medical orgonomist to make an early therapeutic intervention based on an accurate character diagnosis can help to prevent future tragedies.

January 13, 2011
Categories: Biological Sciences, Child Rearing, Medical Sciences, Politics, Social Sciences . . Author: Charles Konia, M.D. . Comments: 2 Comments

The Courage For Finding A Cancer Cure

An article regarding a cure for cancer recently appeared in The Wall Street Journal ( “A Geneticist’s Cancer Crusade” November 27-28 2010). In it, geneticist James Watson, the co-discoverer of DNA, declared that “we should have the courage that we can do it.” He adds a warning: “if we say we can’t do it, we will create an atmosphere where we just let the FDA [Food and Drug Administration] keep testing going on so pitifully.” Dr. Watson continues, “The FDA has so many regulations…They don’t want you to try a new thing if there is an old thing that might work.”

It is true that the FDA has placed a stranglehold on any cancer research that is outside of its mechanistic paradigm. This powerful federal agency is an undisguised manifestation of the emotional plague. It operates autonomously without any check on its sphere of power. It is also true, as Dr. Watson states, that courage is a necessary ingredient for finding a cancer cure. But courage, in itself, is not enough. Modern genetics is limited in its ability to be successful because it deals exclusively with genetic functions and only in a mechanistic, not functional, fashion. What is missing is a way of thinking that provides an understanding of the origin of the cancer process which is an area that is outside the domain of mechanistic biology.

In his investigation of the cancer process, Wilhelm Reich, M.D. found that the disease is a true biopathy, that is, a pulsatory disturbance of the plasmatic system (which consists of the autonomic nervous system and the vascular system) resulting from the presence of armor (see glossary). The cancer biopathy involves a particular type of disturbance in the emotional life of the individual.

There must first be correct, functional, understanding of the relationship between genetic (genotypic) and emotional (phenotypic) functions in general. But this cannot happen until the operation of the emotional plague in obstructing genuine cancer research is fully and courageously unmasked. The FDA stopped Dr. Reich’s cancer research in the 1940s and it is interfering with functional cancer research today. Only when the emotional plague is first exposed will it then be possible to unravel the cancer riddle.

December 23, 2010
Categories: Biological Sciences, Medical Sciences, Social Sciences . . Author: Charles Konia, M.D. . Comments: Leave a comment

Adolescent Homosexuality

Adolescent sexuality is one of the most anxiety-producing and confusing situations confronting parents today. The combination of unexpressed misery, neurotic anger and rebelliousness resulting from the adolescent’s intense sexual frustrations makes this a particularly difficult time for adolescent and parent alike. The problem becomes compounded because of the following complicating factors:

1. Unrecognized and unresolved sexual and other problems in parents themselves.

2. The breakthrough of enormous quantities of anxiety in the younger generation resulting from the breakdown of the authoritarian family.

3. The sexual over-stimulation and unbridled economic exploitation of an already over-stimulated younger population by the media including, in particular, the entertainment industry.

4. The abundance of sexual misinformation that is being circulated as gospel: The general acceptance of every kind of neurotic (pre-genital) sexual activity and the evasion of any discussion of healthy, genital, heterosexual activity.

The confusion generated by this highly charged and volatile social state of affairs easily triggers the expression of all forms of the emotional plague. In the case of adolescent homosexuality, the line becomes drawn between those who favor a laissez faire attitude and are willing to permit it and those who see it as a sign of emotional sickness and discourage it.

Unfortunately, both groups see the problem from a superficial, symptomatic perspective. Even in our age of sexual enlightenment, neither group fully recognizes the particular importance of the role that the sexual function plays in regulating the healthy adolescent’s emotional life and this widespread ignorance and evasion of the essential directly gives rise to these contradictory and irreconcilable points of view.

December 17, 2010
Categories: Biological Sciences, Child Rearing, Medical Sciences, Social Sciences . . Author: Charles Konia, M.D. . Comments: 2 Comments

Two Opposing Views Of Intrauterine Life

Sponsored by the American College of Orgonomy, medical orgonomist Theodota Chasapi, M.D. gave a presentation on The Roots of Love and Hate, The impact of Early Mother-Baby Bonding on Our Ability to Love, at the Princeton Public Library on October 2, 2010. She presented recent findings that confirmed many of the discoveries regarding newborns and infants made in the 1940’s and 50’s by Wilhelm Reich, M.D.

Applying Reich’s clinical findings on infants, Dr.Chasapi discussed the period of life from the intrauterine through the neonatal period. Characterized by intense emotional liveliness and responsiveness of the fetus to mother, she showed that this time was crucial in the future development of the human organism. For example, the various emotional states that are experienced in the mother’s daily life such as pleasure and anxiety were often reflected in the identical expressive movements (expansion and contraction) in the fetus. She reported that a healthy birth process is not simply the mechanical expulsion of the fetus from the mother’s womb but an active process in which both mother and fetus participate. She demonstrated that the newborn is not helpless as is commonly believed, but is able to crawl up the mother’s belly and find the nipple. Emphasizing the importance of maintaining emotional and physical contact between mother and newborn (orgonotic contact, Reich) during and following birth, she stressed the need to prevent disruption of this contact by well-meaning adults, such as removing the infant for tests.

There is another view of intrauterine life which has recently appeared, one that on the surface seems identical but on closer examination is quite the contrary (see How the First Nine Months Shape the Rest of Your Life in Time Magazine , October 4, 2010). Called Fetal Origins, it is the application of mechanistic/mysical principles to the study of fetal life where only physical, quantitive factors such as nutrition, pollutants, drugs and infections are considered the significant influences on healthy fetal development. Since emotions are not correctly understood by mechanistic scientists, these factors are mentioned only as in passing. Although the mechanical causes are real, the unrecognized emotional disturbances of the mother are the major causes of intrauterine fetal damage. Focusing primarily on these physical factors serves as an evasion of the emotional development of the infant.

October 6, 2010
Categories: Biological Sciences, Child Rearing, Medical Sciences . . Author: Charles Konia, M.D. . Comments: Leave a comment

One Man’s Experience with America’s Health Care

On June 21st I had bi-lateral knee replacement surgery. It was a long time coming, despite the fact that I refused to admit it until the end when I really had no choice…do it or forget about walking.

Those who are familiar with my thinking know that, in general, I am not in favor of mechanistic medicine when it replaces functional medicine. But surgery is essentially a mechanical procedure and mechanism is therefore rational in that field.

The application of mechanistic principles has resulted in remarkable advances in the medical specialties in America for two reasons: 1) Because mechanistic thinking and practice develops in the direction of greater specialization and 2) Because a relatively free market economy such as ours allows for the development of unlimited technological advances.

I made the appointment, had the surgery and 2 days post-op I took my first tentative steps. I was incredibly fortunate to have a surgeon, Dr. Thomas Meade, that performed the most state-of-the-art surgery possible. The skin covering my knees looked like they had zippers on them because the staples were placed so close together that they looked like the teeth of a zipper, apparently distinctive enough so that every doctor and nurse in the rehab hospital I went to afterward said, “Oh, this is Dr. Meade’s work!” I was also fortunate to be in hospitals that provided the highest level of compassionate, human and humane care one could ask for.

Everyone asked me about the pain…but there was none. From the first day, my only discomfort was from the swelling which resulted in stiffness and limited motion. Now 10 weeks later, the zippers are gone, the swelling has almost disappeared and I walk at least one mile a day, at a pretty good clip. After six weeks I was discharged from physical therapy and now am back to almost full-time practice. I was 79 on July 20th, and tell everyone I got new knees for my birthday!

I read about the health care in Cuba, and I wonder what my story would be like there. I saw the hospital bill for my eight day stay, and almost fainted. I didn’t pay for it directly…Medicare and my secondary insurance did, though I’ve been paying my dues for many, many years. (And still do, because I continue to work and pay the maximum into the Medicare fund, as well as paying for private supplemental insurance.) But I’m so grateful to be living in a place that has the best health care imaginable…I haven’t heard of anyone going to Cuba, Bulgaria, or even Great Britain for that matter, for a special surgical/medical procedure.

So all in all, I’m pretty lucky…to be living at this time, in this place…this great United States of America.

September 3, 2010
Categories: Medical Sciences . . Author: Charles Konia, M.D. . Comments: 2 Comments

Armor Interferes With Musical Expression

Before I became interested in medicine, I was a violinist trying to master the technical difficulties of the instrument. Despite having studied with the finest teacher there was something missing that had a powerful and negative effect on my playing. This something was also present in other students I knew. Then, when I came across Character Analysis by Wilhelm Reich, this missing factor became immediately clear.

Reich wrote: “It is from the plasmatic emotions of the chest that most emotional expressive movements of the arms and hands originate. These lmbs are, biophysically speaking, extensions of the chest segment. In the artist who is capable of freely developing his longings, the emotion of the chest is directly extended into identical emotions and expressive movements of the arms and hands. This is true for the violinist and pianist as well as the painter.”

I understood that in the presence of armor, emotional energy from the chest that enables reaching out (toward the world), particularly longing, cannot move freely into the arms and hands to find its musical expression. This was the missing something. Although I had achieved technical correctness, I saw that as long as armor was present in my chest, technical expertise in and of itself would not allow full expression of the music’s emotion.

With these ideas in mind, I entered therapy with a medical orgonomist. As armor (see glossary) was systematically removed in therapy, my playing improved dramatically and I became so impressed with the power of medical orgonomy that I lost interest in pursuing a musical career. I decided to become a physician so that I could study and practice the science of medical orgonomy.

The cellist, Yo-Yo Ma is aware of the effect of muscular tension on the quality of his playing. In a July 29, 2010 interview in The Wall Street Journal he said: “With every year of playing, you want to relax one more muscle. Why? Because the more tense you are, the less you can hear. So the more you can collect that energy and be unblocked and be totally present, the more you can say, ‘I’m here because I really want to be: there’s no other place I’d rather be’ and if you really mean it that’s not bad.”

Without recognizing the existence of muscular armor, Mr. Ma is also well aware of the destructive effects of muscle tension on musical expression.

August 9, 2010
Categories: Medical Sciences . . Author: Charles Konia, M.D. . Comments: 1 Comment

The Great Health Care Debate Evasion

It is characteristic of the way armored people think that they always avoid the essential. The health care debate is a good example. In this debate, people argue about all kinds of secondary issues such as the high cost of Obamacare, the socialization of medical practice and so on, while ignoring what made the problem come about in the first place: the mechanization of the practice of medicine and, with it, the qualitative destruction of the doctor-patient relationship.

With the tremendous technological advances in medical practice brought about by mechanistic science, the practice of medicine itself became mechanized. Accompanying these advances, medical education turned from being a natural science to a branch of mechanistic science. These developments eventually brought about the destruction of the traditional doctor-patient relationship which is the cornerstone of medical practice. Unless these facts are recognized and addressed as the primary problem in health care today, there can be no hope of ever arriving at a rational, in contrast to the inevitable mechanistic-socialistic, solution to the crisis in medicine.

Except for a few areas of medical practice where mechanistic interventions are rational and indicated, there have to be fundamental, qualitative changes in the way physicians think about life and the disease processes other than viewing the human body as some sort of machine. This new approach has the potential of providing an understanding of many diseases of unknown origin such as cancer and heart disease and by so doing, lowering the suffering and the tax burden on the general population. To prevent the indoctrination of would-be physicians in the mechanistic paradigm, these changes have to be instituted at the very beginning of the medical school curriculum. An example of such a non-mechanistic, functional approach is the training program in medical orgone therapy for qualified physicians, offered by the American College of Orgonomy.

July 15, 2010
Categories: Medical Sciences, Social Sciences . . Author: Charles Konia, M.D. . Comments: Leave a comment

Is there anything wrong with giving pacifiers to children?

Yes. Pacifiers provide substitute contact and are often used in a contactless, mechanical way (the current “fashion”) and/or to keep children quiet. They interfere with the child’s ability to learn how to regulate oral needs, leaving a chronic sense of oral dissatisfaction. This may contribute significantly to laying the foundation for eating disorders and possibly obesity in later life.

The practice of providing substitute contact often continues in older children. Like pacifiers, television and video and computer games become substitutes for normal play, activities which are necessary for the child’s overall development, especially the work function.

Perhaps if parents were in better contact with their children, pacifiers would not be necessary.

April 21, 2010
Categories: Child Rearing, Medical Sciences . . Author: Charles Konia, M.D. . Comments: 1 Comment