Yesterday I finally finished reading Ann Radcliffe's Gothic Romance The Mysteries of Udolpho on the wonderful BookGlutton website. Ann Radcliffe was an English novelist who lived between the years 1764-1823. Encouraged by her husband to write, she published a few novels and some poetry during her life. The Mysteries of Udolpho is a typical Gothic Romance with the requisite young, innocent, and naive heroine who finds her true love only to be separated from him by avaricious relatives after her parents' death. I was surprised to read that Ann Radcliffe influenced other authors such as Alexandre Dumas, Victor Hugo, Sir Walter Scott, and Mary Wollstonecraft--all of them among my favorite authors. Considering Radcliffe's extensive descriptions of landscape, though, I shouldn't be surprised.
As I read, I couldn't help but think about Carl Jung's theory of Archetypes and especially the anima, or feminine archetype--the soul, and the animus, or masculine archetype--logic and reason, and their eventual union in a "Holy Wedding," or coniunctio, the union of opposites. One could follow the lovers in a typical Gothic Romance, assigning the role of animus to the male, and the role of the anima to the young lady. In order for a young boy to come to full maturation, he must first go on a quest and conquer the dragon, which is really the "terrible mother" (a negative aspect of the Great Mother archetype), and usually the "old king" (usually his father, or the "old man") must die. When the boy accomplishes this, he becomes the "new man"--i.e. he becomes the fully matured man he was meant to be. Gothic Romances usually do not contain a whole lot in the vein of illustrating this process (look to the Arthurian legends for this), but they do contain a lot about the maturation process of the innocent girl. In order for a girl to become a woman, she has to accomplish tasks, which usually involves a lot of waiting around for a man to come and rescue her. Archetypically, she is really working at those things peculiarly feminine, i.e. patience, nurturance, and love, while learning the masculine art of logic and reason. When the masculine traits of logic and reason are formed in her in a healthy manner (accomplished with the help of the positive aspects of her animus), there is a union of opposites--a coniunctio oppositorum. The trick is to be able to identify both the negative and positive aspects of the archetypes. The desired coming to consciousness, or adulthood, is also a process described in alchemy, in which the prima materia, having been split into various forms, finally comes back together in a "Holy Wedding," or conjunction--coniunctio.
The Mysteries of Udolpho is full of this process, but I think it would spoil the story for you if I outlined all this. Suffice it to say that Emily St. Aubert faces her negative Great Mother, in the aspect of her aunt, and suffers terribly under the avaricious and sadistic negative animus in the aspect of Montini who marries her aunt. Fortunately, there are plenty of the positive aspects of Emily's animus who come to her rescue and help her along her path to adulthood and happiness.
Once I got past the schmaltz of Radcliffe's romantic descriptions, I really liked this book. Actually, I learned a few things in the process, too. I recommend it to your attention.
*A Glossary of Jungian Terms
Showing posts with label psychology. Show all posts
Showing posts with label psychology. Show all posts
Thursday, July 16, 2009
Sunday, September 23, 2007
An American Epidemic?
Just lately, it seems, I've heard more people say they suffer, regularly or occasionally, from depression. I can speak only about depression in the USA, because I've never been out of the country. (I don't count that weekend foray into Nuevo Laredo more than 30 years ago.) My mind always wanders into the "why" of things. I can't help it any more than I can help breathing, even though it tends to irritate some people. Why is it that so many Americans are depressed? Is there some toxin in the polluted air that causes this? Is there some nutrient missing in the American "diet," or some element that inundates our system and fogs our brains and judgement? Is it the completely unrealistic portrayal of "the good life" in advertising? Is it the corporate expectation that everyone give their best 24/7 without room for being human and sometimes catching colds and/or just needing time to rest and re-create themselves?
While some conspiracy theorists might favor the polluted air and deficient diet thoughts, frankly, I believe that the cause of our depression lies in the expectations of the later two suggestions and their impossiblility of attainment. We believe, though, that not only are they possible to attain, they are expected. There is no room for human error or weakness in this society. Employers grudgingly give a day or maybe two (if he's generous) off if an employee gets the 'flu. Get real. Influenza is a killer, and makes its victim miserable with body aches and fevers for at least ten days. How is a person supposed to perform at all, much less at the eternally expected peak of perfection, when he is shivering from chills and fever? The employer would rather see on paper that he has good employee attendance rather than protect the majority of his workers from catching this contageous disease just because everyone is supposed to "be strong" and not "wimp out" when he is sick. How sick is that attitude?
Along with the totally unrealistic expectation of perfect health is the equally unrealistic expectation that everyone is to perform at peak skill and perfection at all times. This expectation resides not just with employers, but with the general populace at large, whether they realize it or not, and even in our own minds. If we're having a bad day at work, we're told to "snap out of it," or "get with the program," served with side innuendoes that nobody is irreplaceable. In our private lives, even our friends (and ourselves, too, truth be told) expect a "Martha Stewart" type of perfection in our homes, our hospitality, our socializing. Who has the strength to maintain that for any length of time at all, much less 24/7? Why on earth do we put so much value in what other people think of us, anyway? (But that's another story altogether.)
So, we run around like rats in a cage searching for that eternally elusive piece of cheese that will miraculously make us perfect so we can be happy. Happy about what? That other people approve of us? That we kill ourselves to promote some greedy employer's promotion of capitalism? Will we be happy that we have neglected our spouses and children and offered them up on the altar of social approval? How shallow can we be? If our happiness depends upon our being perfect in every way, and in gaining the sunny smiles of society's acceptance and approval; then it's no wonder we are depressed. We have set for ourselves an impossible task.
As an Orthodox Christian who hourly falls far short of perfection, I look at the world around me, and I'm sad. The level of suffering out there is overwhelming, and my heart literally breaks for all the people. I want to take them by the shoulders and look straight into their faces and say, "Wake up! Happiness is inside you, not outside of you." I read a little blurb recently that said, essentially, that if we are always dissatisfied with what we have, then we will always be unhappy. On the other hand, if we can learn to be satisfied with what we have, then we will be happy. That is so true. I feel so lucky to have the caring, understanding, and loving husband that I am privileged to say is mine. I feel so lucky that he has stayed with me through more "thick" than "thin" in our 37 years of marriage. I feel so lucky that he has worked when he was sick, when things at work were less than optimal, and come home to me every night to keep the bills paid, food on the table, and a good roof over our heads, and then pitched in with whatever "crisis" was going on the lives of our children. Heaven knows that there were many times that no one would have blamed him if he had thrown in towel. I am so lucky that all three of my adult children talk with me, share their lives, ask my opinion and advice on things. In spite of all my many, many faults, they have all become good, caring, productive individuals whom I am very proud to know. How can I be dissatisfied with all that and more?
Some Orthodox fathers say that depression is a result of sin, and they are right. But there is also a disease or dysfunction of the body that can, and does, cause debilitating depression. This type of depression can, and must, be managed with the help of a physician. It's not my purpose to say that all depression is "all in your head." No, not at all. I've had that one thrown at me far too many times to denigrate a person's experience that way. However, I am not qualified to address the biological side of depression. (I'm really not qualified to discuss anything about depression, or much of anything else, except my own experience of it.) For a good, comprehensive discussion of depression and modern psychology, read Fr. Stephen Fraser's essay here.
But I want to get back to this "depression is caused by sin" concept. When I first read about that, I was offended and appalled at the insensitivity of the writers. (There are many articles and books by Orthodox authors on this subject.) I didn't even finish reading the book, but put it down to gather dust. However, the idea stuck in my mind, and I've been turning it around in there for some years now. I am convinced that there is a type of depression that is biological in its genesis, and the sufferer of this type must take advantage of the services of a good doctor. However, I'm equally convinced that even this type of depression can be, and most likely is, aggravated by sin. I'm also convinced that a non-biological depression exists that most likely has sin as it's prime cause. How can this be?
I've done a bit of reading about this sin-as-cause concept, but not nearly enough to speak in any way authoritatively. I have thought a lot about it as it pertains to me, personally. My thoughts, briefly, are that the basic sin (or common denominator of all sin, if you will) is pride. There's no surprise there. To my mind, all of our unrealistic expectations about and for ourselves, whatever they may be (and they may be quite different from any expressed in this short meandering), have pride as their root cause--pride in our own capacity to govern and control our lives and feelings. We can't and don't "measure up," so we begin to think of ourselves as "not good enough," or (my favorite) "defective," or "inadequate." This type of thinking leads us to anger towards people and circumstances outside ourselves, and finally towards ourselves for being so weak, defective, inadequate, no good, etc. We become depressed. We sink into the bog and wallow until we hurt so bad we must do something about it. So, we find some poor, unsuspecting, caring soul and dump on him or her. Or, if we're lucky enough to have a good confessor (or an available priest at all), we dump it all on him. This is the best thing to do, if we can. After we've done the dumping, we feel better. The sun shines again, and we face the world with a smile on our faces. Until the constant barage of expected perfection, whether coming from our own minds or from society, takes its toll and we find ourselves in the bog of depression again. So the cycle continues. The trick is to break this cycle. But how?
Well, for an Orthodox Christian, availing ourselves as frequently as our circumstances allow of Confession and Communion is the only cure that heals, because this type of depression is an illness of the soul. This type of depression cannot be managed or healed by secular medicine or even therapy. Only the Church is the appropriate "hospital" for soul sicknesses.
In addition to availing ourselves frequently of the Mysteries, we must learn to be vigilant in our minds. We must learn to consciously become aware and recognize when these self-deprecating thoughts make their first appearance in our minds. The moment they first rear their ugly heads, we must learn to close the door of our minds and hearts to them. To do this, we simply refuse to entertain the thoughts when they appear. Metropolitan Hierotheos of Nafpaktos discusses this process very well in his book Orthodox Spirituality, or more specifically in his conclusion to this book in a section called "Praxis and Theoria."
This vigilance is no small or easy task. It's exhausting. It can also be frustrating to learn how often we allow ourselves access to destructive thoughts and feelings; which can lead to depression, because, of course, we should be better or stronger than that. As I said, it's not easy, but "practice makes perfect" as they say.
At the bottom of all this, we need to learn to rely on God and not ourselves.
"Put not your trust in princes, in sons of men, in whom there is no salvation."
While some conspiracy theorists might favor the polluted air and deficient diet thoughts, frankly, I believe that the cause of our depression lies in the expectations of the later two suggestions and their impossiblility of attainment. We believe, though, that not only are they possible to attain, they are expected. There is no room for human error or weakness in this society. Employers grudgingly give a day or maybe two (if he's generous) off if an employee gets the 'flu. Get real. Influenza is a killer, and makes its victim miserable with body aches and fevers for at least ten days. How is a person supposed to perform at all, much less at the eternally expected peak of perfection, when he is shivering from chills and fever? The employer would rather see on paper that he has good employee attendance rather than protect the majority of his workers from catching this contageous disease just because everyone is supposed to "be strong" and not "wimp out" when he is sick. How sick is that attitude?
Along with the totally unrealistic expectation of perfect health is the equally unrealistic expectation that everyone is to perform at peak skill and perfection at all times. This expectation resides not just with employers, but with the general populace at large, whether they realize it or not, and even in our own minds. If we're having a bad day at work, we're told to "snap out of it," or "get with the program," served with side innuendoes that nobody is irreplaceable. In our private lives, even our friends (and ourselves, too, truth be told) expect a "Martha Stewart" type of perfection in our homes, our hospitality, our socializing. Who has the strength to maintain that for any length of time at all, much less 24/7? Why on earth do we put so much value in what other people think of us, anyway? (But that's another story altogether.)
So, we run around like rats in a cage searching for that eternally elusive piece of cheese that will miraculously make us perfect so we can be happy. Happy about what? That other people approve of us? That we kill ourselves to promote some greedy employer's promotion of capitalism? Will we be happy that we have neglected our spouses and children and offered them up on the altar of social approval? How shallow can we be? If our happiness depends upon our being perfect in every way, and in gaining the sunny smiles of society's acceptance and approval; then it's no wonder we are depressed. We have set for ourselves an impossible task.
As an Orthodox Christian who hourly falls far short of perfection, I look at the world around me, and I'm sad. The level of suffering out there is overwhelming, and my heart literally breaks for all the people. I want to take them by the shoulders and look straight into their faces and say, "Wake up! Happiness is inside you, not outside of you." I read a little blurb recently that said, essentially, that if we are always dissatisfied with what we have, then we will always be unhappy. On the other hand, if we can learn to be satisfied with what we have, then we will be happy. That is so true. I feel so lucky to have the caring, understanding, and loving husband that I am privileged to say is mine. I feel so lucky that he has stayed with me through more "thick" than "thin" in our 37 years of marriage. I feel so lucky that he has worked when he was sick, when things at work were less than optimal, and come home to me every night to keep the bills paid, food on the table, and a good roof over our heads, and then pitched in with whatever "crisis" was going on the lives of our children. Heaven knows that there were many times that no one would have blamed him if he had thrown in towel. I am so lucky that all three of my adult children talk with me, share their lives, ask my opinion and advice on things. In spite of all my many, many faults, they have all become good, caring, productive individuals whom I am very proud to know. How can I be dissatisfied with all that and more?
Some Orthodox fathers say that depression is a result of sin, and they are right. But there is also a disease or dysfunction of the body that can, and does, cause debilitating depression. This type of depression can, and must, be managed with the help of a physician. It's not my purpose to say that all depression is "all in your head." No, not at all. I've had that one thrown at me far too many times to denigrate a person's experience that way. However, I am not qualified to address the biological side of depression. (I'm really not qualified to discuss anything about depression, or much of anything else, except my own experience of it.) For a good, comprehensive discussion of depression and modern psychology, read Fr. Stephen Fraser's essay here.
But I want to get back to this "depression is caused by sin" concept. When I first read about that, I was offended and appalled at the insensitivity of the writers. (There are many articles and books by Orthodox authors on this subject.) I didn't even finish reading the book, but put it down to gather dust. However, the idea stuck in my mind, and I've been turning it around in there for some years now. I am convinced that there is a type of depression that is biological in its genesis, and the sufferer of this type must take advantage of the services of a good doctor. However, I'm equally convinced that even this type of depression can be, and most likely is, aggravated by sin. I'm also convinced that a non-biological depression exists that most likely has sin as it's prime cause. How can this be?
I've done a bit of reading about this sin-as-cause concept, but not nearly enough to speak in any way authoritatively. I have thought a lot about it as it pertains to me, personally. My thoughts, briefly, are that the basic sin (or common denominator of all sin, if you will) is pride. There's no surprise there. To my mind, all of our unrealistic expectations about and for ourselves, whatever they may be (and they may be quite different from any expressed in this short meandering), have pride as their root cause--pride in our own capacity to govern and control our lives and feelings. We can't and don't "measure up," so we begin to think of ourselves as "not good enough," or (my favorite) "defective," or "inadequate." This type of thinking leads us to anger towards people and circumstances outside ourselves, and finally towards ourselves for being so weak, defective, inadequate, no good, etc. We become depressed. We sink into the bog and wallow until we hurt so bad we must do something about it. So, we find some poor, unsuspecting, caring soul and dump on him or her. Or, if we're lucky enough to have a good confessor (or an available priest at all), we dump it all on him. This is the best thing to do, if we can. After we've done the dumping, we feel better. The sun shines again, and we face the world with a smile on our faces. Until the constant barage of expected perfection, whether coming from our own minds or from society, takes its toll and we find ourselves in the bog of depression again. So the cycle continues. The trick is to break this cycle. But how?
Well, for an Orthodox Christian, availing ourselves as frequently as our circumstances allow of Confession and Communion is the only cure that heals, because this type of depression is an illness of the soul. This type of depression cannot be managed or healed by secular medicine or even therapy. Only the Church is the appropriate "hospital" for soul sicknesses.
In addition to availing ourselves frequently of the Mysteries, we must learn to be vigilant in our minds. We must learn to consciously become aware and recognize when these self-deprecating thoughts make their first appearance in our minds. The moment they first rear their ugly heads, we must learn to close the door of our minds and hearts to them. To do this, we simply refuse to entertain the thoughts when they appear. Metropolitan Hierotheos of Nafpaktos discusses this process very well in his book Orthodox Spirituality, or more specifically in his conclusion to this book in a section called "Praxis and Theoria."
This vigilance is no small or easy task. It's exhausting. It can also be frustrating to learn how often we allow ourselves access to destructive thoughts and feelings; which can lead to depression, because, of course, we should be better or stronger than that. As I said, it's not easy, but "practice makes perfect" as they say.
At the bottom of all this, we need to learn to rely on God and not ourselves.
"Put not your trust in princes, in sons of men, in whom there is no salvation."
Thursday, August 30, 2007
Agoraphobia
"Anxiety about being in places or situations from which escape might be difficult (or embarrassing) or in which help may not be available in the event of having an unexpected or situationally predisposed Panic Attack or panic-like symptoms. Agoraphobic fears typically involve characteristic clusters of situations that include being outside the home alone; being in a crowd or standing in a line; being on a bridge; and traveling in a bus, train, or automobile.
.....
The situations are avoided (e.g., travel is restricted) or else are endured with marked distress or with anxiety about having a Panic Attack or panic-like symptoms, or require the presence of a companion."
http://www.mentalhealth.com/dis1/p21-an02.html
I do have a bit of agoraphobia, which literally means "fear of the marketplace." However, I've never had, nor do I expect to have panic attacks. I just get very nervous when I'm outside the home and in a new place. For instance, today I took my car to the dealership for some routine warranty work (oil change, etc.). On the way home, I decided to stop at Shoney's for lunch, as I was hungry and it was after 11 a.m. I almost didn't turn into the parking lot. When I did get into the parking lot, I was about half out of the car when I had a sudden impulse to get back in and drive away. I didn't do it. I went in all by myself, which is tough enough to eat alone, and had a nice lunch. My agoraphobia is more about being in a place I've never been before. I have no trouble at all talking with strangers just like I've known them for years. It's the new place that bothers me. When I go into a store or restaurant, I see lots and lots of shapes and colors and it's always either too bright or too dark. Then there are the sounds, typical restaurant sounds or "WalMart" sounds. I'm inundated with stimuli! I feel as if I'm drowning in it. I can't focus on any one thing, or make heads or tails out of what's in front of me. If there's a line to go through, I can't find the end of it or where it's going. If there's an aisle to be negotiated, I can't see where it's going, or what's on the shelves--there's just too much of it all! And that blaring intercom they have at WalMart is horrible. Those employees who are allowed to make announcements should have voice modulation lessons before they're allowed near a microphone. I don't know why I'm like this. My husband says it's part of my dysautonomia. I don't know. I've not read anything about dysautonomia that would indicate that I'd have this trouble with visual and auditory stimuli. (When I was diagnosed with MVP about 15 years ago at the MVP Clinic in Bham, they told me I had dysautonomia, which sometimes comes with MVP.)
I don't have trouble meeting new people, though. There was a lady and I guess it was her husband sitting in the booth across from me at the restaurant, and she had on a Univ. of Kentucky tee-shirt. I don't know if a grandchild is a student there, or if she is from Kentucky. I wanted to catch her eye and comment on her shirt, since I'm from Kentucky, and it's nice to see someone from the "My Old Kentucky Home." However, I couldn't catch her eye, even when I saw her at the cash register. I tried to listen a bit to their conversation to see if they sounded "Kentucky," but I'm a bit hard of hearing which makes it well nigh impossible to hear in a restaurant, so that was no good. Come to think of it, my not being able to catch her eye might be evidence that she is from Kentucky. Kentuckians generally do not talk to strangers, or make eye contact with them. I've just learned to do that by living in the deep south for the past, oh, 35 years now, I guess.
I never get to eat beef, because my husband quit eating red meat decades ago, so I had sweet tea, a nice salad, roast beef, gravy, mashed potatoes, kale, and apple betty with a huge spoonful of whipped cream! Now, I did watch my portions, and I did not take a biscuit or a corn muffin, because mainly I didn't want to come away in pain from being too full. I thoroughly enjoyed that meal.
I really do need to get myself out more often. I'll be out again tomorrow, though. My husband has the day off from work, and we're going "into town" to the court house to apply for passports, and he promised me that we'd have lunch at Miller's Drug Store, which has renovated itself to reflect the 1950's and we haven't seen it yet. I hope we do that.
So I guess considering today's outing, and tomorrow's (however it turns out), I'll have my fill of "being out" for a while, especially after this coming 4-day weekend! (Lord, help me!)
Y'all take care.
.....
The situations are avoided (e.g., travel is restricted) or else are endured with marked distress or with anxiety about having a Panic Attack or panic-like symptoms, or require the presence of a companion."
http://www.mentalhealth.com/dis1/p21-an02.html
I do have a bit of agoraphobia, which literally means "fear of the marketplace." However, I've never had, nor do I expect to have panic attacks. I just get very nervous when I'm outside the home and in a new place. For instance, today I took my car to the dealership for some routine warranty work (oil change, etc.). On the way home, I decided to stop at Shoney's for lunch, as I was hungry and it was after 11 a.m. I almost didn't turn into the parking lot. When I did get into the parking lot, I was about half out of the car when I had a sudden impulse to get back in and drive away. I didn't do it. I went in all by myself, which is tough enough to eat alone, and had a nice lunch. My agoraphobia is more about being in a place I've never been before. I have no trouble at all talking with strangers just like I've known them for years. It's the new place that bothers me. When I go into a store or restaurant, I see lots and lots of shapes and colors and it's always either too bright or too dark. Then there are the sounds, typical restaurant sounds or "WalMart" sounds. I'm inundated with stimuli! I feel as if I'm drowning in it. I can't focus on any one thing, or make heads or tails out of what's in front of me. If there's a line to go through, I can't find the end of it or where it's going. If there's an aisle to be negotiated, I can't see where it's going, or what's on the shelves--there's just too much of it all! And that blaring intercom they have at WalMart is horrible. Those employees who are allowed to make announcements should have voice modulation lessons before they're allowed near a microphone. I don't know why I'm like this. My husband says it's part of my dysautonomia. I don't know. I've not read anything about dysautonomia that would indicate that I'd have this trouble with visual and auditory stimuli. (When I was diagnosed with MVP about 15 years ago at the MVP Clinic in Bham, they told me I had dysautonomia, which sometimes comes with MVP.)
I don't have trouble meeting new people, though. There was a lady and I guess it was her husband sitting in the booth across from me at the restaurant, and she had on a Univ. of Kentucky tee-shirt. I don't know if a grandchild is a student there, or if she is from Kentucky. I wanted to catch her eye and comment on her shirt, since I'm from Kentucky, and it's nice to see someone from the "My Old Kentucky Home." However, I couldn't catch her eye, even when I saw her at the cash register. I tried to listen a bit to their conversation to see if they sounded "Kentucky," but I'm a bit hard of hearing which makes it well nigh impossible to hear in a restaurant, so that was no good. Come to think of it, my not being able to catch her eye might be evidence that she is from Kentucky. Kentuckians generally do not talk to strangers, or make eye contact with them. I've just learned to do that by living in the deep south for the past, oh, 35 years now, I guess.
I never get to eat beef, because my husband quit eating red meat decades ago, so I had sweet tea, a nice salad, roast beef, gravy, mashed potatoes, kale, and apple betty with a huge spoonful of whipped cream! Now, I did watch my portions, and I did not take a biscuit or a corn muffin, because mainly I didn't want to come away in pain from being too full. I thoroughly enjoyed that meal.
I really do need to get myself out more often. I'll be out again tomorrow, though. My husband has the day off from work, and we're going "into town" to the court house to apply for passports, and he promised me that we'd have lunch at Miller's Drug Store, which has renovated itself to reflect the 1950's and we haven't seen it yet. I hope we do that.
So I guess considering today's outing, and tomorrow's (however it turns out), I'll have my fill of "being out" for a while, especially after this coming 4-day weekend! (Lord, help me!)
Y'all take care.
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