Inner-outer worlds

Human suffering is complex, and many psychological struggles reflect harsh living conditions. These mental challenges aren’t just personal issues—they’re signs of larger problems in society. In trying to understand the human mind, psychoanalysis cannot ignore these outside influences.

Focusing only on what’s inside a person, while ignoring the social environment, is like choosing not to see the full picture. Our inner lives and the world around us are deeply connected. A psychoanalytic approach that pushes social factors aside risks missing an essential part of the truth.

For real healing and insight, we need a complete view. Recognizing the impact of social conditions on mental health allows psychoanalysis to grow into a more inclusive and socially aware practice. This blend of the personal and social helps create a better way to address human suffering.

Further Reading

Parker, I. y Pavón-Cuéllar, D. (2010) Psicoanálisis y Revolución, Pólvora.

Challenging immediacy

In the whirlwind of our digital age, where immediacy reigns supreme, psychoanalysis emerges as a bastion of reflection. It proposes a concept revolutionary in its simplicity: the pause. This is not sterile inaction, but a vital space for the flourishing of deep thought, an oasis in the desert of hyperconnectivity.

This psychoanalytic pause invites us to slow down, to dive into the depths of our being. It's a precious time to unearth those uncomfortable, painful questions that are buried under the flood of notifications and the tyranny of constant productivity. In this space, our most intimate concerns can finally breathe, expand, and be examined with the attention they deserve.

By embracing this pause, we challenge the culture of perpetual availability. We recognize that the true richness of existence lies not in the quantity of immediate responses we can offer, but in the quality of the questions we dare to ask. Psychoanalysis reminds us that in the silence of the pause, we can find the seeds of a deeper understanding of ourselves and the world around us.

The shadow dance of devaluation

In the complex theater of human relationships, devaluation emerges as a psychic defense that reveals more about the devaluer than the devalued. This unconscious maneuver, where we diminish the other's worth, often masks a profound struggle with our own sense of inadequacy. Like a mirror that we shatter to avoid seeing our reflection, we attack the value in others precisely because it touches upon unresolved wounds in ourselves. The clinical experience shows us how this mechanism operates not as a conscious choice, but as a desperate attempt to manage unbearable internal tensions.

The paradox of devaluation lies in its attempt to build self-worth through the destruction of otherness. By creating a narrative where others are deemed less worthy, we construct an illusory pedestal for ourselves. Yet this victory is pyrrhic - each act of devaluation further entrenches our dependency on external validation, creating a cycle where we must continuously find new targets to maintain our fragile sense of superiority. This compulsive need to devalue becomes a prison of our own making, where authentic connection becomes impossible.

In the analytic space, we witness how this pattern of devaluation often stems from early experiences of not being seen, recognized, or validated in our own uniqueness. The challenge lies not in merely identifying these behaviors, but in creating conditions where one can safely confront these defensive patterns. Only by acknowledging our own vulnerability can we begin to see others in their full humanity, moving from the compulsion to devalue toward the capacity to appreciate the rich complexity of human difference.