What Kind of People Go to a Depth Psychotherapist?
Not surprisingly, a lot of people are curious about who it really is who actually goes to see a depth case studies.
T-SHIRT LOGO – from Threadless Ts
Therapy that explores peoples’ inner depths and even looks at their dreams can seem exotic. Who are these people who engage in this kind of personal work?
Not Abnormal
One of the most important first things to say about this is that the people who choose to work with a /a-midlife-transition, in the vast majority of cases, are not in any particular way abnormal. For the largest part, they do not seem to suffer from any kind of major psychopathology. In fact, they mostly seem to be people who are high functioning, with families, careers and professions, who are reasonably well-educated, and often quite involved in their communities. Which might leave an observer still asking the question, “OK, that’s great… but why do these people feel the need to see a /a-midlife-transition?”
Not Self-Obsessed
Our observer might wonder, “Well, then, is it because these people are a little self-obsessed, or maybe even narcissistic in their nature, so that they are continually needing to think and obsess about themselves?”
But the evidence would be pretty slim for this theory as well. Often, the practitioner of /a-midlife-transition finds that it’s a great challenge to really get people to look inward, and to really take the time to reflect upon themselves. This is particularly true in our culture where technology is continually pushing us to send our energy outwards others through texting, Twitter, Facebook or other social media, and social-media induced angst is rampant, as Prof. Peggy Drexler of Cornell points out.
People Who Feel Something’s Missing
One characteristic that people seem to share who go to see a /a-midlife-transition is the sense that something is missing. That they want a greater sense of depth and reality in their lives, and often a sense that they want to “stop going through the motions” of having a life and find more good, genuinely engaging stuff in their lives. Sometimes they talk about meaning in life. Sometimes they talk about self-acceptance, or about just wanting to feel more real.
People Who Want to be More Alive / Aware
Billie Holiday – singing!
The great jazz singer Billie Holiday said the following about her singing, but it is true about having an individual personal life:
You can’t copy anybody and end with anything.
If you copy, it means you’re working without any real feeling.
People who go to see a depth case studies are people who yearn to accept themselves, and to live from a place of wholeness, authenticity and reality, in their own individuality. Often, /a-midlife-transition can bring a sense of healing and liberation.
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