History of Counselling: How Psychology Came Into Being

psychology studies

Psychology has, until recently, tended to focus on psychological and emotional problems and how to deal with these. This article identifies the key schools of thought, whose philosophies are often diametrically opposed.

Getting caught in the problem cycle

Psychology has developed as a science over many years, with many different ways of considering the thought and emotional processes that affect individuals. The field of psychology includes what has been termed 'Applied Psychology' where knowledge is used by individual practitioners such as counselors and psychologists to help people overcome problems and, 'Research Psychology' where academic psychologists focus on experiments and studies into human behaviour by testing out concepts behind psychological theories and human behaviour. These studies are then used in fields such as Counselling, Coaching, Stress Management and Mental Health.

Although some applied psychologists who work with individuals also undertake research, there are many academic psychologists who devote their whole life work to research without ever actually working directly with an individual. The field of psychology is split into many areas such as Occupational Psychology (work related issues for individuals and organizations), Educational Psychology (children and learning), and Counselling Psychology (mental health and emotional factors).

Until recently the whole world of psychology has tended to focus on the emotional and psychological difficulties experienced by individuals, groups and organizations. Research has focused on identifying a problem, working out what has gone wrong and then considering what needs to be done to put it right.

How Psychology came into being

The word "psychology" is the combination of two terms - study (ology) and soul (psyche), or mind. Back as far as 355BC the famous Greek philosopher Aristotle suggested that the heart was the mechanism for mental processes and in 387BC Plato, another Greek philosopher suggested that it was the brain and not the heart. Without knowing it, the thoughts of these philosophers led the way for what would later become known as the Science of Psychology. Psychology attempts to identify the forces at work behind human emotions and behaviour.

As time went by many people made their own unique contributions to the growing body of knowledge about how the mind works, why people behave the way they do, what can go wrong and what can be done to put things right.

There are many 'Schools of Psychological Thought' that have developed over the years and many of these have very different ideas about why people are unhappy and become emotionally or psychological distressed and the best ways of helping such people.

The four main Schools of Thought are
Analytical Psychology
Cognitive & Behavioural Psychology
Humanistic Psychology
Transpersonal Psychology

All of the schools have gone on to develop many different types of therapies that are on offer throughout the world. However, all therapies owe their origins to one school of thought or another.

Over time all of these schools of thought have gone on to refine and develop their understanding of individuals, some have used research far more than others (as is the case for the Cognitive and Behavioural Schools) to underpin their knowledge about individuals, their behaviour and the causes of psychological difficulties and how best to address these.

And now I'd like to invite you to claim your free E-Course "How to Develop your Counselling Practice" available at http://www.counsellingpracticematters.com/

Gladeana McMahon is listed as one of the UK's Top Twenty Therapists by the Evening Standard. An innovator, Gladeana is also one of the UK founders of Cognitive Behavioural Coaching and an internationally published author with over 20 books of a popular and academic nature on coaching and counselling to her name.

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Food for the Body or Soul? Which Do We Satisfy?

psychology studies

Thousands of experts have spent millions of dollars researching the phenomena of food related issues resulting in today's unprecedented levels of obesity. Every magazine and newspaper, repeats the same old diets in the same old way giving it the same old name of "New."

There was a time when we were mean, lean and hungry. Now we are simply mean and hungry...joke?

During my first visit to India some fourteen years ago I never met a fat Indian. Everyone I encountered looked lean and hungry. On my most recent visit the first taxi driver I conversed with asked me for advice on his obesity and diabetes. Wealthy materialism and spiritual deprivation quickly shows on the body. This is not a perspective that would be considered by the " food or eating disorder experts." Here I am not alluding to those who suffer from bulimia or anorexia, a completely different psychological disorder.

Here I speak of a psychological disorder, otherwise known as soul displacement, which at a great cost to human evolution, is being normalised.

Food nowadays is a multi - billion dollar driven phenomena whereby our appetites are manipulated by manufacturers who are oblivious to the holistic approach to human development. They need to be to make the huge profits from helping us commit suicide by killing ourselves with our manipulated desires.
Politicians who make vane attempts to stop binge drinking and who implement a health food tax in order to prevent us from becoming like the characters from the movie "Wall-E" are compounding problems with their ignorance. I am surely not the only one walking around who is secretly appalled at the state of humanity?

How many wives feed their husbands as a way to demonstrate love? These are time old strategies that ensured the propagation of the species. A comfortable satisfied body will soon succumb to a dull unadventurous and safe lifestyle. Ooh I can hear some people banging the drums of outrageous denial...

A person who feeds the soul will not give us what we want but will give us what we need. We are conditioned to need more and more of what we do not really need in order to deny the soul its true existence. Our daily duties whether we work as an economic slave or are able to live in "relative" freedom (note" relative"- we are not free if something other than ourselves can control our thoughts - think about that!) are filled with the buying, making and consumption of food. Whereas food for the soul comes from the fragrance of a Spring Hyacinth, a summer's Rose and autumn's Lavender. It comes from soul inspiring literature and music, from a deep meaningful conversation with a loved one, a smile across a crowded room, at a bus stop, the warmth of the sun after cold damp and cloudy days. All these and more feed our soul and spirit.

But do we take as much time breathing this soul food as we do gobbling down short energy producing carbs and sugar heavy substances?

Eat to live and not live to eat" is a motto well worth remembering.

Yet here is the timeless paradox to all this "alternative perspective," one of my dearest soul mates who taught me some profound spiritual lessons said to me one day

"You know Avril I like nothing better than taking you out and treating you to a great big slice of coffee and walnut of cake and seeing the delight which arises in your eyes."

"My great-great-grandchildren ask me, in dreams, 'What did you do while the planet was plundered? What did you do when the earth was unravelling? Surely you did something when the seasons started failing, as the mammals, reptiles, birds were all dying. Did you fill the streets with protest when democracy was stolen? What did you do once you knew?'"
Drew Delinger, poet

Many Articles on Experienced Spirituality, Multidimensional Reality and Personal Growth can be found on

http://www.multidimensionalreality.com/

including free E-Book upon Request

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Loneliness - The Stigma of Shame of the Solitude of Grace?

psychology studies

Writers more than any others know by necessity both of the above. It is from where true creativity arises. When the words that are written come from a source beyond one, one finds it impossible to write simply for something to do.

For me and for many writers reading this, a piece of writing, article, letter or essay arises following considerable time spent in gestation. This can sometimes be likened to a descent into the abyss. It's a two- way process as I dive through some painful human experiences into the depth of my soul to discover the truth of a situation, then so my soul source will arise up to meet me. It's like the meeting of old friends who have been separated for aeons. "Oh yes, I remember this feeling of "home"... wherein lays my heart."

In a world where words issue forth in an endless and often mindless stream of trivial and banal comments, sound bites and attempts at communication, it is the true creator's lot to remain silent and carry the stigma and shame of that isolating silence. To an outsider who is not privy to this process it can appear a lonely despairing role. But the process is a necessary despair; only by plunging into the mud and silt of the dense earth can we discover nuggets of pure gold.

When all outer sources fail one, when one appears to go beyond the pale, and friends and enemies alike step worlds away from one it is then that we are forced into this subterranean darkness.

This is one aspect of the multidimensional process. We are here walking upon this Earth but we know we are not of this planet except as a tiny seed of consciousness. And so we can somehow find peace and comfort whether suffering from the stigma of shame or the grace of solitude, it depends which perspective is dominant at the time.

This process is the natural pre-birth phenomena, before we are plunged into the reality of Earth for our lessons on life, where we may if we are so graced; experience the blissful rapture of human embodiment.

You can be broken down and I will hold and love you that way. You can fall apart and I will hold and love you that way.
You can have nothing to offer for now and I will hold and love you that way.
You can be at your lowest ebb and I will hold and love you that way.
You can be depressed, contorted, wounded or distraught and I will hold and love you that way.
I will do this with no insistence that you be fixed. I can accommodate a you that breaks down and is not available for my needs for the time being.
From: When Love Meets Fear

Many Articles on Experienced Spirituality, Multidimensional Reality and Personal Growth can be found on

http://www.multidimensionalreality.com/

including free E-Book upon Request

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Emotional Self-Imprisonment

psychology studies

Just imagine being given a jail sentence merely because we could not handle our emotions. Think of the public outcry! But conjure with the idea of being given a thirty, forty, even a fifty or sixty year sentence! The level of public indignation about our human rights would surely dwarf any riots we have seen. Add a final insult and tag us 24 hours a day to remind us of our emotional disorders, and the fury would erupt. Yet this is exactly what many of us do to ourselves. We impose life sentences of emotional self-imprisonment and tag ourselves!

And the metaphor gets even more real and even more horrifying, the more one dwells on it.

Because of trauma, shock, hurt or abuse, we can and we do sentence ourselves more harshly still. We commit ourselves to solitary confinement, guarding our inner most emotional secrets with a level of zeal and shame with is extraordinary. This personal imposition can also originate from guilt, abandonment, rejection, or from humiliation, bullying or molestation.

Yet in our hearts we know that were there ever to be any appropriate system of emotional courts with judge and jury, none would convict us as severely as we have done to ourselves. None would find our case proved as warranting such a fierce punishment.

But just focus on this metaphor one more time- when we have the highest criminal prison population on record. And now ponder on the fact that a vast number of us - walking the streets apparently free, have nevertheless imprisoned ourselves in unresolved emotions!

And our level of commitment to the sentence can be astonishing. It can involve a vow of silence and secrecy to ourselves - something we determine to take our grave. This we can deem preferable to a mistaken belief that if we unburden ourselves we will be emotionally pilloried until our death by relatives and friends, and that should be avoided at all cost!

More weird, emotionally speaking, even when the underlying cause can have been in no way of our making or our fault, we still seek to deny that to ourselves and then compound the denial by buying deeper into the shame, humiliation and rejection as if somehow we deserved it!

That can set in train yet more entangled and constraining behavioural thinking. We can use this misconceived buy-in as a stick to beat ourselves harder than anyone else with the same knowledge ever would - or should. And why ever do we do this? Because we have let ourselves think it is our just desserts! The 'tagging' is provided by our self-talk which we encourage sub-consciously to reinforce our worst thoughts about ourselves

And paradoxically we can find we draw strength from our apparent courage and fortitude to shoulder it on our own, when few around us would see any sense or justification in that.

I think it is fair to say that Time once was when maybe this emotional flagellation was deemed to be part of being human and living a human life. Not enough was known then about psychology and the impact of our behavioural thinking.

But no more! No longer is that true. Irrefutable psychological and behavioural truths pile up one on top of another - from one research project after another - each revealing to us ever more about our human nature. More welcome still they reveal to us how we can neutralise and re-frame our reactions to horrific indignities we have endured.

The benefits of encouraging ourselves to end our self-imprisonment, to give ourselves emotional parole and to re-configure the emotional memories and patterns are now well documented.

Why? If for no other reason, because we know now it is no longer necessary for we humans to endure it. And nor is it justified any longer to inflict our emotional shortcomings on others, young or old, for them to replicate what we have done and to resort to emotional self-imprisonment for themselves.

So we should at least talk about these things, share them and unashamedly seek help to understand them. We should cherish the reality that none of us are perfect, that we are unique and most particularly we are blessed with the ability to cure ourselves emotionally.

And if that is not enough, then quite simply accept that we do not deserve this toxic form of imprisonment when help is now at hand. There are number of good proprietary self-discovery books and programmes available to find a new level of happiness.

I strongly recommend you look at the Hoffman Process and at a book called "You Can Change Your Life" by Tim Laurence. Alternatively you may find it helpful to read the self-discovery novel. "Squaring Circles" which I have written. It deals with emotional patterning such as this. It is available from http://www.amazon.co.uk/ of from http://www.squaringcircles.co.uk/ in paperback or online through most UK bookshops. I wish you well.

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Dysfunctional Families: The Autocratic Family

psychology studies

I have found it helpful to talk about families in terms of the ABCs (Attachment, Boundaries and Communication) and the 3 R's (Rules, Roles and Resulting Relationships). The ABC's of unhealthy, or dysfunctional,families include insecure attachment, poor boundaries (either enmeshment or disengagement), and closed communication. In the case of autocratic families, poor boundaries may be exhibited by the family head who asserts the right to enter any room of the house at any time without knocking, depriving the rest of the family of any sense of personal space or privacy.

Autocratic families may seem relatively innocuous in comparison to alcoholic or abusive families but they display similar patterns of dysfunctional rules, roles and resulting relationships. The rules in an autocratic family may include not talking back-a child may not address an adult in the same tone with which the adult addresses the child-or not talking at all, in the sense that conversation involving a democratic give-and-take of opinions is frowned upon. There may be unspoken rules against showing, or even talking about, emotions. This often means that the autocrat's problems in dealing with emotions get passed on to the children.

Children in an autocratic family seem to display a number of distinctive roles:

The Rebel may continually confront the autocrat without ever achieving victory, often the case when the autocrat is simply too strong. The Rebel may continue, even into adult life, with the attempt to win acknowledgement, acceptance, or approval.

The Peacemaker accepts autocrat's authority and urges others to do the same. The Peacemaker may enter adult life lacking a healthy sense of self-esteem and depending on others to make all the decisions.

The Fugitive avoids confrontation by keeping out of sight. As an adult, the Fugitive may visit as infrequently as possible and for as short a time as possible. This refusal to engage may appear on the surface as a successful escape from the autocrat's authority, but may be accompanied by problems in forming intimate relationships.

Adult children of an autocratic family may experience difficulty expressing emotions and reading other people's emotions. They may display low self-esteem, relying on the opinions of others to define their self-image or failing to pick up on conventional social signals. As in the case of children growing up in abusive families, the children of an autocrat, determined to avoid that distasteful trait, may instead become an excessively permissive parents. Personal or family counselling may be required to break the dysfunctional pattern that passes from one generation to the next.

Arthur Wenk, a psychotherapist practicing in Oakville, Ontario, combines cognitive-behavioral therapy (discovering techniques for producing immediate changes) with a psychodynamic approach that helps make changes permanent by addressing the root causes of mental health problems. Art is certified by OACCPP (the Ontario organization for psychotherapists) and EMDRIA (the EMDR International Association). Art's website, http://www.arthurwenk.com/, contains one-page summaries of recommended books on personal growth, brief explanations of common mental health issues, and lectures on parenting, the psychology of families, and the functioning of the brain.

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Tips for Being Outgoing When You Have an Introverted Personality

psychology studies

Telling what the difference is between an introvert and an extrovert can be a challenging task. These two types of people are often difficult to tell apart, and one of the main reasons why this is so is the fact that introverts are not easy to recognize. Even if you knew all personality traits that define an introvert, you would have a hard time recognizing one even if they would talk to you, and show you their unique approach to life when trying to win an argument. It takes a lot of time as well as energy to get to know an introverted person.

Can an Introverted Person Be Outgoing?

Many people wrongly believe that an introverted person cannot be outgoing. Introverts are seen as not being sociable, although this does not have to do much with reality. People who have an introverted personality can be very socially active, and have many friends. Moreover, they enjoy spending time with people, but they do not need to be around people to the same extent as people who have an extroverted personality.

Introverted Personality - How to Be Outgoing

Introverted people like socializing with people around them, but they have to put more effort into interacting with the others in order to create friendships and gain new acquaintances than people who are extroverted. Here will be discussed some tips intended to help introverts gain more friends and become more socially active.

Firstly, you need to know that you should try to be more outgoing only if this is what you want. Oftentimes introverts try to fit into their social groups without really enjoying this. Therefore, before trying to fit in with the others, try finding people you are comfortable spending time with, be it introverts or extroverts. After you find friends who you like spending time with, you should try to work on your social skills. This means that you should focus on how to make yourself more approachable. You need to be aware of the fact that introverts seem to be arrogant and rude, so you should put some time into making yourself easier to approach.

Being outgoing does not mean that you should go out every night, but rather learn how to get the best out of socializing with people around you. Moreover, becoming more outgoing does not mean that you will have to forget about spending time alone when you feel like it. Instead, these tips should help you balance these two, and be able to enjoy solitude, but also try to make enough room for other people in your life.

Ana is a freelance writer, and she enjoys writing on any topic.

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An Approach to Psychological Counselling

psychology studies

Many forms of psychotherapy today are being offered; although it must be confessed that the most used form is an eclectic form made up from aspects of various cognitive-behaviour techniques plus procedures taken from other therapies.

In any case, cognitive-behaviour therapies presuppose that psychological disturbance can be ameliorated by modifying the irrational/illogical/unscientific thoughts that the person automatically thinks about certain situations.

It is true that irrational thoughts such as 'everyone hates me', 'I can't cope with my life' and 'I hate myself' may accompany negative moods. However, their mere presence is no guarantee of their causative status and efforts to demonstrate causation founder on the rocks of the sheer complexity of human experience.

Frankly speaking, psychologists cannot control all necessary variables in studying human functioning and if they were able to exercise such control their research would be of human beings that do not exist in this present world, beings stripped of their essential humanity.

Efforts to argue that when clients are taught to modify their thoughts that their distress diminishes must indicate that the 'problem' was bound up with irrational thoughts in the first place are not convincing. In all forms of cognitive-behaviour therapy much more is involved than just teaching clients to think differently. For human interaction always involves more than just thinking.

Moreover, cognition itself is more than 'just thinking rationally or logically'. Cognition involves the broad area of knowing so it can also be connected with imagining and willing.

Attachment Phenomena

Undeniably, humans are attached to their mothers from their earliest time of existence. After birth, attachment behaviour can be observed throughout life.

Humans are born into an attachment matrix of some type and to some extent, the quality of that attachment continues with them unless effective therapeutic interventions occur or other life-events profoundly modify that attachment type.

Four types of attachment types have been identified: secure, anxious-preoccupied, dismissive-avoidant, and fearful-avoidant.

The first type of attachment pattern is found in positive mother-child bonds where the child is said to have found 'a secure base'. The person emerging from this type of attachment will tend to find it easy to establish relationships throughout life.

In the second type, the anxious-preoccupied one, the child tends to be 'clingy' and to grow up that way. On growing up, they will confess to wanting close relationships with others but fear others don't want the same closeness to them. 'Do you really love me?' they ask.

In the third type, the child and then later the adult will pride themselves on their independence and their ability not to want intimacy with others. Such an outlook can lead to problems in intimacy relationships such as marriage.

In last category we find those who are highly ambivalent about relationships; they desire close relationships but are fearful that they will be hurt by rejection or abandonment.

Therapy

During childhood it is hypothesised that the child builds up 'a working model of attachment' with the primary caregivers so as to predict what will conceivably happen if the child does such and such.

This type of therapy can be used with children and parents. It is also being used with adult clients in romantic relationships particularly those with difficulties involving infidelity.

However, to this point my experience only stretches to using it as way of understanding why certain clients act the way they do. (Interestingly, the above categories bear some resemblance to the personality types identified by the famous early psychoanalyst, Karen Horney.)

Dr Ian R Ridgway is a Christian psychologist with 20 years experience in counselling and tertiary teaching. He relates the Christian faith to his vocation to assist others by developing a quality relationship built on trust and unconditional acceptance of the client (though not necessarily of all s/his behaviour). He provides an individual professional service as set out at http://psy-services.yolasite.com/

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God: A Logical Counter

psychology studies

God and Psychology

Recently I was discussing God with one of my friends who is of the opinion that people only believe in religion for 'psychological' reasons: i.e. because their parents were religious, because they grew up in an environment of Christianity, or because they were brainwashed by charismatic and rhetorical speakers. He also thought that Christianity naturally promotes racism, hatred and inequality. I however, being Christian myself (Quaker to be more precise) think that this is unfair, and doesn't consider both sides of the argument.

Now, before I begin I must freely confess that both my parents are Christian: I'm not going to try and hide that to make my opinion appear more objective, those reading this may well think 'aha, he himself grew up with it and knew no better,' Believe this if you want, but understand that if you believe we all hold beliefs because of psychological factors, then atheism is also a belief, and therefore subject to psychological explanation. I once knew a man that ardently declared his atheism. When I got to know him better, he revealed that his father had been Catholic, and had beaten him very often in his youth. He tells me I only believe in God because of psychological reasons... Yes, we are all subject to psychological factors which influence decisions, but becoming atheist does not grant immunity from this very basic human condition.

I hope that the arguments I use will be considered objective, logical and rhetorical, because I believe, contrary to much atheist thought, that religion is logical.

Returning to the debate with my friend, his first line of argument was to suggest that Christians promote inequality. My counter is simple: yes, it is true that many 'Christians' have engaged in warfare under religious pretences, and committed atrocities in the name of God. Does this mean they are Christian? No. People who believe we are not equal obviously aren't true Christians. If I told you I was a scientist and never performed a single experiment but rather threw random chemicals together into a pot, would I be a true scientist? No. Similarly rejecting something because it has previously generated negative experiences or events, is not a ground for discarding it. Scientists created the nuclear warhead, not Christians, but do we attack science as being inherently immoral? No. Science has given man the terrifying ability to push a button and instantly destroy thousands, if not millions, of human beings. Yet do we decide to give it a rest? No. We accept it has drawbacks and terrible potential, but it also creates liver-transplant machines and intravenous feeds which save lives. Do we call for the abolishment of politicians because they start wars? No. Human beings can always twist and misuse ideas to their own ends, religion is the same. Just because a body of people have misused to it to, as my friend quite rightly says, promote inequality, sexism, and dictatorship, does not mean that religion as a whole is evil.

True Christianity promotes loving your neighbour as yourself. Jesus marks this out as the most important commandment, because from it all other commandments naturally follow.

In Galatians it says: "...we are all one," therefore people that make arguments against Christianity as promoting inequality:
a) haven't read the Bible
and
b) are obviously unable to separate individual faith based on evidence, understanding, experience and love from organised religion.

His second line of argument was to suggest that though the Bible does have moments where it seems to be promoting morality, at the same it contains "rape, child slavery and sexism" and promotes these alongside it.

Firstly, rape, child slavery and sexism exist in many modern films: that doesn't mean these things are 'promoted'. Does Orwell's 1984 necessarily say that Communism and Oligarchical Collectivism are a good thing? No. The Ten Commandments expressly forbid murder and the disrespect/harm of others and this message is further enforced in the New Testament.

My friend was right about one thing though, yes, the Bible is in part a product of its time. Things were different then, and so naturally approaches to overcoming problems were different. For example: in the Old Testament we see polygamy and incest is accepted in some cases, whereas in the New Testament it is not. Consider then that in the Old Testament the population of the whole earth could be numbered in thousands. Measures were required to ensure the human race survived, but often even then polygamy, or extra marital sex was only as a last resort, for example: if the wife was infertile. Incest was also not necessarily the same thing that it is today, the blood was probably purer and would not lead to deformity, damage, or mutation as it does now. Scientists believe it would have taken eight people to populate the world today (bearing in mind there are eight people on Noah's ark). Out of eight people there is only so much that can be done before inbreeding inevitably occurs. We are all related therefore, however distantly. But coming back to my friend's argument: he is right, the Bible is partly a product of the circumstances in which it was conceived.

But, it also goes beyond this. Just because something is written two thousand (roughly AD 10-30 - The Jesus Papyrus) years ago, it doesn't mean that it is outdated or that its principles become irrelevant. Psychologists use the works of Freud, Jung, and even more ancient philosophers: does their work become irrelevant just because time has passed? No. True, some ideas that were contemporaneous may now be less relevant, but others have become universal truths. Allow me to very simply demonstrate a universal truth from the Bible that anyone can accept, atheist, Christian, or of any denomination or belief. The Garden of Eden is frequently disregarded as being absurd, impossible, and convenient. Here's my theory: The Garden of Eden is a metaphor, and it's a brilliant one at that. It's a metaphor for the human condition that has retained its hold on the imagination since it was written. Human beings are obsessed with what is forbidden. Humans beings are obsessed by knowledge: just look at science: does the unethical nature of their practices stop them pursuing secrets ardently to their culmination? No. And I'm not criticising science here: I follow the science articles in The Week avidly to see what the next discovery will be. We also see everyday that people fall prey to the promise of power, they make deals that they shouldn't, they make choices that they even know they shouldn't: but the power is just too tempting.

It's a metaphor for puberty as well. Children aren't ashamed to be naked and free. They aren't ashamed if they speak what they feel honesty.
"I want a toy!"
"No it's mine!"

They aren't afraid to ball in tears in front of a crowd of people and they never make apologies for being who they are. Then with age comes wisdom, and 'knowledge of good and evil': of embarrassing secrets, of our own bodies. People want to cover themselves up because they're afraid 'I'm not ripped enough' or 'my bum's too big' etc. Knowledge brings shame, alongside the gift of reason and enlightenment.

It's also about a man's obsession with women. People often say that it's sexist because Eve takes the fruit first. That's one way to look at it: but who's the bigger fool, the fool, or the fool who follows? In Paradise Lost Milton paints a picture of Adam as uxorious to the point of self destruction. Adam chooses to take the fruit because he can't live without woman, without Eve. So it's also a story about love. Human love that is so powerful it causes them to defy the divine, and who hasn't felt their love for someone is causing them to fall? That our addiction to someone is almost unhealthy? That is doesn't make sense? Adam gives us paradise for Eve, and isn't that the case of most people: they sacrifice something to continue or further a relationship?

You don't have to believe in God or in the literality of the Garden of Eden story to see that this book is profound, and full of profound teaching. Atheists often cannot understand how someone can turn to the Bible for guidance, as they view it as ignorant, but if you read the Bible you begin to see that there are numerous examples of acute observation of human nature, and of the way the world works. There is a famous line which states someone who commits sin will not only be cursed but for ten generations after their family will be cursed. Is this a harsh punishment from an unjust God (as atheists like to argue) or is it actually an observation that someone prone to behave badly will probably pass this on to their children, who in turn will pass it on to theirs, making it a hard cycle to break from.

Therefore I disagree with the views that the Bible doesn't make sense and is ignorant, which is obviously a stance I'm expected to take. But looking at it from what, to me, is a logical perspective: there's more psychological insight into human beings in that one exceedingly story, than in all of Freud and Dawkins put together.

I apologise if I offended anyone reading this article, unlike aggressive atheism I am perfectly fine with acknowledging many people have differing views from me. I intend no disrespect, and have been motivated to write this counter argument because of the numerous attacks upon my own system of belief: which is one of loving others, caring for others, striving for friends and family, upholding moral principles, and humbling before a being infinitely greater than I am.

Thank you for your time,
Feel free to post responses and comments.

Joseph Sale is a Creative Writing Student at the University of Birmingham and the author of two books: 'Dark Age Heroes' and 'Z.A'

To find out more about him and his work you can visit his website at: http://www.taliesinbooks.com/

Alternatively you can follow his Twitter feed at: josephwordsmith

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Can Science Explain Human Consciousness?

psychology studies

With advances in brain scanning equipment, neuroscientists can now observe what the brain is doing when the person is aware of remembering, imagining, feeling, thinking and even making choices.

Before the invention of this technology, it had been well known that when a brain is damaged, then the mind doesn't work so well. In one case example, after a patient had a stroke, he could still speak fluently, but not in a way that made sense: nor could he understand spoken or written language. This unfortunate individual had damage in the area where the left parietal and temporal lobes meet, known as Wernickes's area.

There is now a growing body of research evidence for a close relationship between brain activity and mind activity. And scientists are now wondering whether our thoughts and feelings are nothing more than a side-product of a hard-wired biological thinking machine.

If it is only the electrical and chemical activity of the brain that gives rise to consciousness, then all deep human thought, ethical concern, and mystical experience would appear to be no more than physical phenomena.

Brains have been compared with computers. But could you accept that a computer's processor and memory chips have consciousness? Likewise, how could you imagine the brain's neurones and synapses having a private subjective experience? It seems counter-intuitive to argue that physical entities have human awareness.

Can philosophy help us with this issue? In addition to an account of reality provided by scientific materialism, there are actually three other major traditional views that are relevant - that of idealism, dualism and Eastern world monism.

Idealism, as a philosophical view, holds that physical entities like brains cannot have human awareness because only what we are conscious of can be real. The trouble with this view is that it amounts to claiming the brain - being part of a physical dimension to life - is something of an illusion.

Dualism holds that both brain and consciousness are equally real but exist in different parallel realms of reality - occupying physical space and not occupying physical space - that have nothing to do with each other. However, dualism doesn't make much sense when we remember that it is a feature of everyday experience that the two do interact - one's conscious experience is affected by physical things seen in space and it in turn influences one's speech and actions.

Eastern world monism is a viewpoint claiming that both conscious mind and brain are real and there is no difference between them. (Some monists argue this sameness is because both have been created out of Infinite Source which alone is real.) But guess what, there is a problem too with this view, the difficulty being in differentiating categories within the one divine creation.

Emanuel Swedenborg, was no stranger to this topic. Before becoming a spiritual philosopher, he had been a theoretical scientist, reviewing the anatomical studies of researchers who studied the brain in the laboratory. Although his groundbreaking insights into the brain were to remain generally unrecognised, they included the importance of the endocrine system in emotional life and the localisation of cognitive activity in the cerebral cortex.

Swedenborg's ideas suggest there is something right and something wrong in all the four

major philosophical views so far mentioned. For him the conscious mind is real for it is part of the reality he calls the spiritual world in which we are aware of after bodily death, where he says ideas, feelings, values all have a substantial reality. But according to his view, it is also right to say the brain is real for it is part of the natural degree of creation which is a crucial physical base for spiritual life.

It is his position that the conscious mind and brain are not disconnected as the dualists

thought but rather form a coherent whole. So for him the brain is an embodiment of mind where neural patterns and chemical processes within the brain mirror the private subjective experience and intentions of mind. So when neuroscientists observe neural pathways lit up on their scanning images this would be the physical manifestation of the working of the mind. And just as the mind affects the body so the body affects the mind - suffer concussion with a bang on the head and your conscious mind goes away for a while.

He also says that space, time, matter, and person are all real - as the monists think - but not in the same undifferentiated way. Instead, reality for him consists of a series of discrete degrees, the lowest being that of physical matter and the highest being a heavenly reception of divine love and wisdom. The conscious mind is discretely different from the material brain, but inside every brain there is something of mind.

Swedenborg was not denying the importance of the physical side of mental life. He used the term correspondence to say that the working of the brain corresponds to the working of the mind. In other words for him brain and mind are two essential aspects of mental life.

This is a holistic view that can accommodate the objective findings of modern neuroscience without devaluing the importance of our private intentions and the spiritual dimension. Our sense of free personal choice is not an illusion even if it is constrained by factors that can be studied by science.

Copyright 2012 Stephen Russell-Lacy

As a clinical psychologist, Stephen Russell-Lacy has specialised in cognitive-behavioural psychotherapy, working for many years with adults suffering distress and disturbance.

He edits Spiritual Questions a free eZine that explores links between spiritual philosophy and the comments and questions of spiritual seekers. You can share your views and find out more about making sense of life.

His book Heart, Head and Hands draws links between the psycho-spiritual teachings of the eighteenth century spiritual philosopher Emanuel Swedenborg and current ideas in therapy and psychology.

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The Psychology of Healthy Families

psychology studies

Leo Tolstoy wrote one of the most memorable opening sentences of any novel in Anna Karenina: "All happy families are alike; each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way." If we alter the word "happy" to "healthy," we will have a pretty good description of the psychology of families. If all healthy families are alike, it may be useful to get an idea of what healthy looks like. Let's concentrate on the ABC's of families, where the letters in this case stand for Attachment, Boundaries and Communication. As a subheading we'll talk about the three R's, in this case, Rules, Roles, and Resulting Relationships. (I am using the word "role" not to signify a part in a drama from in its second dictionary definition, "the characteristic and expected social behavior of an individual." The last two R's refers to what happens when the children in each situation grow up to become adults.)

The ABC's of a healthy family consist of secure attachment, good boundaries, and open communication. Let's see what that looks like in detail in terms of our three R's. The rules for producing secure attachment in a child shouldn't come as any surprise: react to a child's needs; play with the child; and engage in contingent communication, in which the quality, intensity and timing of the parent's response reflect the signals actually sent by the child. In other words, the communication between parent and child is truly a two-way street. What is the role of a securely attached child? Such children are outgoing, empathic and confident, knowing that if they communicate their needs, the world will provide them with a way to get their needs met. The resulting relationships when the child becomes an adult display a high level of self-esteem, shared feelings, and intimacy.

A boundary, for our purposes, represents the limit that defines you as separate from others. The rules for good boundaries include the right to say no and the freedom to say yes. With healthy boundaries, we choose what to let in and what to keep out. Healthy boundaries apply not only to individuals within the family but also to subsystems. For example, a healthy family draws a boundary which protects the couple from intrusion by the children. The role of someone with good boundaries includes a healthy self-image and a strong sense of self that allows the individual a healthy balance between separateness and belonging. The resulting relationships display true intimacy, which requires the participation of two separate individuals. (Symbiosis is not the same as intimacy.)

The C in our ABC's of healthy families stands for open communication. The rule in this case represents an absence of rigid rules or roles. In a healthy family there are no family secrets. The role allows for personal privacy that permits both emotional bonding and individual autonomy. The healthy family allows outsiders into the system. The resulting relationships when the child becomes an adult provide an open communication of both thoughts and feelings and display a strong sense of empathy--the ability to comprehend another person's emotions.

The functional family is balanced and flexible; it can adapt to the situation. Usually this represents a middle ground, but that depends on the circumstances. If you were defending a child against an abductor, you would want to be abusive, angry and intrusive. If, on the other hand, you were a bystander at a bank robbery, you would want to be passive, silent and unattached, even though we would not think of these characteristics as healthy in normal circumstances.

A healthy family may not display every single one of these traits, but this picture generally describes family health.

Arthur Wenk, a psychotherapist practicing in Oakville, Ontario, combines cognitive-behavioral therapy (discovering techniques for producing immediate changes) with a psychodynamic approach that helps make changes permanent by addressing the root causes of mental health problems. Art is certified by OACCPP (the Ontario organization for psychotherapists) and EMDRIA (the EMDR International Association). Art's website, http://www.arthurwenk.com/text, contains one-page summaries of recommended books on personal growth, brief explanations of common mental health issues, and lectures on parenting, the psychology of families, and the functioning of the brain.

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A Different Dimension Behind Dreams

psychology studies

Through dream translation according to the scientific method you find explanations for the meaning of life and for the meaning of death. You also understand how to cure a mental illness, or how to prevent a mental illness before becoming mentally ill. You also understand that evilness and craziness are synonyms.

Therefore, the religious mystery of all religions is scientifically explained in dreams. The unconscious mind that produces your dreams is God's mind. God is saintly and wise as described by all religions of the world. Now that Jung's discoveries and my discoveries help you completely decipher the symbolic meaning of all dream images, you can have a direct communication with God.

Today you can have a special knowledge that various past civilizations that believed in the importance of our spiritual reality had. At the same time, you can have many scientific explanations about the functioning of your brain. The interpretation of the meaning of dreams gives you numerous alternatives.

You are probably impressed with the technological progress of our civilization. You certainly believe that our knowledge surpasses the knowledge of previous civilizations. However, the truth is that the wisdom of ancient civilizations that paid attention to the meaning of dreams could help them more than the technological progress of our historical time can help us today.

The knowledge of the world is related to your material reality, while the most important matters of the human life don't belong to the material dimension. You must pay special attention to the different dimension existent in dreams.

Your dreams are not only images and scenes that work like psychotherapy. They give you information about things that you could never learn otherwise.

For example, dreams about dead people give you information about the people you lost, especially if you loved them and you cannot accept their death. However, you have objective information about dead people in dreams only when these people are very important for you.

Dead people in dreams usually have a symbolic meaning. They represent parts of your own personality that have a negative or positive meaning, depending on the characteristics of the personality of the dead person who appears in a dream.

Dead people in your dreams cannot serve as an example to be avoided or to be followed. Your behavior already is like their behavior.

In other words, they are not dead parts of your personality, but parts that characterize your behavior because you didn't pay attention to their mistakes, in case they are negative. The example of the dead people couldn't help you avoid repeating their mistakes. If they are positive, this means that you are imitating their positive behavior because you admire their qualities.

This double dimension in dreams gives them a power that you cannot find in any technological creation. Your dreams create a bridge that unites you with God, and at the same time, they cure your mental disorders and physical diseases. Dream therapy works like alternative medicine, the same way it works like psychotherapy.

Your physical health depends on your mental health. Everything in your life is related to your mental health because your psychological and spiritual transformation is your mission in life. You also have the moral obligation to help the world find peace and happiness. Your sensibility and your sensitivity must help the world find solutions to all problems.

Today you can understand the scientific explanations to all mysteries related to the functioning of the human brain thanks to dream translation. These explanations prove that sound mental health depends on sensitivity and goodness. The same scientific explanations help you find explanations for all the mysteries contained in the religions of the world.

Christina Sponias continued Carl Jung's research into the human psyche, discovering the cure for all mental illnesses, and simplifying the scientific method of dream interpretation that teaches you how to exactly translate the meaning of your dreams, so that you can find health, wisdom and happiness.

Learn more at: http://www.scientificdreaminterpretation.com/

Click Here to download a Free Sample of the eBook Dream Interpretation as a Science (86 pages!).

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Defense And Adaptive Mechanisms Of The Dissociation

psychology studies

Dissociative protection, like other defenses is the best possible adaptation of the immature organism to the particular situation. Then in later circumstances, they become automatic and therefore maladaptive (by influencing the formation of a neurosis or depression). Some dissociative individuals, according to psychology and psychotherapy, and adulthood keep dissociation forever - after the initial injury, the other in the event of termination abuse, reach for a long time or a fine collaboration of different personalities, and their dominance in the subjective world of one's own "I "("host personality").

The typical (for a psychologist) is to stop the apparent dissociation (dissociative neurosis) when the patient leaves his family, which was brought up, and display it again when their son or daughter reaches the age at which parent is the first time subjected to violence. (This connection is not recognized.) Another common trigger of dissociation in adults is the meeting with any circumstances that enliven children's trauma. Carefully gathering a history, a psychologist can find a lot of small examples of dissociation throughout adult life of the patient. But in psychotherapy and psychoanalysis he is usually led to some dramatic and maladaptive dissociative reactions - the loss of significant periods of time, the stories of others on matters about which the patient does not remember anything, and so on. Phenomena such as these allow the psychologist-psychoanalyst Klaft to talk about "windows that contribute to the diagnosis" (on the advice of a psychologist) in the dissociative states.

Dissociation - a strange "invisible" protection. When one "I" or other system of "I" speak in a gentle way, none of those around the patient notices the dissociative process. Many therapists believe that they have never come across "multiple" personalities, as they expect a client psychological counseling he will announce its multiplicity, or show a dramatic alien to the other part. Sometimes it happens (in fact, it happens more often as the demystification of dissociation), but usually indicate the multiplicity is much thinner. Even when therapy appears quite another part of the identifiable person (such as a frightened child), the therapist ignorant, honestly trying to provide psychological support, will tend to read the changes in a patient not in terms of dissociation (as, for example, as a transitory phenomenon of regression).

The exact assessment of dissociation hinders its discretion. Psychoanalysts have to advise the spouses of people with dissociative psychology, who, with full awareness of the diagnosis of his partner, made comments like: "Yesterday, she said the opposite". Knowing the fact that the last person said, as she was someone else completely pales against the backdrop of her own perception, both yesterday and today I spoke with the same individual. If even an intimate partner does not notice signs of dissociation in humans with recognized, diagnosed disorder in the form of multiple personality, it is easy to understand how blind can be ignorant professionals. Dissociate people know how to "cover up" their standard deviation. Even in childhood, they develop a technique of evasion and fraud, and are constantly accused of "lying" - there are things that they do not remember. They suffer from the terrible violence (causing stress and depression) at the hands of people who would have to defend them, and therefore do not trust the authorities and do not come to the office of a psychologist with the expectation that full disclosure will only benefit them.

The assessment of the circumstances depends on the method of determination of dissociation. In addition to the "classical" multiple personality, a condition called now "DDNOS" (dissociative disorders, nowhere else does not differentiate, DSM), in which the other person is, but does not grab control of the body. There are also other dissociative phenomena - depersonalization, the third frequency of psychiatric symptoms after the depression and anxiety (fear). Depersonalization or presumably can be quite frequent and lengthy to be characteristic.

Therapist B. Brown offered an useful conceptualization - BASK (an abbreviation of the English words: Behavior, Affect, Sensation, Knowledge - behavior, affect, sensation, knowledge). With it, Brown has given the status of the concept of dissociation rather super ordinary category than the peripheral protection, as it is conceived by Freud. His model includes many of the processes, which often occur together, but not always treated as family. According to Brown, the dissociation occurs at the level of behavior - as in paralysis or self-inflicted in a trance, at the level of passion - as in the action "with a charming indifference," or when you save the memory of the trauma, without any feelings, at the level of experience - both in the conversion of anesthesia and "body memory" of the abuse or at the level of knowledge - as in the states 'fugues' or amnesia (cf. Freud's ideas about early childhood amnesia).

BASK model considers repression auxiliary to dissociation, and places a number of phenomena that were considered particularly hysterical (as did Freud), the dissociative domain (level). It also binds to the historical trauma, many problems that were considered exclusively an expression of intrapsychic conflict. Therapists engaged in counseling with patients with dissociative character, these formulations are very useful clinically, and those who work with other people, believe that they increase their sensitivity to dissociative processes occurring to each of them.

Psychology of Everyday Life
http://www.freud-sigmund.com/

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Three Steps to a Perfect Dream Interpretation

psychology studies

Carl Jung couldn't clearly and immediately translate the meaning of dreams, even though he discovered the right method for a perfect dream interpretation. Thanks to his discoveries we can understand the wise unconscious guidance in the dream images. However, his work is obscure and incomplete.

I could simplify the dream interpretation process mainly because I discovered that we can completely trust the unconscious mind that produces our dreams due to its saintly nature. Thanks to my obedience to the unconscious mind, I could discover the existence of our wild conscience (anti-conscience) that generates mental illnesses within our conscience. Therefore, I understood exactly why we dream, while Jung couldn't understand the real importance of the unconscious psychotherapy.

The unconscious mind works like a psychiatrist and psychologist because we have inherited too much absurdity into the biggest part of our brain. Our animal and absurd anti-conscience keeps trying to destroy our human conscience and control our behavior.

Since I could discover this basic truth, I could clarify Carl Jung's method and help you immediately understand the meaning of dreams. Now you don't need to wait for more information in your next dreams, the same way that you don't need to compare this dream to your previous dreams like Jung used to do. You can instantly understand the meaning of any dream without analyzing other dreams of the same dreamer.

* I discovered that we can easily translate a series of dreams if we'll translate only the meaning of the most important dream symbols that appear in each dream, and we'll relate this information to the dreamer's life.

I also discovered that long dreams without many dream symbols can be translated into only a few words, while the translation of short dreams with many dream symbols is quite long.

I understood that I had to define the meaning of the most important dream symbols in a few words, since they are so important for the comprehension of the meaning of a dream. Carl Jung wrote many pages about the meaning of each important dream symbol.

This was a big complication. If I had to tell an entire story in order to explain the meaning of just one dream symbol to a dreamer, what would happen with the rest of the dream? When would we have time to talk about the importance of this dream in the dreamer's life?

Thus, I simplified the definition of each dream symbol, besides discovering the meaning of numerous dream symbols that Jung couldn't understand. I learned how to make fast dream translations without paying attention to all the details of each dream because I had to translate many dreams for the same dreamer in a short period of time.

However, many times the details of each dream are revealing. These details are very important. Thus, I had to find a way to easily identify the important details of a dream, besides translating the meaning of the dream symbols. 

I discovered that the important details of each dream are the ones that appear in many dreams, in similar forms.

I will give you a real example by analyzing three dream scenes from a series of dreams of one of my patients.

In one dream the dreamer was very sleepy; she hardly could open her eyes.

In the next dream the dreamer was afraid of darkness.

In the third dream, a part of her personality was blind (The dreamer dreamt that she was helping a blind girl walk. This blind girl was a part of her personality that was not able to see many things).

Therefore, the fact that the dreamer cannot see her reality is a detail that appears in three dreams, in a different form. This is an important detail.

Here is the meaning of each dream image:

Being sleepy = She was not fighting her absurd anti-conscience; she was resting accommodated instead of paying attention to the dangerous truth. Her anti-conscience was taking advantage of her indifference and destroying her human conscience while she was resting.

Being in the dark = There are many things that the dreamer ignores about herself and her reality.

Since this dreamer was afraid of darkness in the dream, this means that she was afraid of the truth she ignores about herself and her reality. This truth has a painful effect on her psyche.

Being blind = She was not seeing many things. She was acting without understanding what she was doing.

The dreamer of my example is neurotic, but I cannot give you more details about her case. I'm only using the dream images that appeared in her dreams in order to give you a practical lesson.

Therefore, when you'll perceive that a certain detail repeatedly appears in your dreams, this means that this detail is very important, even though it is not a dream symbol.

* After understanding the importance of certain details I made a research about this matter, looking for all the important details found in each series of dreams of the same dreamers. I discovered that the important details in a dream are the ones that indicate danger.

This information should help you in your dream translations. You can easily translate the meaning of your dreams if you'll learn the meaning of the most important dream symbols and you pay attention to the important details of a dream.

However, you must also follow the dream logic. This is a very complicated matter that I could clearly understand only after fighting craziness and winning the battle thanks to the unconscious guidance.

The anti-conscience uses craziness in order to destroy our human conscience. Craziness is evilness, but in a camouflaged form. The unconscious mind tries to help us preserve our sanity and show resistance to our anti-conscience's attacks with a logic based on sanctity. This comprehension helped me understand what to look for when translating the meaning of dreams. 

The fight between our evil anti-conscience and our human conscience (which needs the guidance of the saintly unconscious mind) is the fight between Satan and the human being. This is why most dreams present dangerous situations to the dreamers, they are nightmares, or they are bad dreams not as scary as nightmares, but that make the dreamer feel uncomfortable and sad.

* The unconscious words are the words of a spiritual guide for our human conscience. When we fight absurdity, we are basically fighting evilness.

This knowledge helps you directly understand the unconscious intention when you look at a dream. Therefore, you don't waste your time with suppositions that are far from the truth.

Christina Sponias continued Carl Jung's research into the human psyche, discovering the cure for all mental illnesses, and simplifying the scientific method of dream interpretation that teaches you how to exactly translate the meaning of your dreams, so that you can find health, wisdom and happiness.

Learn more at: http://www.scientificdreaminterpretation.com/

Click Here to download a Free Sample of the eBook Dream Interpretation as a Science (86 pages!).

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Dream Interpretation - Walking and Leaping in Dreams

psychology studies

You dream because your mental stability is constantly threatened by the craziness contained into your wild conscience (anti-conscience). The unconscious mind that produces your dreams tries to protect you mental stability from the attacks of your wild side, which is constantly trying to invade your human conscience and generate a mental illness.

Even if you'll never completely lose your mind, you are still influenced by the absurdity of your anti-conscience in many ways. You have to understand what is happening in your brain and psyche so that you may be able to control your behavior.

The unconscious mind gives you behavioral lessons, and logical lessons.

For example, if instead of normally walking in a dream you are leaping like a frog, this means that you are not making a research the way you should. When you are walking in dreams this means that you are trying to discover something important. You are looking for the truth. Walking in dreams means researching and discovering.

If you are leaping instead of normally walking, this means that you jump from one point to another. You want to get to the next point very fast.

This means that you are not a good researcher. You want to jump important lessons. You have to walk step by step all the difficult steps of your long path in order to discover what you are looking for. If you'll try to reach the end very fast, you won't learn all your lessons, and you'll miss important details.

This simple dream already was an important warning. You have to be patient and cautious in your research.

The continuation of Carl Jung's research proves that many past civilizations that gave importance to the meaning of dreams and respected the unconscious guidance could understand the dream language. Native Americans were completely guided by the unconscious wisdom in their dreams because they possessed a special virtue, which enabled them to have a spiritual communication with the unconscious mind.

My work creates a bridge between science and religion. Even though the atheistic and materialistic mindset of the current civilization tends to believe that science and religion are totally different matters, the truth is that they are closely related. All religions work like psychotherapy.

All dreams work like psychotherapy too. We need psychotherapy because we are absurd animals. Our tiny human conscience must evolve if we want to become really human.

We must learn how to eliminate our wild nature and find sound mental health. The unconscious mind sends us many dreams in order to help us eliminate our anti-conscience through consciousness.

Consciousness means wisdom and sensitivity at the same time. Consciousness means light. When you are a conscious human being you can see your reality as it is, without illusions. You can also feel your reality. You are not disconnected from your objective reality like you do when you are mentally ill.

Your sensitivity is as important as your reasoning.

You must walk carefully in a dream, and pay attention to all dangers. The process of consciousness is a serious matter. When you are walking in a dream you are trying to discover something. You are trying to understand the meaning of a mystery. This means that you will acquire consciousness of the importance of this mystery. You will understand what is behind its appearance. This is an important discovery.

If you are carefully walking in a dream this dream image has a positive meaning because it indicates that you are evolving and learning. You are researching and discovering more because you have the right attitude.

The unconscious mind teaches you that you must always be very careful and pay attention to all dangers. This is how you can avoid all misfortunes. Patience and caution are indispensable if you want to find peace and happiness in life.

Christina Sponias continued Carl Jung's research into the human psyche, discovering the cure for all mental illnesses, and simplifying the scientific method of dream interpretation that teaches you how to exactly translate the meaning of your dreams, so that you can find health, wisdom and happiness.

Learn more at: http://www.scientificdreaminterpretation.com/

Click Here to download a Free Sample of the eBook Dream Interpretation as a Science (86 pages!).

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Dysfunctional Families: The Alcoholic Family

psychology studies

I have found it helpful to describe the psychology of families in terms of the ABC's, where the letters in this case stand for Attachment, Boundaries and Communication. Unhealthy, or dysfunctional, families generally include insecure attachment, poor boundaries, and closed communications. (Those interested in learning more about attachment may wish to consult Jeremy Holmes' book, The Search for the Secure Base: Attachment Theory and Psychotherapy. London: Routledge, 2010.) As a subheading one can talk about the three R's, in this case, Rules, Roles, and Resulting Relationships. Let us observe how these characteristics operate in the alcoholic family. Most alcoholic families maintain three basic rules:

The Rule of Silence forbids not only talking to people outside the family but also to talking to members of the family itself. Children raised in this system may experience difficulty expressing themselves for the rest of their lives.

The Rule of Denial requires children to ignore the behavior of the alcoholic and pretend that nothing is wrong. Children raised in these circumstances learn not to trust either themselves or others and never learn to honestly express emotion.

The Rule of Isolation separates the family from the community and isolates individual members from each other. Children raised in this environment have difficulty forming intimate relationships.

The Rule of Denial leads children to adopt various roles as a way of deflecting attention from the alcoholic. These roles may include:

The Golden Boy (or girl) who tries to make family look good by achieving success in school or work

The Scapegoat who diverts attention from the family by getting into trouble

The Peacemaker, or Placater, who tries to reduce conflict in the family by smoothing things over

Growing up in an alcoholic family can have devastating consequences. On an emotional level, resulting relationships tend to be marked by numbness, distrust, resentment, shame, and helplessness. The mental processes of an adult raised in these circumstances reflect confused thinking, hypervigilance and a tendency to think in absolutes. The actions of such an adult tend toward crisis-oriented living, manipulative behavior, and problems with intimacy.

If you have been raised in an alcoholic family, these observations may sound distressingly familiar. You may find guidance in Wayne Kritsberg's book, The Adult Children of Alcoholics Syndrome: A Step-by-Step Guide to Discovery and Recovery. New York: Bantam Books, 1985. Alcoholics Anonymous conducts various programs for children of alcoholics and you may find additional support there.

Arthur Wenk, a psychotherapist practicing in Oakville, Ontario, combines cognitive-behavioral therapy (discovering techniques for producing immediate changes) with a psychodynamic approach that helps make changes permanent by addressing the root causes of mental health problems. Art is certified by OACCPP (the Ontario organization for psychotherapists) and EMDRIA (the EMDR International Association). Art's website, http://www.arthurwenk.com/, contains one-page summaries of recommended books on personal growth, brief explanations of common mental health issues, and lectures on parenting, the psychology of families, and the functioning of the brain.

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Self Reliance

psychology studies

Self-reliance is an inner state of knowing that you are robust, resilient and resourceful enough to tackle the challenges and difficulties that life will inevitably throw at you.

It is formed from the meaning you have given to your own life experiences, which in turn then overlay your innate personality; as well as from what you have seen 'modelled' by the self-reliant people you have had contact with.

With the right circumstances and guidance we can gradually develop those all important characteristic traits of courage, competence, determination, persistence, tenacity, and resilience.

We must learn not to allow our setbacks, disappointments and failures to reinforce any negative beliefs we still hold from childhood. Instead we should rationally evaluate any negative experiences - free of their emotional components - and see what we can learn from them; and what we might want to change about ourselves to enable us to better handle such challenges in the future. If we find that our plan or strategy was flawed in some way - we can then create effective ways to change it!

It can be hard to overcome our early emotional wounds, but if we can see them as the learning opportunities they are meant to be, we can grow and become more of a robust, realistic and grounded Adult, who can 'take care of the business' of life.

Our new-found inner strength will then buffer us against future storms, as we accumulate more opportunities to become greater than we were.

Otherwise our old 'programming' and 'script' will just keep repeating themselves over and over again, and keep us stuck in the old drama of our life.

As we become more able to think, plan and take appropriate action for ourselves, we don't need to rely upon a 'life-coach' or 'cognitive-mentor' to do our common-sense functioning for us. With our own Ego-Strength we can take care of our own needs and carry out our plans, and reach our goals with persistent effort.

As we develop into a self-reliant adult we can, paradoxically, become a more reliable person for others too. We can also have better relationships, because we are not looking for the other person to validate us or prove their love for us. As we calm and soothe our own emotional state and choose to shift gear into our sensible reasoning and rational Adult, we can actually then loosen up to become more playful and intimate. This is because we dissolve the 'neurotic' neediness and game playing that is so common in many relationships.

As a parent we can greatly assist our child's sense of self-reliance - something which they are usually pushing to have from an very early age anyway! We can offer them graded challenges and opportunities to learn new skills and talents - which don't have to be expensive.

We can support and encourage their emerging sense of self-worth and esteem; by giving appropriate and well-timed praise in an honest and empathic way - without any sarcasm or back-handed compliments; and certainly not by using ridicule or any form of put-down to the sensitive soul of the child.

Negative behaviour should be called just that and separated from the positive goodness of the child themselves. Some bad behaviour should simply be ignored - as long as it isn't dangerous to anyone in any way. Smothering over-protective parenting, whilst well-meaning, robs a child of the ability to form and adhere to necessary boundaries in their life, or to tackle any challenges head-on.

Learning to delay gratification is also important, but it becomes harder in modern times when the media brainwashes us into thinking that to 'be somebody' you must 'have it and have it NOW!' The sense of personal achievement from working towards, and attaining, a goal can be lost by the premature satisfaction of a desire.

As a psychotherapist I have worked with many people who didn't have the chance to develop self-reliance because their early lives were dominated by chaos and fear; and they must then try to develop a sufficient sense of Adult self-reliance at a much later time in their life, in order to function better in the world.

Other clients had parents who's own narcissism meant that the client grew up with the expectation that they must succeed, perhaps academically or in sports/drama etc. so that their parent(s) could bolster their own fragile self-esteem with the glory of their 'perfect' offspring's achievements. Individual personality development in the child then becomes stifled, as does the ability to rely upon themselves and direct the path of their own life.

By contrast, other clients have reported having had a good/great/ideal childhood - which sadly had not prepared them for the trials and tribulations of life....they had no skills with which to regulate their emotions or deal with a later life crisis - such as redundancy, divorce, business failure, being burgled or defrauded etc. - and they were completely thrown of balance by circumstances that a more self-reliant and resilient person would be better equipped to deal with.

You are the only one who will never leave you, so you might as well be sure that you can at least rely upon yourself.

We live in a 'something for nothing culture' nowadays that relies upon the goodwill, duty, pity and support of other people, or the State. This dependence does not develop an individual's character or enhance their personality.

Believing in yourself and your ability to create your own Life of Choice prevents you from quitting.

Repeating your positive intentions, with heartfelt feeling, has been proven to bring about positive and tangible results.

It's never too late to learn how to change and to be better than you used to believe you ever could be!

Written By Maxine Harley Msc Integrative Psychotherapy - Psychotherapist in West Sussex and also creator of 'The Ripple Effect' Process and Quantum Psyche Process see http://www.qpp.uk.com/

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Dream Interpretation - The Meaning of Garbage in Dreams

psychology studies

You'll perceive that the difference between the scientific method of dream interpretation and all the false methods of the world is mainly the fact that when you learn how to translate the meaning of reams according to the scientific method, you understand the words of the divine unconscious mind.

The wisdom contained in the dream images is extraordinary. You can perceive that the unconscious messages are superior because they are not the result of human suppositions. The unconscious words enlighten your existence. You understand what is happening to you. You understand what to do in order to solve your problems.

I will give you an example from a dream dreamt by one of my patients. She follows the unconscious guidance with gratitude. This is why she is evolving day by day.

I cannot publish her entire dream or tell you details about her case because my translations are private. I will publish only two sentences of one of her dreams in order to give you a practical lesson.

'My daughter and I are dressed-up and walking to a formal dinner. I realize I'm dragging a garbage can. I tell my daughter, "What am I doing with this garbage? I should have disposed of it before."'

Dream Translation:

'My daughter and I are dressed-up and walking to a formal dinner.'

Your daughter represents your moral image, and you represent your ego in dreams.

The fact that you were well dressed and walking to a formal dinner indicates that you are being prepared for a very important event, which will soon happen in your life.

The dinner represents food for your psyche. In other words, it represents psychical energy for all the parts of your personality. You will feel rewarded.

'I realize I'm dragging a garbage can. I tell my daughter, "What am I doing with this garbage? I should have disposed of it before."'

The garbage can represents what is immoral. This means that you are not getting prepared as you should. You are carrying your immoral tendencies with you.

Your ego understands that this immorality shouldn't follow you and that it goes against your serious moral image.

In order to understand the meaning of dreams you must follow the logic of the unconscious mind. You also have to understand that everything in a dream has a symbolic meaning.

For example, the dreamer's daughter represents her moral image. Her moral image is what she shows to the world about her personality.

She has a mature moral image because her daughter is a mature girl. The dreamer is also a responsible person. Her maturity is visible. Therefore, she has a positive moral image.

However, she is dragging a garbage can. Garbage represents immorality in dreams.

This immorality doesn't fit with her mature moral image. It is the result of the influence of her anti-conscience.

The anti-conscience is the main topic of most dreams. Through dream translation you learn how to eliminate the absurd wild conscience you have inherited.

The unconscious mind purifies your spirit the same way it helps you pass through a process of transformation that eliminates what is negative from your psyche. Purity and wisdom help you have a clean conscience.

The dreamer of my example must eliminate her immoral tendencies in order to get prepared for an important event in her life. The unconscious mind always eliminates our immoral tendencies because immorality leads to craziness.

If you are immoral and you accept to be evil in certain circumstances, you will lose your human conscience. Your anti-conscience will gradually destroy your capacity to think logically and your sensitivity. You'll become cruel and disconnected with the external reality.

Immorality is in fact an animal reaction; it is not a human reaction. Even though the irrational animals are not immoral because they don't know what morality means, immorality is an animal rational reaction in human beings.

The dreamer of my example has a mature moral image, but she is dragging the immoral tendencies she has inherited into her anti-conscience. This means that she must eliminate her absurd immoral tendencies because they are preventing her from getting properly prepared for an important event in her life. This event demands from her purity and wisdom.

There is a relationship between her behavior and the event she expects to see happening in her life.

In other words, the successful preparation for this important event defines her destiny. She cannot bring with her the immoral tendencies she has inherited into her anti-conscience and see this important event happening in her life. She has to pass through a process of psychotherapy and learn how to respect the human body. Only then will she finally see the important event she desires happening in her life.

Christina Sponias continued Carl Jung's research into the human psyche, discovering the cure for all mental illnesses, and simplifying the scientific method of dream interpretation that teaches you how to exactly translate the meaning of your dreams, so that you can find health, wisdom and happiness.
Learn more at: http://www.scientificdreaminterpretation.com/
Click Here to download a Free Sample of the eBook Dream Interpretation as a Science (86 pages!).

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Dreams About A Ship and An Anchor

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The anchor is a rare dream symbol, which appears in a dream only when the dreamer follows dream therapy for a certain period of time. The anchor has two different meanings depending on the dream story.

The ship in dreams represents a long journey of studies and preparation.

The sea represents craziness. There are numerous invisible dangers hidden in the vast ocean, the same way that there are numerous invisible dangers hidden into your anti-conscience.

Your anti-conscience is your primitive conscience, which didn't evolve like your human conscience. It occupies the biggest part of your brain the same way that the sea occupies the biggest part of our planet. You ignore how dangerous the anti-conscience's content is, the same way you ignore how many dangers are hidden into the dark region of the sea.

When the anchor is near the beach it has two different meanings in a dream. It represents salvation when you have arrived from a long trip. It also represents safety because the anchor doesn't let you get lost in the ocean. In other words, the safety given to you by the protection of an anchor represents your salvation from craziness. Therefore, when you'll see an anchor in a dream after making a long research about an important matter, the anchor has a positive meaning.

It means that now you know that you are absurd and that you must tame your anti-conscience. You are not indifferent to its existence.

You are the human being concentrated into the human side of your conscience. You have to tame your huge anti-conscience and transform it into a human being by obeying the unconscious guidance in your dreams.

A dream about an anchor before your journey of self-discovery through dream interpretation indicates that you are not accepting your mission. The anchor is holding you at the beach. You have to travel.

You have a lot to discover about yourself. The anti-conscience is your evil, immoral, violent, absurd, cruel, and indifferent personality. It has an animal and dangerous nature. Your anti-conscience is your worst self. Carl Jung named it 'shadow' when he discovered the existence of a negative content inside the human psyche.

I changed the description of this negative content because I continued Jung's research, discovering that the anti-conscience that is our huge wild conscience, which is still alive in our brain. It is a lot more than merely a shadow.

Our anti-conscience works against our conscience. It is constantly trying to destroy our human conscience and imprison us, the human beings concentrated into the human side of our conscience, into the labyrinth of craziness.

The word 'anti' in Greek means against, contrary. I used this definition because my description is psychiatric. The anti-conscience is our satanic conscience, which is schizophrenic because it couldn't find peace. It refuses learning and changing its behavior. This is why it remains in a demoniac condition, without any evolution.

You, the human being concentrated into your human conscience must oblige this monster to change its behavior.

You live in order to transform the satanic content you have inherited into your brain into a positive content that will respect human rules. This is how you'll get rid of all mental illnesses and physical diseases, you'll find sound mental health, peace and happiness, and you'll help the world find salvation with your work and your example.

You have to accept learning the truth and you have to accept transforming your personality.

The anchor can be a positive dream symbol only if you'll accept the challenge and study the human mind through dream translation. You must face craziness and fight the demon. You cannot be a passive observer of the destruction of your human conscience by your wild side.

You should follow dream therapy. The unconscious mind will show you the way out of this situation. The unconscious mind that produces your dreams has a divine origin and works like a psychotherapist and spiritual guide. This means that you are protected by the unconscious sanctity. In other words, you can completely trust the dream messages.

You must learn what exists inside you and fight all the absurdity you have inherited before being a victim of your terrible anti-conscience. Don't refuse to make a long journey inside your psyche and discover who you really are.

You'll understand if the anchor has a positive or negative meaning if the anchor will appear before or after the ship in a dream. When the anchor appears before the ship, it has a negative meaning. It means that you refuse to pass through a process of transformation. You don't want to learn anything and tame your wild side.

You are irresponsible and inconsequential. You must make this trip because it is your salvation from despair.

If you'll have a dream about an anchor after having a dream (or a series of dreams) about the ship, the anchor has a positive meaning. For now on your life will be totally different. Now you know how to control your behavior.

However, if the anchor will appear in a dream while you are in an island and your ship or boat is near the beach, this means that you are in a dangerous position. If the anchor will appear in the middle of the ocean it indicates great danger because you are never protected in the sea. Remember that the sea means craziness. The sea always has a negative meaning in dreams.

The anchor can be a positive dream symbol only if you'll carefully analyze the content of your psyche and transform your personality before having a dream about it. The anchor has a positive meaning when it represents the end of your long studies about a certain matter; which is always related to your evolution.

Christina Sponias continued Carl Jung's research into the human psyche, discovering the cure for all mental illnesses, and simplifying the scientific method of dream interpretation that teaches you how to exactly translate the meaning of your dreams, so that you can find health, wisdom and happiness.
Learn more at: http://www.scientificdreaminterpretation.com/
Click Here to download a Free Sample of the eBook Dream Interpretation as a Science (86 pages!).

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Mental Health - How Crazy Are You?

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We are all crazy - in someone else's eyes, and judgement!

We tend to think of mental illness as a description of profound psychiatric problems with a specific diagnosis, as categorized in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of the American Psychiatric Association. These diagnoses usually have a corresponding pharmaceutical drug, or cocktail of drugs, as 'treatment' - although other methods such as Electro-Convulsive-Therapy still exist.

We have come a long way from the bedlam or asylum days of the past and yet mental illness is still rife in every society.

Lack of basic needs, such as adequate nutrition, care, shelter and education; and prolonged drug and alcohol use, and exposure to violent traumas, all exacerbate the onset and ongoing state of mental illness. Sadly these factors are common everyday experiences for a large and neglected sector of our society.

In recent days (March 2012) news reports in Britain have spoken of the intentional torture and murder of children by relatives who believed them to be witches who are 'possessed by evil spirits'. This seems crazy to most of us, and yet is a prevailing belief in parts of Africa.

Cultural differences bring with them beliefs and behaviours that others cultures judge as 'crazy'.

We live in a crazy world, where, surely all of the following could be deemed to be insane/crazy;

Racism - and discrimination, oppression and violence against another person, simply because their ancestors originated from a different continent. According to the experts, we ALL originated from East Africa anyway!

Homophobia - and violence against a person who has different preferences and needs.

Fundamentalist religions - whose followers threaten death to those who do not follow their code of behaviour and societal norms; or to those they deem as having insulted a prophet or leader.

Cultural norms - such as the stoning of women accused of adultery, the chopping off of a thief's hand, honour killing, and arranged marriages.

Slavery - the domination of, and cruelty towards, another human being.

Human trafficking and exploitation

Female circumcision forced upon young girls

Preventable diseases and poverty - whilst wealth exists elsewhere in the country.

Corporate greed - and the psychopathic personality traits of the few who control the flow of wealth in Western society.

Cruelty to children - particularly in the 'feral underclass', as they have been described in the media; children taught to cage-fight with one another for the 'entertainment' of the so-called Adult spectators.

Paedophilia.

Foreign aid - sent to countries with already enough wealth of their own for Space programs, or weapons designed and intended for war.

Destruction of much of the planet - fuelled by selfishness, greed, ignorance and arrogance.

Cruelty to animals - dog-fighting, badger baiting, fox-hunting; and 'festivals' where animals are sacrificed for 'pleasure/fun'.

Gender selection - the killing of newborns because they are the 'wrong' gender.

Huge Government waste - Unnecessary Quangos, consultants, independent reports/enquiries; moth-balled projects, and outright fraud.

Prohibition of contraceptives - by certain religious 'leaders' despite the prevalence of AIDS, HIV, Sexually transmitted diseases and unwanted pregnancies.

Space travel - whilst people are starving and without basic medical care.

Excessive Legislation - such as Health and Safety rulings which have resulted in death (the recent media reports regarding emergency services being unwilling, due to the prevailing Health and Safety rules, to rescue a person who drowned in a few inches of water.)

Cyber-bullying.

HOW CRAZY ARE ALL OF THESE?!

They all show a lack of empathy, compassion, care or concern for the health, safety of well-being of others.

In some of the examples above, there is also a 'projection' of badness onto a 'victim', be it an individual, group, class, or culture/society. This projection is then used as a form of justification for, and a normalising of, crazy and cruel behaviours.

This is accompanied by a ruthless selfishness that says - "I matter more than you, I have the right to use and damage/destroy you."

We become de-sensitized to much of what we hear about in the world, because we simply cannot absorb it all and cannot do anything to prevent such crazy things from happening.

Having worked as a psychotherapist with some individuals who have committed assaults, even murder; and having all too often heard of intense cruelty having been inflicted upon a vulnerable child, by a parent/caretaker; I wonder why we don't scan the brains of the perpetrators and find out 'why' they do what they do - and then to give them the effective treatment, wherever it is possible, for those areas of the brain that are just not working properly.

The behaviours of such people, with deficits in their brain's functioning capacity, has far-reaching consequences.

Babies are born to parents who's brains are not fully functioning; and this is passed on to the baby; as well as inadequate nutrition to enable the baby's brain to develop properly. Damaged children become damaged adults who find other damaged adults and pass on their damage to their offspring...and the cycle continues.

Most people exhibit neuroses of some sort, as well as mild 'personality disorder' traits. These may go unnoticed in the crazy world that we all inhabit.

So, what does good, robust mental health look like?

I think it includes the following:

Emotional stability and self-regulation

Rational thoughts, and an ability to control and disarm any irrational thoughts

Positive self-esteem and body image

The ability to withstand challenges and criticism

Not allowing the past to negatively affect the present or future - by therapeutically healing the past

Showing genuine care and compassion towards children, animals and the vulnerable in society

Having a sense of empathy and sympathy towards others

Congruence - what is felt on the inside is portrayed sensitively and assertively on the outside

Authenticity - being 'real' and genuine, and only wearing a 'mask' by conscious choice and for a short time, for a specific and valid purpose.

Let us not forget that our brains are not fully developed until we are about 25 years of age - and that they then have what is called 'plasticity' which allows the brain to change, and increase neuronal connections and pathways, in response to our physical and emotional needs and experiences.

It's never too late to learn a better way of relating to yourself and to others.

Profound mental illness and retardation are best treated by the psychiatric experts; but for the vast majority of us having mild personality disorder traits and neuroses, there is a way to 'fill in the gaps' - with psycho-emotional education and integrative psychotherapy, and by revising our negative and restricting sub-conscious belief system.

Then a crazy world becomes a little less crazy, each time someone takes responsibility for, and finds the right path towards, healing their own psychological and emotional wounds.

This article is by Maxine Harley Msc Integrative Psychotherapy - Psychotherapy in Sussex and creator of 'The Ripple Effect' Process and Quantum Psyche Process see http://www.qpp.uk.com/

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