Psychodynamic/psychoanalytic Theory by Sigmund Freud

Psychodynamic/psychoanalytic theory by Sigmund Freud
PROP ONENT S Sigmun d Freud BASIC CONCEPTS OF THE THERAPY/ PREMISES/ ASSUMPTIONS/MAJOR CONSTRUCTS According to Freud, the mind can be divided into two main parts: 1. The conscious mind includes everything that we are aware of. This is the aspect of our mental processing that we can think and talk about rationally. A part of this includes our memory, which is not always part of consciousness but can be retrieved easily at any time and brought into our awareness. Freud called this ordinary memory the preconscious. 2. The unconscious mind is a reservoir of feelings, thoughts, urges, and memories that outside of our conscious awareness. Most of the contents of the unconscious are unacceptable or unpleasant, such as feelings of pain, anxiety, or conflict. According to Freud, the unconscious continues to influence our behavior and experience, even though we are unaware of these underlying influences. GOALS CHARACTERISTICS OR ROLE OF THERAPIES Psychoanalysis is not short-term treatment but its results are often lasting with positive effects that are usually realized in the years following the completion of treatment. Patients often use the couch, which fosters thinking, emotional experience, and self-reflection and allows for privacy and connection in equal measure. It is the power of self-understanding in the context of a facilitating therapeutic relationship that allows psychoanalysis to be effective. Patients are encouraged to attend frequent STRATEGIES/PROCESS/ TECHNIQUES INDICATION AND CONTRAINDICATION
-Freud said that the goal of therapy is simply to make the unconscious conscious." -Goals of psychoanalytic theory stress on changing thepersonality and character structure of the individualthrough resolving unconscious conflicts anddeveloping more effective ways of dealing withproblems, particularly in relationships. -Endeavored to understand and cure the human mind by means of hypnosis. -Primary goals of psychoanalysis include symptom relief, increased self-awareness, and a more objective capacity
Therapist neutrality: Neutrality means that the analyst does not take sides in the patient's conflicts, express feelings about the patient, or talk about his or her own life. Therapist neutrality is intended to help the patient stay focused on issues rather than be concerned with the therapist's reactions. In psychoanalysis, the patient lies on a couch facing away from the therapist. In psychodynamic psychotherapy, however, the patient and therapist usually sit in comfortable chairs facing each other. Free association: Letting the clients thoughts drift over events of daily life, past history and dreams (fantasies, dream analysis, childhood based conflicts, defensive/resistive operations) Free association means that the patient talks about whatever comes into mind without censoring or editing the flow of ideas or memories. Free association allows the patient to return to earlier or more childlike emotional states ("regress"). Regression is sometimes necessary in the formation of the therapeutic alliance. It also helps the analyst to understand the recurrent patterns of conflict in the patient's life. Rule of abstinence: Maintains a position of neutrality in therapist and allow the client to focus more freely on intra psychic matters (fantasies, dream analysis, etc) that block awareness of unconscious process by minimizing counselors actual presence. Deny clients wish for instinctual demands such
Indications Not all patients benefit from psychoanalytic treatment. Potential patients should meet the following prerequisites: The capacity to relate well enough to form an effective working relationship with the analyst. This relationship is called a therapeutic alliance. At least average intelligence and a basic understanding of psychological theory. The ability to tolerate frustration, sadness, and other painful emotions. The capacity to distinguish between reality and fantasy.

Conflicts between conscious and unconscious (repressed) material can result in mental disturbances such as neurosis, neurotic traits, anxiety, depression etc. The liberation from the effects of the unconscious material is achieved through bringing this material into the conscious mind (via e.g. skilled guidance). Id, Ego, Superego & Defences In his later work, Freud proposed that the human psyche could be divided into three parts: Id, Ego and Superego. Freud discussed this model in the 1920 essay Beyond the Pleasure Principle, and elaborated upon it in the The Ego and the Id (1923). The Id: According to Freud the id is the completely unconscious, impulsive and demanding part of the psyche that as a child allows us to get our basic needs met. This part of the psyche operates on what Freud termed the pleasure principle and its all about getting our every need and wish met with no consideration of the reality. The id seeks immediate gratification. The Ego: The ego is based on the reality principle. It understands that the Id cant always have what it wants because sometimes that can cause for selfobservation. -to bring unconscious mental material and processes into full consciousness so that the patient can gain more control over his or her life. sessions during the work week. This allows for continuity and intensity of focus and is not a measure of how severe the problem. Psychoanalysts are specifically trained to work in this intensive, dedicated manner in a close partnership with each patient. A wealth of experience and research has confirmed that this is the best way to help patients evolve and change in meaningful ways. Roles of the therapist: Become involved in unresolved conflicts of client Little selfdisclosure (fosters as having a more personal relationship with counselor. People considered best suited to psychoanalytic treatment include those with depression, character disorders, neurotic conflicts, and chronic relationship problems. When the patient's conflicts are long-standing and deeply entrenched in his or her personality, psychoanalysis may be preferable to psychoanalytic psychotherapy, because of its greater depth Contraindications Psychoanalysis is not usually considered suitable for patients suffering from severe depression or such psychotic disorders as schizophrenia, although some analysts have successfully treated patients with psychoses. It is also not appropriate for people with addictions or substance dependency, disorders of aggression or impulse control, or acute crises; some of
Therapeutic alliance and transference: Transference is the name that psychoanalysts use for the patient's repetition of childlike ways of relating that were learned in early life. If the therapeutic alliance has been well established, the patient will begin to transfer thoughts and feelings connected with siblings, parents, or other influential figures to the therapist. Discussing the transference helps the patient gain insight into the ways in which he or she misreads or misperceives other people in present life.
Interpretation: In psychoanalytic treatment, the analyst is silent as much as possible, in order to encourage the patient's free association. However, the analyst offers judiciously timed interpretations, in the form of verbal comments about the material that emerges in the sessions. The therapist uses interpretations in order to uncover the patient's resistance to treatment, to discuss the patient's transference feelings, or to confront the patient with inconsistencies. Interpretations may be either focused on present issues ("dynamic") or intended to draw connections between the patient's past and the present ("genetic"). The patient is also often encouraged to describe dreams and fantasies as sources of material for interpretation.
Working through: Working through is a process in which the new awareness is repeatedly tested and "tried on for

problems for us in the future. As such the Ego is the gatekeeper to the id, allowing it sometimes to have what it wants but always making sure that the reality of the situation is taken into account. The Super-Ego: By the time we reach age 5, Freud argued that we had developed another part of the psyche called the Super-Ego. This is the moral part of the psyche and regardless of the situation always believes we should do the moral thing. Some conceptualise this part as our conscience. transference) Maintain neutrality Help client understand historical roots of problem Much analysis around these projections Help client learn and achieve insights Therapists interpret what client says, does, and does not do size" in other areas of the patient's life. It allows the patient to understand the influence of the past on his or her present situation, to accept it emotionally as well as intellectually, and to use the new understanding to make changes in present life. Working through thus helps the patient to gain some measure of control over inner conflicts and to resolve them or minimize their power. Relaxed atmosphere: The client must feel free to express anything. The therapy situation is in fact a unique social situation, one where you do not have to be afraid of social judgment or ostracism. In fact, in Freudian therapy, the therapist practically disappears. Add to that the physically relaxing couch, dim lights, sound-proof walls, and the stage is set. Resistance: One of these clues is resistance. When a client tries to change the topic, draws a complete blank, falls asleep, comes in late, or skips an appointment altogether, the therapist says "aha!" These resistances suggest that the client is nearing something in his free associations that he - unconsciously, of course - finds threatening. Dream analysis: In sleep, we are somewhat less resistant to our unconscious and we will allow a few things, in symbolic form, of course, to come to awareness. These wishes from the id provide the therapist and client with more clues. Many forms of therapy make use of the client's dreams, but Freudian interpretation is distinct in the tendency to find sexual meanings. Parapraxes: these people may benefit from psychoanalysis after the crisis has been resolved.

A parapraxis is a slip of the tongue, often called a Freudian slip. Freud felt that they were also clues to unconscious conflicts. Freud was also interested in the jokes his clients told. In fact, Freud felt that almost everything meant something almost all the time - dialing a wrong number, making a wrong turn, misspelling a word, were serious objects of study for Freud. Catharsis: Is the sudden and dramatic outpouring of emotion that occurs when the trauma is resurrected. The box of tissues on the end table is not there for decoration. Insight: Is being aware of the source of the emotion, of the original traumatic event. The major portion of the therapy is completed when catharsis and insight are experienced. What should have happened many years ago - because you were too little to deal with it, or under too many conflicting pressures - has now happened, and you are on your way to becoming a happier person. REFERENCE/S: http://www.minddisorders.com/Ob-Ps/Psychoanalysis.html#b#ixzz2MHBkrdfe http://www.scribd.com/doc/40402157/Psychoanalytic-Theory-Presentation-1 http://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/PSYCHOANALYTIC+TREATMENT http://psychology.about.com/od/theoriesofpersonality/a/personalityelem.htm http://www.harleytherapy.co.uk/counselling/freuds-main-theories-psychoanalysis.htm http://webspace.ship.edu/cgboer/psychoanalysis.html http://www.findananalyst.org/psychoanalysis.cfm#psychoanalysis_differ

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Psychodynamic/psychoanalytic theory by Sigmund Freud