Praghna Week 12: Unveiling the Hidden Forces of the Mind

Have you ever found yourself contemplating the complexities of human behavior? Why do we do what we do? 

Psychoanalysis offers a captivating quest into the depths of the human psyche, providing understandings that can light up the dimmest areas of our minds.

Founded by Sigmund Freud in the late 19th century, it revolutionized our understanding of the human mind and behavior. Freud's journey began with his work in neurology, where he encountered patients with mysterious symptoms that seemed to have no physical cause. Fascinated, he delved into developing his theories on the unconscious mind, the role of childhood experiences, and the significance of dreams. 

In simple terms, psychoanalysis is a therapeutic technique that aims to discover the unconscious motivations and conflicts that drive our thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. It works by unraveling our past experiences, desires, and fears.

Picture your mind as an iceberg, with only a tiny piece visible above the surface. The conscious mind symbolizes this tip, retaining our primary thoughts. However, beneath the surface lies the unconscious mind, where deeper, often hidden, forces wield their power.


                                        (Image from Saint Louis Psychoanalytic Institute)

Psychoanalysis aims to highlight this hidden realm, bringing unconscious material into conscious awareness through techniques such as dream analysis and interpretation of symbols.

In the safe and supportive environment of the treatment room, individuals can examine their innermost thoughts and feelings, confronting painful memories and unresolved conflicts with the guidance of a trained scientist. Through this process of self-exploration and reflection, clients can gain greater self-awareness and insight, leading to personal growth and transformation.

Psychoanalysis also offers a pathway to a better present and future. We can better understand ourselves and our relationships by uncovering the hidden dynamics that shape our lives.


Comments

  1. Prathithi NellaiappanMarch 4, 2024 at 12:43 PM

    Hi Praghna! Yes, I do often find myself “contemplating the complexities of human behavior.” Psychology is something I really enjoy and I love that you wrote a blog about it this week! I like that you provided context to Sigmund Freud’s theories by introducing him as a person and explaining the meaning of the unconscious mind. Your example with the iceberg made it easy to visualize and the image below helped me comprehend the theory thoroughly. Your explanation about how the unconscious mind has “forces [that] wield their power” causing us to subconsciously change our body language or opinions was shocking. It is extremely cool that psychoanalysis can be done professionally to help someone understand their unconscious mind because it makes it possible for us to understand “the hidden dynamics that shape our lives.”
    I loved the format of your blog because it was easy to follow and concise yet extremely informative and thought provoking. Your separation of ideas in small sections helped me digest the information well. From my understanding, psychoanalysis is done through self-exploration and self-reporting which makes me wonder if there is a more objective and accurate way that psychology can uncover the unconscious mind. Overall, I loved your blog and I look forward to reading more like this in the future!

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  2. Jessica HungMarch 4, 2024 at 5:35 PM

    Hi Praghna! Your blog captured my attention as I am coincidently learning about psychoanalysis in my AP Psychology class. While some of Freud’s ideas have gained a lot of criticism during his time and now, his ideas about our unconscious is truly fascinating. You explained the concept of psychoanalysis very well, and I especially liked how you included Freud’s model of our mind using the iceberg analogy. When most people think of psychoanalysis, they think of a person lying on a couch and talking about their feelings, so I liked how you mentioned some of the other interesting aspects of psychoanalysis. Psychoanalysis is not greatly practiced today, but like you mentioned, it can “offer a pathway to a better present and future” and help us understand ourselves and our inner conscious better. This blog was wonderful to read as it provided me with an brief introduction to the unit I am studying in AP Psychology.

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  3. Stavya GaonkarMarch 6, 2024 at 3:49 PM

    I enjoyed the insight on how our mind works on a deeper level. I have heard the analogy that our brains can be represented by an iceberg, where the visible part represents our conscious mind and the part underneath the water is our unconscious mind, and I think it says a lot about how much control we have over the decisions that we make. As you said, although we may think that we made a decision, there may have been a hidden, unconscious motive behind it. I find it interesting how there is a way for us to access this deeper part of our brain through psychoanalysis, but I think this method may be a bit outdated and is driven more by observed patterns than true evidence. The idea of the first word coming to your mind when someone asks you a question or a dream you had last night revealing something deeper in your subconscious mind feels too good to be true. Hopefully, advances in neuroscience in the near future will allow us to better understand this phenomenon. Overall, I liked how you began your blog post with a question that a lot of our peers would be able to relate to and how you included a picture representing the mind-iceberg analogy.

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  4. Mansi MittalMarch 7, 2024 at 11:06 PM

    Praghna, I enjoyed the topic you decided to enlighten us with this week. Humans are understandably a fascinating species—especially considering the way we think and evaluate to deeper extents, the way we act not on blind instinct but with motives and reasons, the way we’re at the top of the food chain despite being physically weaker than half of the animals on the planet. There are so many levels to understanding humans and the way we exist, and I thoroughly enjoyed your detailed introduction to the extensive concept of psychoanalysis within that realm. After your brief introduction to the concept, you told a captivating story centered around Sigmund Freud, the father of psychoanalysis. Understanding how Freud’s life story and passions compelled him to branch into this specific aspect of science was undoubtedly helpful in my understanding of psychoanalysis. Similarly, your creative use of “picture this” with the metaphor of an iceberg representing the human mind was an essential supplement. Finally, I enjoyed the way you ended your blog, providing us with an effective and lasting takeaway from your blog: that we “can better understand ourselves and our relationships by uncovering the hidden dynamics that shape our lives.”

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