What is Depth Psychotherapy?
The goal of depth psychotherapy is to bring some of what is unconscious into conscious awareness. You might be wondering why this has any importance to your mental health. To a depth psychotherapist, the most effective way to grow and develop is through awareness. If we don’t understand what drives our behaviors, our reactions, and our motivations, we stand little chance of changing or improving our lives and relationships. Knowledge and awareness provide access to choice and self-determination.
Conscious Awareness
The National Institute of Health in 2005 reported research by cognitive neuroscientists that demonstrated we are conscious of only about five percent of our cognitive activity. The other 95 percent of our brain activity occurs without our conscious awareness. Most of our decisions, actions, emotions, and behavior occur without us even recognizing that we are deciding, acting, feeling, or doing.
For example, when you learned to drive, you were aware of all the many activities that had to happen to start the car, move the car, steer the car, use your mirrors to see around you, and react to what you were seeing. Over time you gradually categorized all of these steps into what you are now consciously aware of as driving. The steps became automatic and likely happen today without conscious awareness.
Unconscious Reactions
Let’s take a different, slightly more emotional example. Perhaps you remember the first time you ever rode a bicycle. Maybe you were 7 or 8 years old and an older sibling was teaching you how to master this valuable skill. You might have taken a fall, scraped up your hands and knees, and cried. Your sibling might have walked you and your bike home. Maybe they said they’d take you out tomorrow to try again, and shared that they didn’t get it on their first try either. Or maybe they called you names and made fun of you.
Whichever reaction was the norm between the two of you was likely unconscious to either of you. This memory is likely stored in your unconscious today. You probably don’t remember anything about that day at all, except how you felt when your sibling either encouraged or ridiculed you.
Now, decades later you try mountain biking for the first time. You long ago mastered riding a bike, but haven’t been on one for many years. You have your first fall. Whatever your reaction, it comes from all of your many experiences up to that point in your life. Maybe you show yourself compassion and get up, dust yourself off, and get back on the bike. Or maybe you get frustrated, think you are incompetent, and decide that you are not cut out for mountain biking. Clearly, there is a benefit for you to recognize how a childhood experience has an unconscious influence on your thoughts and (re)actions today.
The Tip of the Iceberg
Sigmund Freud, the father of psychoanalysis said “The mind is like an iceberg, it floats with one-seventh of its bulk above water.” He described three levels of consciousness – conscious, preconscious, and unconscious.
Conscious Mind
What we are aware of at any given moment is held in the conscious mind. For example, I’m aware of my keyboard under my fingertips, the words appearing on the page as I type, and a faint twinge of hunger in my belly.
Preconscious Mind
The preconscious mind holds memories or thoughts that are easily accessible with a little effort. It’s the stuff just under the surface of our conscious awareness. For example, you are not presently thinking about the address of your childhood home, but now that I have mentioned it you can probably easily remember it.
Unconscious Mind
The unconscious mind holds all the information and experiences of your lifetime that have been forgotten or repressed. Even though you are unaware of this information in the present moment, it continues to influence your thoughts, feelings, and behaviors.
The Value of Engaging With the Unconscious in Depth Psychotherapy
To extend Freud’s metaphor, depth psychotherapy values exploration of the vast unconscious that lies beneath the water. Accessing this depth can be illuminating to understanding your seemingly inexplicable reactions to certain things. It can help you understand your ways of dealing with stress, sadness, pain, joy, love, hard work, etc. It explains why you continually find yourself in the same type of relationship or pattern of behavior.
Depth psychotherapy at Rezak Therapy is a supportive approach to better understand yourself and make more informed choices in your life. Clients often report a resulting sense of personal empowerment from this type of therapy.
Better Understand Your Unconscious Mind With the Help of Depth Psychotherapy in Pasadena, CA!
Are you yearning to uncover the depths of your true self? Embark on a transformative journey towards authenticity through depth psychotherapy in Pasadena, CA. Discover the power of introspection, healing, and self-discovery as you navigate the intricate layers of your psyche with compassionate guidance at Rezak Therapy. Take the first step towards reclaiming your authentic identity and living a more fulfilling life. Follow these three simple steps to get started:
Schedule a free 15-minute consultation to see if Depth Psychotherapy is right for you
Begin meeting with a skilled depth psychotherapist
Start connecting with your true self!
Other Services Offered at Rezak Therapy in Pasadena, CA
At Rezak Therapy, we’re here to help you align with your most authentic self. So in addition to Depth Psychotherapy to help you find your true self, we also offer services for those struggling with depression and anxiety, couples looking to explore their connections, and The Artists Way Group which is a 12-week adventure of artistic discovery and personal exploration. For more on depth psychology and our other services check out our blog!
