Psychotherapy

For someone seeking the help of a therapist, the worst nightmare is an old-school shrink, steeped in the antiquated theories and practices of psychoanalysis, who, week after week, sits there and nods, interjecting occasionally, but generally relying on the therapeutic value of the patient's act of talking itself. More modern, progressive behavioral approaches were intended to rectify this -- they introduced structure, goals and homework. The unfortunate truth, however, is that these approaches are only helpful with some problems (addiction, for example, or communication issues) but patently ineffectual for others (existential paralysis, dealing with a chronic illness of a loved one). Sure, any therapist regardless of approach can help gain some insight, but in the latter cases, the best advice they can generate are platitudes along the lines of "needing to make a leap of faith" and "focusing on the positive." But they offer no instruction on how to do it. A reasonably intellectually sophisticated patient doesn't need a psychologist for this -- reading Kierkegaard is sufficient, and a whole lot less expensive.

Any therapist worth her salt, however, is a very good listener and empathizer -- she is professionally trained to be those things, in fact. So, paradoxically, though she is telling the patient to focus on the positive, the therapy session in fact becomes an excellent venue for the patient to focus on the negative instead, making it completely counter-productive.