About Skan Body-Psycho-Therapy

Skan Body-Psycho-Therapy is a gentle yet powerful approach to restoring the natural flow of life energy in the body. Rooted in the work of Wilhelm Reich and further developed by Al Bauman, Michael Smith, Loil Neidhöfer, Petra Mathes, and others, Skan supports the organism in returning to its inherent capacity for aliveness, emotional expression, and authentic contact.

The Meaning of Skan

The word Skan, from the Lakota language, means “that which moves.” It refers to the living energetic force also known in other traditions as prana or chi. Wilhelm Reich was among the first Western scientists to explore and describe this vital cosmic energy that infuses all living organisms. He named this energy orgone.

Reich understood bodily, mental, and emotional health as the capacity to feel and surrender to the free flow of the body’s own life energy. He described the felt sense of this flow as “streaming” — experienced physically as a pleasurable sense of aliveness throughout the body and emotionally as love, enjoyment, and happiness.

The Living Process of Skan

Skan work supports the reestablishment of this natural, unobstructed energetic pulsation within the body’s cells. As the organism regains its innate flow, many people experience greater ease, groundedness, and security in relationship with others. Awareness deepens, and contact with one’s authentic feelings becomes more accessible.

At its heart, Skan is an orientation toward reconnecting with the living core — the natural, loving impulses that move us from within. As you learn to trust that which moves you, life can be lived more creatively, spontaneously, and truthfully from your own embodied emotional currents.

The Importance of Relationship

A central foundation of Skan is relationship: the energetic meeting — or superimposition — of two or more living systems. Healing unfolds within this field of human-to-human contact.