THE SCIENCE OF PSYCHOLOGY
The science of psychology differs greatly from the myths that exist from time to time, such as the belief that only people with serious mental disorders go to a psychologist or that psychotherapy is simply a friendly conversation between two individuals.
On the contrary, psychology is the discipline that is interested in the inner world of the individual as well their surrounding environment, and it deals with the emotions, thoughts, internal processes, emotional dysfunctions and disorders. It is the science that seeks to identify and treat those psychological issues that have become disturbances, and ultimately lead to problematic behaviors, often resulting in dysfunctional lifestyles. Simply put, is a step to get to know ourself better, resolve internal conflicts, unknot past hurts and disappointments, and make sure they do not impact the choices we are making today negatively.
Reasons To Start Psychotherapy
There are multiple reasons that someone might decide to go to psychologist. It could be a particular mental health issue like depression, something very simple as to achieve a personal goal, or a current challenging life situation. It might even stem from a desire for self-discovery. Regardless of the motive, understanding and tending to our own well-being can help us to overcome any problems in the present and can also serve as a form of prevention for the future.
Just as a physical injury to the body’s core can render us paralyzed, a psychological problem or a trauma to the soul can affect our entire existence. The suffering in such cases may not always manifest overtly, but this is what makes it even more insidious and aggressive. The wound we neglect has the potential to become infected and gradually spread throughout our being.
At this point, we must understand that trauma is not measurable and is not something specific. It is difficult and quite complex to evaluate, measure and categorize the severity of an event since its impact and consequences on each individual may not always yield the same result. Each one of us reacts and perceives the stimuli around us according to our own personal experiences and past patterns. Moreover, when we talk about a traumatic experience, we are not necessarily referring to an event of monumental proportions, a catastrophe or something obvious. It can simply be a detail in our lives, something we experienced that uniquely affected us in a way that created a psychological difficulty or a problem. In other words, these are events that as they pass through the cognitive processing of the mind—sometimes consciously and other times unconsciously—can influence the individual in one way or another or they may not affect them at all.
Benefits From Psychotherapy:
The science of psychology is teaching us not to neglect what is happening underneath it all, but to unravel it. There are various benefits of therapy with a long lasting effect. This is because it changes the perspective of viewing things, and equips us with the skills to deal with future challenges efficiently.
It is worth noting that the psychological issues we often face are not always something negative. Instead, they can motivate us to change what displeases us, to evolve and to take our lives to a new level of greater well-being and prosperity. When the symptoms of a psychological problem do not cause clinically significant subjective distress or impairment in social, occupational, or other important areas of functioning, then we can benefit from it by using it as a map to identify the underlying cause. The role of psychotherapy is very important at this point as it can help us initially detect and then address the problem at its root.
When life feels like a rat race:
One thing is certain: we all navigate through psychological ups and downs, with some wounds being larger and others smaller. Some have healed, while others remain open and from a young age, we are well-trained to hide or ignore them. We wake up every morning, start our daily routine, complete tasks, attend to our responsibilities, and we forget the most crucial aspect of our lives. To take care of ourselves. The important thing for each one of us is to understand that if at any point we feel that we need help, it is perfectly normal. It takes courage to admit the truth and bravery to face it.
“I work too much,
I eat too much,
I drink too much,
I run excessively,
I enjoy things less,
I worry excessively,
I rest too little,
I abandon those I love,
I chase momentary pleasures,
I don’t feel happy,
I create an ulcer,
I disregard risks,
I fail to realize what is important and what is secondary,
I live dependent on the opinions of others,
…and I deny it every time I realize it.”
(Jorge Bucay)
Often, unconsciously, we evaluate our life, achievements, and successes based on what other people around us have. The more we think they have, the less we enjoy and appreciate our own life. The correlation of our satisfaction with the life of those around us can unquestionably be a trap. When we leave in this way, we risk being trapped in a vicious cycle. We must understand that happiness is purely a personal matter and responsibility.
But in order to escape from this patterns we must first reveal the underlying mechanisms. The patterns we follow are old established habits that we use to stick to without realizing what we are actually doing. Those habits are formed in unconsciousness. As a result our actions come under the direction of our automatic and non conscious mind. The more we repeat these behavioral patterns less likely we will ask ourselves what we are doing and why we are doing it. We are much more than our conscious self and the key to discover what lies beneath is awareness.
In a society that moves at an incredibly fast pace, constantly demanding of us to run even faster, to fight even harder, to achieve even more, to become examples of admiration – by what criteria, one might wonder – it may seem insignificant to pause, silence the noise, and listen to ourselves. What do we truly want? Where are we heading to? Why are we going there? Who leads our lives?
Amidst this rat race as we are struggling to emerge victorious, somewhere along the way, we leave room for these vital questions to remain unanswered and ultimately, at the end of the road, the only person we are trying to defeat and crush is that forgotten self.
We could liken psychotherapy to a pit stop in this race. A stop to regroup, to reveal ourselves, to change what is not working and to equip in order to continue our journey, but now holding the steering wheel of our own life.
“Until you make the subconscious conscious
it will direct your life
and you will call it faith.”
(Carl Jung)