“Perception and identification are subjective, objectivity is an illusion.”
Moscow-based clinical psychologist Alena Spakovskaya
Having successfully and not without enthusiasm passed the first quarter of the 21st century, “not again, but again” we ask questions about the structure of …. there are no teslas, no biorobots, no universe…. but ourselves, people or “human beings,” as modern legislation calls us.
Who are we and what are we? Why do we cry today and laugh at the same thing tomorrow?
Psychology is still stigmatized and feared. Many people, especially the older generation and those of pre-retirement age, often find it difficult to seek help from a psychologist and may even be afraid of one.
In choosing a psychologist, I recommend that you be guided not only by word of mouth (because everything is subjective), but also by common sense. Just like when choosing a family doctor and pediatrician for a child. Choosing a psychologist is different from choosing a hairdresser.
In my opinion, a psychologist is like a surgeon, but he does not operate at the body level, but at the mental or even psychic level. It is very important to find out what method the psychologist works with. It is as important as reading any doctor’s prescription and figuring out what it contains: antibiotics, cortisone or homeopathy….Today Moscow-based clinical psychologist Alena answers my questions.
– I am very passionate about psychology and have read a lot about cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). Now I am under the impression that the now very popular Gestalt therapy, body-oriented therapy, psychoanalysis were all CPT.
-No, they were not. From the perspective of assessing the human psyche, all approaches are similar to CPT, but they differ in their emphasis on working with the patient.
For example, psychoanalysis works with the unconscious, Gestalt with the emotions. Body-oriented therapy works with the body.
CBT works with thoughts. Feelings, decisions and actions (or lack thereof, such as procrastination) are consequences of how and what one thinks. This is good news, because by changing your thinking, you can also change your behavior and well-being for the better. Being a structural person, I chose CBT as my main approach to work, leaving aside for the time being my beloved existential-humanistic approach. CPT is popular all over the world, in some countries it is included in insurance, although this does not mean that the other methods are less effective.
– Here is an example from my childhood that can explain to our readers, with a simple example, how cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) works. As a teenager, I studied at the Moscow Choreographic School. In addition to the classical disciplines, we also had theater classes.
In one such class, the play activity consisted of passing an object or image to each other, describing it in the same way as the previous participant. It was therefore a memory exercise; you just had to remember what the other person had said about the object. However, in the course of the exercise, participants were constantly changing the description of the objects or pictures, sometimes adding new words or even details to the description that did not exist at all or were very different from the previous description. And these were clearly not memory problems.
– This is a good example. Here there was subjectivity in the children’s perception of the object and image. Objectivity in general is an illusion. Another similar example. Visual and narrative stimuli in cinema: a love scene will cause sadness in some people, joy in others, and perhaps anger, if the viewer is experiencing a personal drama, perhaps they will not be able to finish a romantic comedy because of mental and personal interpretation.
– And here is an example with the painting of Mona Lisa, when a person is shown the original and then a joking fake, where instead of the lady poses a dog, or there is no one, just the background of the picture. And the experiment participant still recognizes the portrait of Mona Lisa in the picture, even though there is no one in the picture, only the background. Is this also CPT?
– And in this example of “Mona Lisa” there is an element of respected Gestalt therapy (determination of what is perceived as the main and what is the background). But in a broad sense it is a subject of CPT, individual perception and interpretation, all true.
-Is it possible to get rid of psychological problems through domestic practices?
-Of course it is possible to improve one’s condition by practicing alone. One can improve one’s condition, but one cannot change one’s life, one cannot cure … One cannot come out of a coma….
I think everyone benefits from working with a psychologist, who not only solves specific problems, but also develops people, improves their relationships with others and gives meaning to life.
I was very happy to share with the readers of my site this tet-a-tet with my psychologist. And “the force will be with you” to start working on yourself and infinitely improve your life!
