With all this talk about making psychotherapy accessible and understandable,
I am eager to share with you this marvelous paper by Jonathan Shedler (same author of the psychodynamic efficacy paper I just shared). This one is called

“That Was Then, This is Now: Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy for the Rest of Us”

Shedler is very down-to-earth, clear as a bell, and easy to read. How refreshing for those of us (me!) who hate to read—especially the computer screen. I thought it might be welcomed by some of you SP members who are in the “helping professions,” both mental and spiritual helping, that is.

Here are some of the paper’s section titles, concepts succinctly and clearly presented:

-Unconscious mental life

-The mind in conflict

-The past is alive in the present

-Transference

-Defenses (closely related to resistance)

-Psychological causation

https://portfolio.du.edu/portf...foliofile?uid=149822

Enjoy!

Yes, he communicates well.

Many of the misunderstandings he notes are caused by the fact that outsiders understand the word "psychoanalytic" in a different sense than insiders. Certainly, to me, the word suggests the goal is analysis (for its own sake) rather than healing. But I think its up to the insiders, not the outsiders, to propose a better word.

Hi Derek,

I see what you mean. Psychoanalytic refers to a process that brings about healing, which is always the goal, even though it may sound more philosophical.