Quote:
Originally Posted by archipelago
Therapy does make things worse. I don't think there is much doubt about that really in the sense that if you have never looked at your insides before and then start looking you are going to start seeing and feeling things that perhaps you had ways of keeping out of awareness. This unfortunately is the truth of other types of experiences that lead to a better way of handling things, such as getting sober or becoming mindful. And sometimes it hurts like the flames of hell. That is my experience. But my experience also includes hope, increased capacity to feel, better living, more freedom, becoming more real and authentic, and so on.
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Well Said archipelago, and I think that's in particular true of more deep kind of therapies and for bigger problems. Other times it is much less likely to make things worse even intially. One example is short term CBT. But a person who was abused in the past and has spent so much of life building up defense against memories and sensations, and has now gone for psychodynamic therapy, that person has to face tremendous pain and likely will get quite worse at the time.
I could not be the therapist to such a person. Don't know how caring therapists can do it. Can't imagine watching people who come to me in pain, be faced with much greater pain. I know the intention is to help them get better, but still, I can't watch the person go through that.