Carl Gustav Jung was a famous psychologist. He was born in Switzerland during the year of 1875. Born into a family of philologists, pastors, and mystics, he keenly observed human behavior. As an adult, Jung tried to conceptualize what he saw, which led to his association with Sigmund Freud. But, due to differences in viewpoints, the partnership didn’t end well. As an outcome or a response to Freud’s Psychoanalysis, Jung founded his own psychological approach—known as, Analytical (or, Depth) Psychology. His research and works further helped him develop ideas like, archetypes and the collective unconsciousness. (See below for details.)
Over the years, significant factors–i.e., Gnosticism, Alchemy, etc.–have contributed to the development of Jung’s ideas, including his followers. Here, we’ll discuss the fundamental aspects of Jung’s view and unfold its benefits for you. So, before you search for a Jungian Therapist, try to understand Jung in brief.
Development of The Jungian View
Jung worked on his ideas to devise a relationship between religion and psychology for many years. He saw the same human psychology in all religious perspectives. Thus, he used various tools to develop his conceptual understanding ranging from observation of his patients to consulting the writings of the old masters. Jung believed the ancient texts were necessary for a more profound knowledge of psycho-spirituality per the symbols of dreams, myths, and visions. Then for his patients, he conceived of methods, such as amplification, etc., to perform an in-depth analysis of human consciousness. According to Jung, people can re-discover themselves (instead of being lost) through their imagination for completion or wholeness.
His focus on finding a link between psychology and religion resulted in his Jungian view of depth reality—during his writings, talks, and psychotherapy.
Jungian View: Concepts
Carl Jung developed Jungian psychotherapy on the idea that one’s unconscious mind is the true source of wisdom. Often referred to as Jungian Analysis, it describes a thorough analytical approach that strives to unify the conscious and unconscious parts of the human mind for wholeness.
Therefore, let’s briefly discuss the core concepts of Jungianism:
Model of Psyche
Jung proposed that the human psyche comprises three components– Ego, Personal Unconscious, and Collective Unconscious. He defined these as:
1. Ego–
The conscious mind is aware of personal identity and one’s existence. This part of the psyche also processes one’s thoughts, feelings, sensations, and intuitions. It comprises your personality. It acts also like a door between the inner and outer worlds of the deep human psyche.
2. Personal Unconscious–
All the memories, either forgotten or repressed, form this part of the psyche. In Jung’s point of view, the ego and personal unconscious need to integrate for individuation to occur.
3. Collective Unconscious–
Jung envisioned a universal version of the psyche common to all human species. It is there in the deep unconscious of the psyche, where the universal archetypes reside and influence the ego.
Individuation
Individuation refers to the ego’s psycho-spiritual development and unification between itself and the collective unconscious. The purpose of individuation is to transform a person’s ego consciousness to become whole through the archetypes, and thus, they recognize their true self-worth.
Archetypes
Archetypes, universal energies of truth, are experienced by the ego from the collective unconscious in the form of images, places, or principles. In Analytical psychology, there are four main archetypes that exist. Here are the archetypes:
Persona
The Persona, such as a mask used in a Greek play, is a psychological performance we do for society. We desire social acceptance. Thus, it’s a psychological mask that hides our true selves, e.g., the shadow side.
Shadow Side
The Shadow Side consists of unlived energies and childhood pain that’s unresolved within the soul. The wounds of our soul reside in the unconscious, our personal history. Thus, complexes, meaning bad energies like pride or anger–spontaneously– influence our ego toward ourselves and others in a malicious way. The famous story of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde exhibits this shadow side in action.
Anima/Animus
In Latin, the feminine part or energy of the soul is known as, the Anima. The masculine part of the soul is, the Animus. However, the anima is–unconsciously–within man, whereas and the animus is just the same within women.
Self
The Self–e.g., Christ, Buddha, Krishna–is the greater archetype of one’s inner and outer totality, healthiness, holiness, etc. To gain these qualities or traits, per individuation, one’s ego (of daily consciousness) needs to ultimately achieve a psycho-spiritual relationship with the greater capital “S”, Self.
Significance of Jungian Therapy For You
Jungian therapy approaches the human mind differently than other therapies because it focuses on understanding what lies deeply beyond our visibility. It goes beyond the mere address of causes and symptoms to find the root cause of your problems. The Jungian approach helps one discover what the deeper problem is by having the patient keep a record of one’s dreams, realizing what myth is being lived out, visions, etc. to gain insight into the unconscious mind’s influence.
Once the Jungian therapist finds a way into your unconsciousness, they can better comprehend the pattern or shift in your behavior. As mentioned earlier, another important aspect of this therapy is individuation, which is the psycho-spiritual development of yourself as it gains wholeness through dreams, myths, and visions. This integration successfully helps you, and others, achieve mental health stability in life.
All In All
The theories and practices of Carl Jung are useful today. Its aim is to help you achieve an equilibrium state of mind, where your conscious and unconscious mind doesn’t contradict each other. Instead, Jung’s approach enables you to achieve harmony within the whole of your psyche. It is considered an effective treatment for anxiety, depression, and other related issues.
Overall, if you have been searching for a depression or anxiety therapist, Dr. Lancaster is available. He has many years of experience practicing Jungian methods, per his Gnostic-Jungian approach—known as, Gnostic Pneumatherapy. This approach to therapy profoundly helps Dr. Lancaster’s clients achieve a better sense of self. If interested, please get in touch to know more.
