More Heartbreak, More Sadness

Just as I think that we cannot take in any more tragedies, senseless killings, continued animosities, extreme racism and terror attacks, we are struck again: Dallas, Orlando, Minnesota, Paris, Istanbul, and Nice. Some of these acts of violence are political terrorism. Some may be attributed to the result of untreated mental illness.  Some may be influenced by social structures.  And some may be the result of a combination of factors. We are constantly searching for ways to address the causes of these horrific acts of violence. We look for ways to deal with our own sense of powerlessness, to find common humanity in the face of terror, to understand and yet be vigilant.

Sometimes we feel that the problems are so huge, so global, so deeply rooted that we despair at our sense of personal, professional, and community helplessness. What can we do in the face of these continued indescribable events?  We search for meaningful answers and actions. 

The Chapter has as one of its priorities, written into the Strategic Plan: "promoting Racial Justice, Eliminating all Forms of Racism and Oppression." We search for ways to realize these goals, through our legislative priorities and continuing education programs.  Yet we feel there is much more to be done.

We are reaching out to you, our members, to help us identify creative ways of taking action.  We welcome your ideas and your offers of help as we search for action steps in the form of programs and submissions of articles for our monthly newsletter, FOCUS.  Let us come together as individuals and as a profession as we grieve these many losses.

Just For Fun

Every now and then I like to get playful with the serious parts of life and laugh at myself, my foibles, my judgments, and my blind spots. And here comes Holly Housman Friedman’s very thoughtful article in the October 2011 issue of FOCUS, about Psychoanalysis—“On Becoming a Psychoanalyst.”  And I had just about given up on that form of treatment or personal exploration as being outdated, overpriced and inaccessible.  But Holly made it come alive when she said, “It liberates patients from neurotic patterns, helps them make better choices, addresses the blind spots and moves them to  live their lives to the fullest potential.” Who would argue with that?  So I am encouraging all readers to take another look at what I thought was an antiquated method of treatment or education.  Pull out your October 2011 issue of FOCUS and get a refreshed view of psychoanalysis.

I took my interest to the next level when I was in New York a couple of weeks ago and went to see the longest running off-Broadway Play- Freud’s Last Session.  This was a ‘fictionalized’ session between Freud and C.S. Lewis after the war when Freud had settled in England.  The two hammered out their different points of view about religion, life, government, tyranny and love.  The dialogue was tight, pithy and substantive.  After the play, I had my own session with Freud, as you can see.  Just for fun

Carol J. Trust