ABSTRACT
This chapter presents a case study of Lowen who relates the story of a patient whom he calls Bill, a man who has come to him because of prolonged depression and inability to work. According to Lowen, it can be demonstrated analytically that people like Bill who fear falling from heights are also frightened of falling asleep or in love. The newer discipline of men's studies has gleaned a growing body of knowledge that confirms this thesis by demonstrating that the ways in which masculinity finds expression vary with societal conditions. The rigid self-control that such a person has cultivated becomes such a serious problem for him that the way out is to give free reign to his body's natural spontaneity. The injunctions to self-control, asceticism, prayer and contemplation have deep roots in the Judeo-Christian tradition and thus are of great importance for the Western male.
