In classic Freudian therapy, psychological ill health emerges when the balance between the id, ego and super ego is distorted. “Patients” will present for counselling in an egodystonic state – when thoughts and behaviours are in conflict, or dissonant, with the needs and goals of the ego, or, further, in conflict with a person’s ideal […]
My course is going well. So far this term we have had lectures on a transpersonal view of adolescence, sexual development and eating disorders. In addition we have had two weekends on sexual development. For the next two weeks we have lectures on addictions so presumably we will cover the whole gambit of addictions. I have enjoyed discussing
I am currently undertaking research to evaluate the relevance of early life and psychodynamic ideas of unconscious communication e.g. transference and counter transference to transpersonal integrative psychotherapy. I am reminded how ground breaking the ideas of Freud was, how distasteful the language and ideas of Melanie Klein can be and how attachment theory is
Freud has contributed a great deal to our profession but the psychoanalyst tends to have the role of the wise initiate who ‘knows’ and disagreement would be seen usually as a defence or a manifestation of pathology. This is at odds with the transpersonal school, which most certainly does not ‘know’ but finds creativity in
In the psychotherapeutic community we owe a great debt to Freud who was primarily concerned with exploring the personal unconscious. The clinical model has its origins in Freud and covers four types: schizoid, obsessional, depressive and hysterical. Schizoid In this model this type is described as introverted. They are more likely to be avoidant in relationships and
The past two weeks have been concerned with transference and counter transference. Transference had been identified by the great Sigmund Freud when he noticed that his patients often seemed to fall in love with him – including the men. Transference occurs when a person takes the perceptions and expectations of one person and projects them
This week’s lecture was on “acting out”. It is tempting to view the term “acting out” as a throw back to the hippy culture of coolness. In fact Freud talked a lot about “acting out” saying that patients do not remember their repressed feelings but reproduce them not as memory but as an action. The action
This week’s lecture was on resistance in therapy. This was particularly useful given that I am now seeing clients at the drop in centre. Resistance is viewed as a positive force which opposed the return to memory of painful experiences. Freud talked about the positive sign that the truth was emerging. It is important to