How psychotherapy is changing our culture

There is no doubt that the psychotherapy industry in Russia is flourishing. If only 2% of the country’s population were interested in the services of psychotherapists and psychologists, then with the onset of the pandemic, the demand for them increased significantly. The pandemic probably contributed to this: people were locked at home, without entertainment and going out to people, alone with their relatives, themselves and their problems.

But it’s not just the pandemic. Today, people are much more likely to understand psychotherapy as self-development and an “investment in yourself.” Going to a psychotherapist is like going to a gym. Only instead of “Faster, higher, stronger” this “club” has other slogans: “Improve the quality of life!”, “Outsource personal problems!” It is not for nothing that many corporations include payment for a course of psychotherapy in their health insurance package.

Why is this new way of life attracting more and more people? In part, this is because we tend to imitate the advanced people in our environment. It is not difficult to do this, because everyone has something to tell a psychologist or psychotherapist. You do not need to be seriously injured or have a mental diagnosis to do this. And of course, such a surge of interest in psychotherapy could not but affect the culture. Therefore, much that we encounter today in everyday life has changed in one way or another under its influence. And the culture reacts to this trend first.

Cinema and theater: new heroes, new approaches

Art has always reacted sensitively to changes in life (remember the series from the times of self-isolation, which were filmed using cameras on laptops). It is not surprising that the popularity of psychotherapy is also reflected in it: films are constantly built around the main characters, psychotherapists, but even more often their characters work out their psychological problems with specialists.

If you want, you can also become the main character of your own film, which will be made based on your current experiences: in particular, the Stage project creates psychotherapeutic films and gives people the opportunity to tell their story publicly.

As for the theater, stage performances often strongly resemble work in the methods of psychodrama and constellations. Thus art becomes psychotherapy, and psychotherapy art. For example, Danil Chashchin’s performance «The Usual End of the World» is a pure study of the theme of death.

Literature: analyze it

In modern literature, there are also enough stories about psychotherapists, the psychological problems of heroes and their attendance at therapeutic sessions. But psychotherapy has taken a special place among specialized literature, so that sections of psychology in bookstores are constantly updated with new products.

“What to do when you don’t know what to do”, “NOT YOU”, “Your own psychologist”, “The subtle art of not giving a damn” … Without printed “tips” about how we should live and what decisions to make, how to take care of ourselves, how to build relationships with others, we definitely won’t stay. Indeed, today, not only a partner, but even wardrobe items, they offer to choose consciously — and they tell you exactly how this should be done in order to maintain psychological balance.

Folk art: existential ditties and memes

Psychological difficulties have ceased to be something unambiguously bad and condemned. In a sense, they can even help us… help. And it’s not just that by recognizing and exploring them, we get to know ourselves better. We know for sure that if we are able to pay for the services of a specialist — which few people can afford — then everything is not so bad. And that means we’re really good at it!

Of course, this is a joke statement. But it is known that laughter is an excellent medicine for the soul, it gives us strength, and therefore it is completely logical that people began to look for the funny in such a serious topic as psychotherapy. And the new trend was reflected in folk art no less vividly than in cinema or literature.

Here are some ditties you can find on the Internet:

“My dear therapist, I sometimes think:

“Should I buy a dress for me?” But then I’ll change my mind.»

***

“My psychologist and I — do not spill some water,

I gave half my salary — now I’m not hysterical! ”

***

“A psychologist explained to me about my subpersonalities,

Only now there is absolutely no cash in the pocket. ”

***

“My dear does not abuse and does not harass me,

and ditties relevant with him does not work.

***

“I worked out a sexual experience for a long time,

It turned out that it is treated with antibacterial!”

***

“I closed all the gestalts, worked through the injuries.

And now I’m sitting like a fool and swinging bots.

Okay ditties, jokes and pictures. But this year there were also «valentines» with a psychological bias. Here is how the most conscious confessed their feelings to each other:

• «I feel that you accept me unconditionally.»
• «My inner child likes you.»
• «With you I will write a new scenario of life.»

New words: invent it!

Terms from the field of psychology have gone beyond its boundaries: now they are known and used by many. Who has not heard about awareness, bullying, passive aggression, frustration, neurosis? But recently, completely new words have appeared, and some of them are terribly funny.

In particular, the voice of the people introduced the term «babulling». This word describes the tactless questions that we often hear from mothers and grandmothers: “When are you going to get married?”, “Zina’s grandson has already turned seven, but I still won’t see my own?”, “You are still developing, but you haven’t thought about children? »

Of course, this term is also funny. On the other hand, the situation with tactlessness can really be unfunny, especially if it is repeated (remember Pavel Sanaev’s «Bury Me Behind the Plinth»).

Psychotherapy has become, in a sense, a marketing tool. Diagnostic criteria that were previously known only to psychotherapists are now indicated in the comments under the posts of Instagram (an extremist organization banned in Russia) and Facebook (an extremist organization banned in Russia). It is no longer a shame to admit your own narcissism or hysteria, because if you become aware of the disease, then it will no longer be able to control you. Marketers, bloggers, service and product providers do not hesitate to use psychological trends: sincerity, openness and humanity are certainly attached to their products.

Perhaps with conscious nutrition, sleep and wardrobe, we really will become better. But the main thing, it seems to me, is to stop in time. Although why? After all, excessive awareness can also be cured, which means that psychotherapists will again have something to do.