Hannah Grace
Created by Carl Jung, the father of Analytical Psychology, Jungian therapy (aka Jungian Analysis) focuses on analyzing a person’s subconscious. Unlike other common therapies, it makes use of deep-seated thoughts to usher you towards recovery and self-development. Through establishing balance between your conscious and subconscious, this therapy empowers you to be your real self. Read on to find out if you might need Jungian therapy.
What is Jungian Therapy Good For?
Anxiety, depression, post-traumatic disorder, addictive behavior, and other forms of psychosis. However, anyone can seek this therapy whether they have issues they need to deal with or they just want to develop their self. According to Jungian principles, mental handicaps result from underdeveloped personality traits such as assertiveness and openness. Not learning to step out of one’s comfort zone and take full part in life. Moreover, engaging in an endless cycle of self-destructive behavior. Issues arise from personal experiences and family history or both. For instance, receiving verbal abuse from a guardian leads to a kid’s low self-esteem which will have a negative impact on him even years later. If you’ve just gone through a divorce or you’re still affected by an accident in the past, this therapy can help you.
How Does It Work?
Ultimately, Jungian therapy zeroes in on the main source of your problem instead of merely studying your symptoms. That source lies somewhere within your subconscious. You and a mental health professional discover it together. In the process, you learn about which complex you have and what type of personality you possess. A complex is a pattern of perceptions, memories, emotions, and wishes in the personal unconscious, centered around a common theme such as power or status. For example, having a superiority complex means concealing feelings of inferiority by acting superior toward others. On the other hand, your personality type falls under either extroversion (drawing energy from interaction) or introversion (drawing energy from being alone), and perceiving (sensation, intuition), or judging (thinking, feeling) functions.
To enlighten you, here are a few Jungian concepts that play an important role in the therapy:
Active Imagination
This involves self-expression using unconscious contents such as dreams, imagination, fantasy, and meditation, to connect one’s conscious and subconscious.
Individuation
It’s a process where a person becomes his true self, having his own identity. He transcends group attachment and self-absorption as he sees himself as a separate individual.
Collective Unconscious
This refers to our unconscious mind’s structures which we all share. They are these 12 archetypes:
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Archetypal Psychology
Religion and myths influence an individual’s psyche or sense of self. Archetypal psychology theorizes that a person’s psyche influences his beliefs, therefore affecting his thoughts, emotions, and behavior. The archetype signifies his collective life experiences and determines the conscious and unconscious decisions he makes.
Depth Psychology
Proposed by Sigmund Freud, father of Psychoanalysis, it’s among many therapeutic approaches which treat mental problems by identifying the motives behind them. Finding and transforming maladaptive motives results in having healthier thoughts and behaviors.
Carl Jung emphasized that a therapist must respect clients and maintain an atmosphere of trust. Once those requirements are met, the following techniques can be utilized:
Free Association
Also used in Psychoanalytic therapy, it’s a simple technique that aids in exploring a person’s subconscious. A therapist says a word or phrase to which you respond with the first word that comes to your mind. Speed or delay in your response can further reveal repressed thoughts and memories or unconscious resistances or complexes.
Dream Analysis
Dreams are manifestations of what’s inside your mind. Though Jungian therapy interprets dreams through symbols and archetypes, the dreamer is most needed in understanding them. Jung believed that unless the interpretation resonates with the dreamer, the interpretation is not helpful.
Creative Activities
As previously discussed, self-expression helps you engage with your active imagination. Painting, dancing, listening to music, or keeping a dream journal are some creative activities you can enjoy. With a psychotherapist’s guide, you can do a specific activity you want. Using imagination in therapy provides great benefit to anyone regardless of the condition they have.
To conclude, Jungian therapy is a very interesting form of treatment that also serves as a means of self-discovery. What’s more, studies prove how it can move patients from a level of severe symptoms to a level where one can speak of psychological health. Jungian therapists are licensed mental health professionals who have completed advanced training in an IAAP (International Association for Analytical Psychology) accredited program. Aside from checking credentials, make sure you find one whom you feel comfortable with.
Sources:
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25379256
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Complex_(psychology)
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