Therapy
One of the things I like best about "The Sopranos" (the new season is starting in March, woo-hoo!) is the continuing saga of Tony's visits to his therapist, Dr. Melfi. When I sit there watching it, and see him fiddling with his shoe, or looking up at the ceiling and sighing, and her sitting there just staring at him, waiting for him to speak, I'm struck by how similar it's been to my own interactions with therapists/counsellors. One of the most disconcerting things about therapy is that you are responsible for about 85% of it. The therapist is there simply to guide you along, and offer insights.
In the past few years, I've taken therapy very seriously ... meaning I've switched from my previous mode of therapy, which was self-directed through self-help books ... to actual, sitting-there-awkwardly, "therapy". How therapeutic it's actually been is still unknown. It's definitely clarified a lot of things for me, made them undeniable. The most beneficial aspect of it, I found, was just the ability to speak openly to someone without fearing any consequences. So often, what I have to say to the people closest to me, is either not welcomed or heavily contested. So you can imagine the relief I feel when I just get to spew whatever it is that's on my mind ... that is, whenever I get over the first few awkward moments of, "Uh, what do I say now? I don't really feel like talking, let him/her start."
In my dream life, I would be a psychologist. I would be the one sitting across from someone waiting to hear them rip themselves open and expose their inner pain, and then hopefully, soothe them or comfort them. Maybe one of these days, I'll be in a position where I feel emotionally healthy enough to be able to advise other people on how to live their lives the way they are meant to be lived. It's what I'm aiming for, anyway.
In the past few years, I've taken therapy very seriously ... meaning I've switched from my previous mode of therapy, which was self-directed through self-help books ... to actual, sitting-there-awkwardly, "therapy". How therapeutic it's actually been is still unknown. It's definitely clarified a lot of things for me, made them undeniable. The most beneficial aspect of it, I found, was just the ability to speak openly to someone without fearing any consequences. So often, what I have to say to the people closest to me, is either not welcomed or heavily contested. So you can imagine the relief I feel when I just get to spew whatever it is that's on my mind ... that is, whenever I get over the first few awkward moments of, "Uh, what do I say now? I don't really feel like talking, let him/her start."
In my dream life, I would be a psychologist. I would be the one sitting across from someone waiting to hear them rip themselves open and expose their inner pain, and then hopefully, soothe them or comfort them. Maybe one of these days, I'll be in a position where I feel emotionally healthy enough to be able to advise other people on how to live their lives the way they are meant to be lived. It's what I'm aiming for, anyway.
posted by emily pound at 9:32 AM
2 Comments:
Sopranos rule... its been so long I have already been through withdrawal and fear the immersion and then decompression which will come when the attenuated season comes to an abrupt halt and we must again resume the vigil for more. Melfi and Tony's sessions are wonderful because it is clear that both of them are grudgingly getting much out of their times together. The dynamic is like a keg of gunpowder, ready to be set off with any stray spark.
In terms of hoping to be a therapist, I'd merely warn you to be careful what you wish for. Our own problems are unavoidable, many insoluble. What makes you think that other people's problems will be susceptible to your solution, and even if you have a suggested solution that the person in therapy will either agree with your solution, follow it or encounter new and greater problems because your solution actually makes their lives more miserable. I'm not suggesting that you're not sufficiently smart, empathetic or creative. Rather, nobody ever tells someone the whole truth and decisions made on incomplete data are always subject to disaster due to faulty assumptions, changing circumstances and the usual human foibles... so.. will it be more depressing to hear other people's problems to add to yours if you can't solve their problems either?
I just love The Sopranos. And I know what you mean about the "climatic-anti-climactic" thing that'll happen when the new season starts, and ends. Isn't this new one supposed to be extra-long or something?
I understand what you're saying about being careful what I wish for as far as being a therapist is concerned. I'm sure that if I did end up being a therapist, it would open a whole new host of problems and dilemmas. But then, that's the same with everything. I'm sure there would also be positives, where I might have clients or patients who do take my advice and do get better. But I know what you're saying. I'm really an idealist at heart, and that's a dangerous thing to be in this day and age.
Post a Comment
<< Home