albatross: the wounded healer
An albatross is the weight we carry, like the bird hung around the mariner’s neck in Coleridge’s poem. This page is about something I believe sits underneath good therapy: the helper has carried weights too, and working through our own is what lets us meet someone else in theirs.
who we are beneath the roles we play
(an archetype explored by depth psychologist Carl Gustav Jung)
It describes the phenomenon wherein the suffering that the “helper” undergoes, assimilates, and works through, cultivates a lived empathic understanding of the distress of the “helped.” Which is the same distress! Ah, humanity.
This diminishes the perceived divide between the two parts, and acknowledges our innate interconnectivity, who we are beneath the roles we play. In other words, beyond our personas, beyond the appearance of seeming separateness, we are unified, one.
Can we embrace the drama, fully immersing in our given multi-dimensional, ever-changing roles, without getting too identified with the characters we portray? Let’s give it a go!
The Path Is The Goal. The Only Way Out Is Through. There’s No One Out There But Us.
Transmute the Albatross! How can our Heavy Weight become our Unbearable Lightness of Being– or at least gain momentum in that direction?
ADHD · men’s issues · young adults · anxiety · depression · life transitions · self-esteem
just because it’s uncomfortable/hard doesn’t mean it’s bad/wrong
If something you’re carrying feels heavy, we can start with a conversation.
Or call (510) 214-2646