Love's Executioner

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Irvin Yalom in’ Love’s Executioner’ is nonfiction that tries to present existential approach to therapy of ill cancer patients. According to Windy Dryden, this story Irvin Yalom’s intention for writing this book was primarily to “discover methods deepening an existential approach to therapy” (Dryden, p. 47). This is because Yalom personally believed that many therapists employ many methods using existential insights. These insights are drawn from coherent, closely controlled and wide-ranging therapeutic approach. Irvin Yalom in’ Love’s Executioner’ Dryden further explained that “the existential approach is a valuable, effective psychotherapeutic paradigm, as rational, as coherent, and as systematic as any other (Dryden, p. 47). Psychodynamic according to Cohn is often used loosely but it supports Walrand Skinner’s definition of psychodynamic as relating to a theory of interacting mental forces, operating within the psyche (p. 1). Cohn noted that psychodynamic is rooted in the psychoanalysis (p. 1). Book Genre: Autobiography, Counselling, Health, Medicine, Memoir, Mental Health, Nonfiction, Philosophy, Psychiatry, Psychology, Science, Short Stories, Social Science, Social Work

This basic and fundamental concept of existential psychodynamic and psychoanalysis has some significance in the application of Neuro-linguistic psychotherapy. As what Cooper and Seal have stated, that NLP is not a therapy but a methodology in the counselling of patients with deviant and disrupted behaviour. We may conclude therefore that neuro-linguistic psychotherapy is a good and effective method of counselling that could be utilized after a thorough study of a particular case has been done using existential and psychoanalysis. Dr. Helmut Jelem and Mag. Peter Schutz in their article about Neurolinguistic Psychotherapy have stated clearly the similarities and difference between the two concepts both theoretically and in practice. On the other hand, Asaf Rolef Ben-Shahar found differences in terms of theory and/or presuppositions. Psychotherapy is a well known type of counseling which is associated to psychoanalysis popularized by Sigmund Freud and other behavioral theorists whose work focused on behavioral analysis. Existential Psychotherapy came out in the work of four psychiatrists, they are: Karl Jaspers in Germany (1951, 1964), Ludwig Binswnger (1946, 1963), Medard Boss (1957, 1962, 1979), and Victor Frank. Emmy Van Deurzen in her article entitled “Existential Psychotherapy” explained that existential psychotherapy can only be truly existential if it involved the cultural, social, political and ideological context of a person’s existence. Deurzen noted that existential approach is a holistic approach examining the human condition and tries to figure out and investigate the individual’s experienced (Deurzen). Jalem, Helmut & Schutz, Peter. Neuro-Linguistic Psychotherapy (NLPt). http://www.nlpzentrum.at/nlptarteng.html When Yalom first met Thelma, he disregarded 20 years of experience/evidence at the outset that Thelma was a poor candidate for psychotherapy. He may have ignored his “hunch” not to treat Thelma because she did present to him in crises and he wanted to help her as she was so vulnerable. It’s important to note that all clients are vulnerable when they embark on therapy. This hunch Yalom had does seem like a negative at the onset.Existential psychotherapy, psychodynamic principles and practices and neuro-linguistic are all basically therapeutic approaches which deal with human experiences, human behavioural patterns and verbal and non verbal reactions about the different problems the patients encounter and the impact of these experiences in their lives. Bateman, A. Pedder, J., 2000. Brown, D. Introduction to Psychotherapy: An Outline of Psychodynamic Principles and Practice. Routledge Our academic experts are ready and waiting to assist with any writing project you may have. From simple essay plans, through to full dissertations, you can guarantee we have a service perfectly matched to your needs. View our services Anthony Bateman, Jonathan Pedder and Dennis Brown noted that psychodynamic is based on the provision of a setting in which a person may begin to reconcile with this disowned aspects of himself, his experience (Bateman, Pedder and Brown, p. 63). They pointed out that the setting for this process is the relationship with the therapist, which without it, psychodynamic therapy cannot begin. They confirmed Cohn’s findings that dynamic psychotherapy had begun with Freud and psychoanalysis (p. 96), which utilizes three different meanings and functions. First, it is technique for investigating unconscious psychic life; second, it refers to theoretical body of knowledge built up on the basis of such observations; and third, it is used to describe an intense method of psychotherapeutic treatment.

Discuss the therapeutic process and therapeutic alliance as case studied in Irvin Yalom’s Love’s Executioner. Is the therapy working? Explain.

Existential model of psychoanalysis as explained by Ben L. Thomas, Sally Hardy, and Penny Cutting, focuses on the person’s experience in here and now with much less importance of the person’s past (p. 25), and as per existentialists are concerned, they believe that people despite of so many choices to choose, people tend to avoid being real which made them to offer in to other people’s demand. In the same way, in the rationalization pertaining to psychoanalysis, most of deviant or disrupted behaviours of adults are traced in their childhood as explained in psychoanalytic theory of Sigmund Freud. Thus, to summarize the concept of existentialism and psychoanalysis, the authors presented a common idea that can help patients. Psychoanalysis theory believes that “objective observation of human behaviour was a great contribution of the psychoanalyst, as was the identification of a mental structure (Thomas, Hardy and Cutting, p. 21). On the other hand, existential therapeutic processes “focus on the encounter” (p. 25); this encounter according to the authors is the meeting of two or more persons and appreciation of the total existence of each other, which is a great help to the person concerned to accept and understand his or her experiences in the past and to live fully in the present (p. 25).

Gerald Corey, 2008 Theory and Practice of Counselling and Psychotherapy, 5 th Edition, U.S.A., Brooks/Cole Publishing Company. Schapira, Sylvie 2000. Choosing a Counseling or Psychotherapy Training: A Practical Guide. Routledge Sue Cully and Tim Bond 2004, Integrative Counselling Skills in Action, London, Sage Publications Ltd. To summarize, the concept of existential and psychoanalysis, to apply in the therapeutic concept, requires the counselling session some amount of time to be given to the patient to ‘communicate him or her self’ including his or her past; by communicating one’s thought, the patient finds some comfort and releases tension caused by irritating circumstances of the past. Carl R. Rogers, 1967, On Becoming a Person, a therapist’s view of psychotherapy, U.K., Constable & Robinson Ltd.

Yalom himself felt guilty at the end of the treatment and he felt his belief that “he could treat anyone” let him down and embarrassed himself professionally. However, Thelma did not throw any blame on Yalom and remained secretive with the Research Group about the details of her therapy which certainly did not point the finger of failure at Yalom as a therapist, which leads the reader to believe that Thelma did not think the therapeutic process or therapeutic alliance was a failure. Thelma is a very interesting case though and there are several factors in the story which leaves you wondering if Thelma was just a person vulnerable to being fixated (she cannot accept the loss of Matthew) but this may not be a conscious thing. Her age is also important as she’s thinking of “the meaning of her life” and what’s it all about. As the reader I wanted to “fix” Thelma and this made me realise that it also brought out an exaggerated sense of responsibility in me – this is possibly from bringing up my kids as a single parent. Thelma was having a need met by attending therapy and at the end of the six months, there was no mention of suicide in the Research Report, she was happily meeting Matthew for coffee every month or so and her psychological issues and depression had improved. It certainly seems like the therapeutic process and therapeutic alliance did work. Bateman, Pedder and Brown noted that there had some attempts to compare and contrast existential psychotherapy with psychodynamic practice and with other types of psychotherapy, but nothing substantial has come up yet. Therefore, this paper can only compare these two therapies in the light of their similarities and origin.

Supplemental understanding of the topic including revealing main issues described in the particular theme;Jalem and Schutz further emphasize that another contrast between the two therapies is that the neurolinguistic psychotherapy uses analogue presentation and externalization of inner realities which are often found in practice (par. 16). Jo Cooper and Peter Seal in their article in the Sage Handbook of Counselling and Psychotherapy said that Neuro-linguistic Psychotherapy is “not in itself a therapy but can be used therapeutically and can be remarkably effective” (Cooper and Seal as cited in Feltham and Horton, p. 329), because it has some components and methodology that are proven efficient especially in dealing with patients. Thus, it is still significant to relate the fundamental concept of existential psychoanalysis in dealing with patients associate with the neuro-linguistic psychotherapy. Feltham, Colin & Horton, Ian (compiler) 2006. The Sage Handbook of Counseling and Psychotherapy. USA: Sage Publications