FAQ

Q: Does psychoanalytic therapy focus only on childhood trauma?
A: It can focus as much on the past as it does on the present, regardless of the presence or absence of any trauma. 

Q: If I understand the root cause of my problem, will it then be resolved?
A: Insight and knowledge alone does not necessarily drive or maintain change. Although a fresh insight about an old problem might feel and be revolutionary, and may indeed inspire some action, new thoughts about old patterns do not in themselves become whole new patterns. If you are trying to only say the "proper" things and contain your whole life experience in a box or a label, then you run the risk of intellectualising your difficulties. There needs to be a “working through”, where new perspectives and positions are tested out gradually – and therapy offers a space where new paths forward can be tested out until something “sticks”.

Q: What is the unconscious, and why is it important?
A: The unconscious refers to aspects of ourselves we are not fully aware of (desires, beliefs, values, conflicts) and which may shape us in ways we don't fully grasp. The term unconscious is an abstraction that may help account for why we suffer the way we do. It might be helpful to be open to the possibility that one does not know everything about themselves and that we may embellish our truths in order to keep ourselves consistent, loved, secure, and safe.