Dynamic Psychotherapy
Began with Freud. Important concepts include:
mind is divided into ego (conscious), superego (conscious and unconscious) and id (unconscious). The id contains powerful drives such as aggression and libido
the unconscious
- include the pre-conscious (accessible with effort) and the unconscious proper, which is censored by the conscious mind because it contains unacceptable wishes, instincts, and drives and a can be accessed byfree association, dreams and parapraxes (Freudian slips)
- unconscious conflict arises when components of self are at odds with each other, with the aggressive impulse of the id inhibited by the superego
- anxiety arises because of the unconscious conflict and gives rise to defense mechanisms
how it works
premise is that we are always working towards emotional homeostasis. Feeling angry with a parent will be balanced with the need/desire that goes along with this, leading towards unconscious conflict.
want patient's to transfer their previous thoughts onto the therapist, such that it can be seen, brought up in adulthood, and then addressed
create the freedom to allow unconscious thoughts and impulses to come out into the conscious such that they can resolve. Sometimes people can't process things as a children; wait until adulthood to bring it up.
you want to reflect back to patients that a portion of their present feeling is from the past.
psychic determininsm
- asserts....
past is prologue
- who you are today is the result of life experiences, especially in childhood
- trauma in childhood leads to problems in adulthood
transference
- patient transfers feelings toward figures from the past onto the therapist, ie "you sound just like my mother"
- feelings are a repetition of the past and are not appropriate
- every relationship is a misture of real and transference
counter-transference
- includes all feelings the therapist has towards the patient
- the feelings are not unprofessional; by becoming aware of our negative feelings toward patients, we can reflect on them and avoid acting unprofessionally
resistance
force within psyche that fights against change
can be conscious or unconscious
can appear as non-adherence, or more sublty (showing up late, etc)
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