All posts filed under: Therapy

3 Paradoxes of Strong Mental Health

Published by Michael Kinsey, Ph.D.

Introduction I love a good paradox. In clinical practice, a session seldom goes by where I do not seize the opportunity to share a relevant one with a patient. Perhaps it’s their inherent rhetorical force in paradox. Maybe the power of paradox comes from their historical and cultural tradition. Eastern philosophy is full of paradoxes. You can find paradox in the Tao Te Ching. Paradoxes are abundant in Zen koans–riddle-like stories that provoke enlightening insights. Paradox flows through the study martial arts. Derivative guru characters in pop culture, like Yoda, often speak in paradox. The more ancient the tradition, it seems, the more riddled the culture is with paradoxical sayings (this is not a verified claim, but would be an interesting study!). Whatever the reason, I’m sold on using paradoxes as a tried-and-true delivery mechanism life-changing wisdom. What is a paradox? “A statement that is seemingly contradictory or opposed to common sense and yet is perhaps true.” Merriam-Webster The two aspects of paradox I’ll highlight are the following: First, paradoxes are counterintuitive at best, nonsensical …

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psychosis

How do you know you’re in psychosis?

Published by Michael Kinsey, Ph.D.

How does someone know if they are in psychosis?  As it turns out, this is precisely the correct question to ask.  There is a simple and interesting answer to this question.  But first, let’s begin with how NAMI (National Alliance On Mental Illness), an authority on mental illness, defines psychosis: “Most people think of psychosis as a break with reality. In a way it is. Psychosis is characterized as disruptions to a person’s thoughts and perceptions that make it difficult for them to recognize what is real and what isn’t. These disruptions are often experienced as seeing, hearing and believing things that aren’t real or having strange, persistent thoughts, behaviors and emotions. While everyone’s experience is different, most people say psychosis is frightening and confusing.” –nami.org, emphasis mine Many people associate psychosis with its dramatic symptoms of hallucinations and bizarre beliefs.  Disorganized thinking is another unmistakable sign of psychosis. These are not wrong associations.  However, the defining feature of psychosis is a lack of insight.  In other words, a true psychosis is one where the …

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Why Your Out-of-Control Sex Drive Could Be a Product of Trauma

Published by Michael Kinsey, Ph.D.

I recently came across a study that established interconnections between trauma, the self-conscious emotions (i.e., guilt and shame), and hypersexuality.  The tendency towards hypersexuality appears especially strong among male trauma survivors.  A summary of the findings from the study can be found here. The study’s findings stirred up a few interesting questions in me.  First, what is it about experiences of trauma that evoke guilt and shame–emotions that make us question the stability of our social bonds and membership?  Second, what is an easy way to tell that certain expressions of sexuality may be unhealthy responses to trauma?  And third, why would hypersexuality be a common way of coping with the guilt and shame associated with trauma?   Why Guilt and Shame The fact that guilt and shame are so closely linked to trauma is a bit of a head scratcher at first glance.  For one, traumatic experiences are so varied. Each “type” of traumatic experience has its own emotional nuances so it seems a bit odd that guilt and shame would be so consistently linked …

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How can I be happy when others are suffering?

Published by Michael Kinsey, Ph.D.

We live in an interconnected world–a world where the 24-hour news cycle and social media confronts us with the most extreme ends of human experience.  One hour, we might be watching the Kardashians vacation or unwind in their multimillion-dollar mansion.  The next hour (or perhaps even the same hour!) we could be scrolling through instagram seeing haunting images of oppression, invasion, illness, destruction, and other powerful stories of the most profound levels of human suffering. Whether we find ourselves more engaged with those we envy or those we pity, our voyeurism is sure to leave us in a darker place than where we started. It’s true that we would be better off if we simply disengaged.  Stop doomscrolling. Stop engaging with trolls.  Stop watching the news.  Stop immersing yourself in the lives of the rich, beautiful, and overindulged.  But that advice might be skirting a very rational question: how can we be happy when others are suffering through no fault of their own? The first question: do you really want to not suffer? If you’re …

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Am I Depressed or Just Lazy?

Published by Michael Kinsey, Ph.D.

How can I figure out if I’m depressed or just lazy? What is depression? There are many ways to define depression.  The DSM and ICD take descriptive approaches, outlining a set of symptom criteria that coincide with depressive episodes.  Psychodynamic therapists formulations explain it in theoretical terms, summarized simply as “anger turned inward.”  Behaviorists posited that depression results from a lack of reinforcement, whether positive or negative, in one’s environment.  And patriarch of positive psychology, Martin Seligman, created depression in a laboratory using dogs by applying behavioral principles. He called named is lab-induced depression “learned helplessness.” I’ll do my best here to make my own definition combining the merits of all three definitions. Let’s start with the core components.  They are: Depression is an emotional and physiological state. Depression emotionally feels like resignation, giving up, hopelessness and despair. On top of the experience of giving up, depression also registers emotionally as guilt over not being good enough and/or having failed to live up to what’s expected of him/her.  Guilt results from self-consciousness, self-critique, and what …

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Ecopsychology as liberation psychology

Ecopsychology as Liberation Psychology

Published by Nicci Attfield

There is no doubt that human society is living in times of profound crisis. Both Black Lives Matter and Climate Change protests have been taking place throughout the world. As a result, the radical ecopsychologist, Andy Fisher argues that we need to not only find a way of re-entering into a relationship with life but also of exploring those ways that capitalism, colonialism, and industry is failing the earth so that we can create helpful change. It is only by exploring how social and ecological injustices have created harm to both human and non-human communities that we can work towards liberation for all beings.  How does a liberation ecopsychology model view our current world? Liberation psychology explores how the past has shaped the present, taking into account how this impacts all of life. Social injustice shapes our current world. Derrida shares the need to be reflexive about our liberal democratic society in his work Spectres of Marx. Explaining that repressed aspects of our history remain with us, shaping the present, he points out that this …

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psychodynamic definition

Everything you need to know about psychodynamic psychology

Published by Michael Kinsey, Ph.D.

Psychodynamic meaning / Psychodynamic definition The American Psychological Association Defines psychodynamic theory as: “a constellation of theories of human functioning that are based on the interplay of drives and other forces within the person, especially (and originating in) the psychoanalytic theories developed by Sigmund Freud and his colleagues and successors, such as Anna Freud, Carl Jung, and Melanie Klein. Later psychodynamic theories, while retaining concepts of the interworking of drives and motives to some degree, emphasize the process of change and incorporate interpersonal and transactional perspectives of personality development.” APA Dictionary Characteristics of Psychodynamic theory There is an unconscious As much as we want to be self-governing, rational beings, we mostly are not.  Starting from this assumption allows for a coherent understanding of why people act either irrationally and/or in ways that hurt us more than help us.   Most of the time we don’t have good reasons why we act the way we do.  The unconscious mind helps to explain this.  Consciousness has influence over things.  In fact, the subjective experience of consciousness does an …

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Identity, Space and Time: Acknowledging Social Injustices in Psychotherapy

Identity, Space and Time: Acknowledging Social Injustices in Psychotherapy

Published by Nicci Attfield

A contextual approach to psychology acknowledges the struggles people face within the social environment. From this perspective, an individual is not only influenced by internal forces, thoughts, or feelings. Instead, a person responds to his or her social environment. Social norms and beliefs determine how a person can act in any given situation. This means that a person’s roots influence the routes they can take and the opportunities open to them. Social marginalization can result in mental health challenges. Without recognizing social injustice, an individual may be blamed for their own struggles and forced to adjust. Why is it important to acknowledge social context? Some aspects of identity can lead to people feeling disempowered. This can be due to racial identity, disability, gendered identity, national identity, deaf identity, sexualities, class, health and illness. Sometimes, aspects of identity may combine to create layers of struggle. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie shares the complexities of raced identity in Americanah: “The only reason you say that race was not an issue is because you wish it was not. We all …

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Ecopsychology definition | Theodore Roszak

What is Ecopsychology?

Published by Nicci Attfield

Ecopsychology sees human psychological wellness as connected to ecology. From this perspective, people are both a part of, and in relationship to, the more than human world. Andy Fisher explains that the capitalist world leaves people feeling ashamed of who they are. This is because people constantly have to strive to become more. As a result, people feel unhappy and disconnected from each other and the environment.  When people reconnect to the more than human world, they feel a deep sense of peace. As people come to their senses they feel at home both in their human bodies and in the natural world. They begin to feel a sense of belonging to the world. They are also able to access powerful feelings and emotions. This leads to deep healing. How was Ecopsychology Developed? The conceptualization of ecopsychology began with the work of Robert Greenway, a writer for Abraham Maslow. Greenway came from the academic lineage of pioneering ecologist Walles T. Edmondson. He discussed his idea that “the mind is nature, and nature, the mind,” with his mentors Michael Breen, Deborah Tannen, Joel …

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Link between Narcissism and Erectile Dysfunction

Uncovering The Surprising Link Between Erectile Dysfunction And Narcissism… And What It Reveals About Impotence Treatment

Published by Bex April May

Erectile dysfunction and narcissism are two psychological ideas which, when you experience them, can consume many other aspects of your life. But, you might be surprised to learn that these phenomena, though on the surface seemingly totally separate, might actually be related.  Interestingly, understanding this relationship can also be the key to treating both concerns with therapy, too.  Clinical psychologist and author, Michael Kinsey, Ph.D., has noted a definitive link between the two in his patients. “In my clinical practice, I have often seen erectile dysfunction occur alongside hypermasculine displays of narcissism,” he confirms. Although erectile dysfunction tends to be a problem experienced later in life, Dr. Kinsey explains that the seeds for it are planted in the environment men have grown up in. “The foundation for later problems, including getting and maintaining erections, can be built when men have been reared in a macho environment,” Dr. Kinsey says, “Some features of such an environment include where there has been punishment for signs of vulnerability (which is viewed as a weakness), where they have experienced …

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