Bruno

Discussion (6) ¬

1. 
   Kona

   February 3, 2017 at 10:49 am | #

   I’m a fix-it type guy, the one everybody comes to for repairs of all kinds, from sticky windows to balky computers. But I tend to just get things working, never mind how they went wrong or the deeper problems that might lie within. And if a light box improves one’s mental status, I would leave it at that. The duct-tape-and-baling-wire approach to psychology. “Paper it over and move on” has always worked for me.
2. 
   Christopher

   February 3, 2017 at 11:06 am | #

   Well, that’s an interesting thing about psychology (which is what i was referring to in my blog here). For the first leg of psychology, it was the Freudian model, focused on getting at the “deeper issues” and of facing or resolving. But in recent years the focus has been on effectiveness, and the realization that if you want to be a happy and health human being, going over and over old issues is often a bad way of doing that. :)
3. 
   Peter Rogan

   February 3, 2017 at 8:37 pm | #

   The point of going over old stuff, for both Freudians and Jungians, was confrontation with the buried psychological cause, unearthing it as one might a weed, and watching it wither in the light of the sun. I have to say I favor this approach over the always-smiling guy who just shows up at work one day with an automatic and starts shooting. Some things you can bury and they’re muffled. Some just send their roots deeper, and they grow blacker and stronger. And burst from your skin.
4. 
   Christopher

   February 3, 2017 at 8:41 pm | #

   I agree, for some people with some issues, yes.

   But mostly, I don’t THINK they’ve found unearthing actually helps, and for most issues I don’t THINK they’ve found that the issue takes roots and grows like that.
5. 
   Peter Rogan

   February 6, 2017 at 9:27 pm | #

   You could argue that it’s what you do after unearthing that counts…. but I’m a strong believer in the power of light, lumens as well as psychological. Knowing what it is you’re dealing with is better than not knowing and struggling not as well as you might. Monsters from the Id will always operate on their own rules, exposed or not, but if you don’t arm yourself with vision, you are at the mercy of a thing blind, hungry, and inimical. No thanks.
6. 
   Jeffrey Nonken

   February 7, 2017 at 8:44 pm | #

   This is somewhat simplistic, but…

   Between houses (and girlfriends) I spent a couple months in my parents’ garage. Afterwards, mostly moved out: just a couple boxes’ worth of stuff left. No big deal, right? Only every time I went to pack it up, I’d grind to a halt and be completely paralyzed. After a while I’d give up and wander off.

   This happened a few times. Then one time I stopped and asked myself, WTF was going on? Why was I completely unable to function? And it occurred to me that the whole time I was living there I was badly depressed, and every time I stepped into the garage being depressed was all I could remember.

   And just like that, it lost its hold on me. Sure, it took a minute or two to shake it off, but I had exorcised the demon. It had no more power. I finished packing and walked away with a satisfied smile on my face.

   Not saying it will always go like that, nor be so easy. But yeah, I tend to agree that fixing problems requires understanding the root causes. Treating the symptoms is less effective and can sometimes do more harm than good.