One of the most common approaches in the treatment of neurosis is what Sigmund Freud called the “reductive” approach. The reductive attempts to answer the question “why?” Why do I engage in this destructive behavior, or suffer from these debilitating emotions? Freud’s clinical work led him to conclude that most of these issues were rooted in childhood trauma. Substance abuse counselors, too, must wrestle with the question of “why?” But however important that question may prove to be, we think we must also ask “what for?” and “where is this leading me?”
While C.G Jung never explicitly disavowed Freud’s methodology, he was more interested in exploring the symptom in symbolic terms. The field of substance abuse treatment, however, has largely favored the reductive approach. Depth recovery is essentially Jungian in that it seeks to find the symbolic meaning of the addiction. It seeks to understand what the addictive behavior is trying to bring into conscious awareness that the ego will not allow or accept?
Over time, substance abuse treatment has become largely routinized. Most of it revolves around the identification of “triggers” and relapse prevention. Simply put, treatment lacks spontaneity or creativity. This is highly problematic because it leaves no room for the psyche to express itself. From a Jungian perspective the absence of spontaneity forecloses the possibility for healing.
Depth Recovery Counseling cultivates spontaneity. It does this by utilizing dreamwork, imagination, and contemplative practice in the treatment process. This brings client and counselor into an energetic field, or imaginative reverie. A collaboration of this type tends to be much deeper and reflective experience for both parties. Depth recovery assumes that for healing to occur, both client and counselor must be engaged in the process of transformation. Healing occurs between.
Treatment must morph and improve if it is to meet the addiction pandemic. At Rockland Recovery we pride ourselves on taking an innovative and dynamic approach to recovery. We seek to not only to help our clients answer the “why” of addiction, but also to explore the deeper meaning of their condition. We have learned that this approach fosters the kind of willingness and energy that is indispensable to lasting recovery.
