In the first part of this series on the Wisdom of the Dream conference put on by the C.G. Jung Institute of Boston, I presented Jungian Analyst William Ventimiglia’s talk, “Dreams: The Unconscious Has A Voice.” In part two, I looked at Robert Stickgold’s talk titled, “Sleep, Memory, and Dreams: What Does It All Mean?” […]
Author Archives: Jason E. Smith
Wisdom of the Dream, pt. 2: Sleep and Dreams
In the first part of this series reviewing the Wisdom of the Dream conference put on by the C.G. Jung Institute of Boston, I presented the main details of the talk given by Jungian Analyst William Ventimiglia on Jungian dream interpretation. In this second part, I will be looking at the presentation given by Robert […]
Wisdom of the Dream, pt. 1: Jungian Dream Interpretation
A Serpentine Journey Recently, I had the pleasure of attending a conference put on by the C.G. Jung Institute of Boston and held at Brandeis University called The Wisdom of the Dream. This conference brought together a diverse group of presenters to examine dreams from a variety of perspectives with the stated goal to “enrich […]
Seeing Into the Blind Spots: The Compensatory Meaning of Dreams
Recently, a client with whom I have been working for quite some time, asked me why she was having such trouble understanding the meaning of dreams that she attempted to work on by herself. In our sessions together, we often worked with her dreams and she found the experience illuminating and helpful. She had a […]
Jungian Therapy and the Restoration of Meaning
The Undiscovered Self In 1957, Carl Jung wrote an essay titled The Undiscovered Self which addresses “the plight of the individual in modern society.” It is a powerful and important work that, in many ways, incorporates and outlines many of the main insights of his whole life’s work. The heart of Jung’s thesis is that the […]
Inner Vision: How Paying Attention to Images Heals
Attention to Images in Jungian Therapy One of the elements that distinguishes Jungian therapy from some other forms of psychotherapy is its respect for and attention to images. In Jungian psychology, images are understood to be the primary mode through which the activity of the psyche is revealed. Images are not simply reflections of […]
Love Even This: The Road to Self-Acceptance
“I just wish I could stop feeling this way.” Nicole often struggled with bouts of anxiety that were not only a cause for frustration but a source of deep shame. She hated that she had these experiences and considered it a weakness. For Nicole, the concept of self-acceptance was as foreign as they come. Therapy […]
Who We Are: A View From the Unconscious
We are more than we know. More than we even suspect. That is the fundamental insight of depth psychology — that who we are extends far beyond who we believe ourselves to be. We are not only what we consciously experience of ourselves, but we are also a great many things of which we remain […]
Going Beyond Oneself: Healing in Jungian Therapy
What Heals? The first task of a therapeutic approach is to clarify its perspective on what constitutes psychological healing. For many people this might seem self-evident. Surely it is obvious that for a person suffering from depression, healing means eliminating the symptoms of depression? Likewise for anxiety and the myriad conditions that people bring to […]
Understanding and Overcoming the Fear of Success
“How did I ever let myself end up in this position?” Ken sat heavily on the couch in my consulting room across from me, looking thoroughly weighed down by his life. He was overcome by sadness, regret, frustration, and a feeling of helplessness. His friends had encouraged Ken to get treatment for depression, but he […]