This Jungian Life Podcast

Having mixed feelings, or strongly opposing feelings is a normal occurrence in human life. We can find ourselves in a quandary about big decisions, upcoming life events, or experience being stuck without quite knowing why. Deb, Joseph, and Lisa consider various facets of ambivalence: anxiety around foreclosing options and missing out fear of regret over a possible wrong choice, or inability to raise complexes and shadow elements into consciousness. All aspects of the personality need to be allowed to dialogue and have it out with one another. Instead of complicating matters and adding to stasis, this process releases energy for movement in life. We can come to accept the certainty of uncertainty—and find our life-giving psychic wellsprings.   The Dream: I was walking on a cobbled street looking for a store where honey was sold. I was looking for honey to heal (however, I don't know what was that I needed to heal). I entered into the store through what seemed to be the back door. Inside, I saw wooden shelves with glass mason jars full of different-colored honey on them. The room was rustic and had a dim light, though sunrays illuminated it. One of my great aunts from my mother's side, whose name is C., was there working, filling up bottles with honey. She greeted me and was happy to see me as she always is, and the owner of the place, whose face I don't remember, came to me and told me the honey would help me heal. He gave me honey. I think I ate it because it was for me to taste; I don't remember clearly. However, I do remember he also told me to cover my body with honey, especially over my arms, chest, belly, face and hair, so he poured some honey on my hand (I think it was the left hand), because the hand was the most effective way to cover my body, according to him. I did cover. The honey had chunks of honeycomb in it. The owner told me to eat the honeycomb chunks, so I grabbed a honeycomb chunk I had in the left side of my neck with my right hand, and ate it. Its taste was delicious.   References Jung, C.G. Aion (Volume 9ii, Collected Works) Harari, Yuval Noah. Sapiens, HarperCollins, 2015. 

This episode, inspired by the new album by the Korean band BTS, explains and amplifies the Jungian concept of the persona. Like the cornea of the eye, persona both shields us and makes opening up to the world possible. In ancient Greek theater, the actors wore masks that identified their roles, or personae. Similarly, we adjust our outward presentation to others according to the appropriate roles we play in the workplace, with neighbors, or close friends and family. A persona that is too rigid can give one a center that is too determined by outside values and influences; a persona that is not solid enough can result in poor adaptation to the outer world or one that can be swept away by incursions from the unconscious. Altogether the persona is the social archetype and represents a compromise between adaption to social realities and individuality.    The Dream: My wife and I are in a kitchen, or someplace with wooden cabinets and soffits, and wooden counters. It might not be a kitchen. There’s this large wooden head standing on the counter. It’s larger than a human head, elongated, and stylized like an Easter Island head but more handsome, no huge ears, and carved in more detail. The head says things. Periodically, not like a conversation. I notice that the things it’s saying are very articulate, and it's very charming. My wife is making something out of plastic. It’s a rigid container or sheath that fits the head exactly. We try to distract the head so that it doesn’t object, but he doesn’t notice as we lower him gently into the plastic casing. It just keeps talking, on and off. Finally, we screw the lid on top. We can still hear a muffled talking. I worry if he can breathe.

The podcast explores the concept of the personal shadow and its impact on our lives. It discusses the development of the shadow in childhood and the challenges of integrating hidden aspects of ourselves. The hosts examine shadow dynamics in the fairy tale Snow White, discuss steps towards shadow integration, and reflect on the symbolism of a dream involving a metal box.

People who are chronically late create relational problems with others and generate negative consequences for themselves, from embarrassment and guilt to loss of friendships or jobs. Chronic lateness evidences a split between consciousness and the unconscious: while the ego may feel distressed about lateness, the unconscious may be expressing an unmet need and deriving a benefit from lateness. That is why self-help strategies such as setting multiple alarm clocks and allowing extra time for travel seldom solve the problem of chronic lateness or feel satisfying. Lisa, Joseph, and Deb discuss possible unconscious motivations for lateness, including its role as an inelegant effort at individuation. The dream: I begin the dream in a giant mall-like building. It stretches as far as I can see. There are no stores or other people. There are only dozens of escalators at different levels leading different places, much like a multi-story maze. I find the place exciting in its expanse. I next find myself leaving the building through an outdoor walkway which leads to a little cabin surrounded by plants, trees, and grass. There are 5 or 6 other people here, all of whom I consider friends. Suddenly, I'm aware I need to fetch something from the basement of the giant building. Problem is, I need a key. Everyone has a key, except I lost mine. There's an extra key in the cabin, but I'm told it's possessed and I shouldn't use it. However, whatever it is I need from the basement is tremendously important, so I decide to grab the key and go. I venture back to the building and make my way up and down many escalators, finally finding the basement. I don't remember anything about the basement, only that I find what I'm looking for. I'm excited as I make my way back to the cabin. However, once I reach it, my vision becomes entirely blue. Yellow words flash up on what looks like a blue screen, though I don't know what the writing says. This blue screen disappears quickly, and what's left is a purplish-grey screen with a black orb in the bottom right corner. I understand the orb to be an eye, which watches me intently. I wake up with my heart racing.

One of the issues clients bring into the therapeutic consulting room is dissatisfaction with the state of their marriage or partnership. Although this dilemma often takes shape as bipolar, it represents a challenge to engagement with deep, defended parts of self and relationship. Joseph, Lisa and Deb make it clear they are not focusing on issues like abuse or addiction, but the more subtle yet substantial ways in which people can feel dissatisfied. Partners often hold deep aspects of the other’s shadow; for example, if one person has a fear of abandonment the other may have an equally strong fear of engulfment. They discuss stages of marriage / partnership, from romantic to parenting to empty nest, and the ongoing need for evolving relational awareness, especially in discerning the difference between individual complexes and relational problems.   The Dream: I feel chunks missing from my molars on the bottom left, and spit it out into my hand, It’s three pieces of different teeth plus one full tooth. I look in the mirror and there is no tooth missing but the broken pieces match up. My mouth is like Gollum’s and my teeth in front are shifted right and are thin and pointed like vampire teeth.

Dive into the captivating world of precognitive dreams, where listeners share personal experiences that blur the lines between dreams and reality. Discover how these nocturnal visions can serve as emotional preparation for life’s changes, revealing connections to the unconscious and collective awareness. The discussion also delves into the psyche's vast landscape and the significance of dream symbolism, exploring how challenges can lead to personal growth. Embrace the mysteries of dreams as windows to deeper insights about identity and belonging.

Dive into the fascinating world of therapy as the hosts explore the complex dynamic between analysts and clients. They discuss energy exchanges during sessions, likening the process to an alchemical transformation. Personal anecdotes shed light on the emotional connections formed, highlighting the significance of dreams and open dialogue. The bittersweet nature of therapy endings is examined, reflecting on the growth experienced by both therapist and client. With a fairy tale analogy, they elucidate the multifaceted personas of therapists and the delicate balance of emotional presence.

Everyone shops—we have access to an astonishing choice of products. Internet shopping has multiplied our range of options beyond what nearby retail stores may have to offer. Desired items range from mountain climbing trucks to gold jewelry to highly specialized cookware items. What are we seeking for our inner selves as we shop for outer objects? For some, utilitarian objects carry libido, whereas for others shopping is an aesthetic, adventurous, relational, or aspirational experience. Joseph, Deb and Lisa explore the possible personal meanings of shopping.   The Dream: Winter. I'm in a remote cabin with a group of young people. Cabin is old and empty, with holes in the walls, and freezing drafts going back and forth. I feel terribly out of place, unsure who are these young people, and why I'm here with them, in this god forsaken place. Under the floor we find a frozen body of an old man: white beard, white hair, calm face as if in deep contemplation. We don't know who he is. Suddenly, a swarm of reptiles coming at us - strange snake-like chimeric creatures. Their attack is vicious. I have a clay tablet in my hands and I use it as a shield against them. Suddenly, the attack is over. I look at my clay tablet and I see that where the reptiles attacked there is a writing in the ancient language that I wish I'd understand but I don't. I want to leave but the young people are begging me to stay. I open the door and find myself face to face with an old and gorgeous winter forest. My heart aches with longing to walk into the forest, and I decide to stay.

Preoccupation and obsession with food–a condition called orthorexia--can take the form of the quest for health and purity, with rigid rules about food categories, such as the need for all-organic ingredients or omitting food groups such as dairy, sugar, and gluten in the absence of identified physiological intolerances. This overall effort to banish anxiety can take the form of an implicit bargain (eating “right” guarantees health), a strong need for ego control, elitism, specific community values, and banishing shadow by projecting it onto “bad” foods. The person may be also be seeking connection with the archetypal, or religious realm that has become concretized around food. The Dream: I am in a large multilevel food court in a mall which is very empty. I'm carrying a tray of food and I'm looking for my mom who I know is somewhere in the food court and I want to sit and eat with her. As I walk through the food court I become distracted looking at the food stalls. One stall, in particular, catches my attention, through a window behind the service counter I see a bustling kitchen scene, many chefs cooking, lots of steam and smoke and fire leaping into the air. I want to eat the food from this stall. As I'm looking through the window at the kitchen, I realize the window is a TV screen and the kitchen scene is just a video. I awake.

Estrangement from members of one’s family and others takes place far more often than seems commonly acknowledged. Estrangement involves psychologically cutting-off, repressing, and defending against connection with another who has come to be experienced as “all bad.” People may move away geographically, refuse to talk to a certain person, or simply give someone the “cold shoulder.” Joseph, Lisa and Deb discuss the importance of setting appropriate boundaries with others and understanding that estrangement is also an internal phenomenon. The Dream: I see a middle-aged man fixing a fence.  The dogs that are in the yard with him are behaved -- they are not trying to go through the big opening in the fence.  Then the man is inside a house fixing the trim on a wooden doorway. I "know" him -- and I ask, "Will you treat me?" There is a deep feeling of acceptance and he says, "We will start tomorrow." I go off to get ready for tomorrow.