Two cases in which dream work played important roles will be presented and illustrated with videotaped sessions. The first is a case of a young single man with premature ejaculation, wherein the active, psychodynamic use of dream work "broke through'' the patient's intense resistance. The other is that of a married man with primary retarded ejaculations in which dreams were used to guide the behavioral aspects of therapy.
Control theory, which is a new theory of how all living organisms function, will be explained. Discussion will show how this theory supports Reality Therapy and how Reality Therapy is enhanced by the knowledge of this theory.
Therapists learning depth psychotherapy (extending several years) make a greater personal commitment than in other forms of therapy. Supervision of this work requires attention to the therapist's subjective experience as well as to procedures and conceptual perspectives. This workshop will include direct teaching, unrehearsed demonstration with an actual supervisee, and candid feedback from supervisee and supervisor.
The criterion of reality adaptation as a measure of mental health or pathology is a totally fictitious one, since what reality "really" is remains an arbitrary definition which, in turn, leads to a reification. However, out of these reifications can grow very important practical consequences - both positive and negative ones.
We shall discuss one of the most frequent family processes leading to adolescent psychosis. As a direct consequence of the couple's hidden relational malaise, one of the two parents pseudo-privileges the child over the spouse and instrumentally brings him/her up as the opposite of the spouse in every way. The involuntary cheating about feelings ("imbroglio of affections") enhances the possibility of a psychotic breakdown.
This revision of the original ABCs of RET and cognitive-behavior therapy shows that people's Belief System (B) about their Activating Events (A) of their lives largely contribute to their emotional and behavioral Consequences (C) but that A, B, and C importantly influence and include each other and that all three include interacting cognitive, emotive, and behavioral elements.
Accepted thinking about non-polar, non-psychotic depression has been impaired by ignoring crucial research. This shows that some cases are masked endogenous depression; others are anxiety-based in several ways. Therefore, each case must be investigated to decide appropriate treatment and thus surpass the mediocre results typified in the "Collaborative Study."
Recognition of body-mind unity requires acceptance of the fact that the body in its form and motility expresses the individual's personality as much as behavior and thinking. If there is to be a change in personality, the body must reflect that change. To change bodily attitude, one should work directly with the energy dynamics of the body. By mobilizing a person's energy, one opens up deep feelings that are otherwise inaccessible. This is critical in the treatment of depression which is directly connected to an energetic collapse in the body. The address will describe how one increases an individual's energy to promote his pleasure in life.
Evidence that the hourly and daily variations in our consciousness are related to the wavelike flow of messenger molecules operating on all levels from mind to gene will be reviewed. Stress, psychosomatic problems, and their resolution are a function of how we manage this wave nature of our consciousness. How do we create a new psychotherapy for the future that utilizes these natural windows of the mindbody?
Dialogue 04 from the Evolution of Psychotherapy 1990 - Sex Roles / Sex Rules, featuring Helen Singer Kaplan, MD, PhD, and Miriam Polster, PhD.
Moderated by Ellyn Bader, PhD.