I would like people to be able to understand the therapy process as I see it, from both the perspective of a patient and that of a therapist.
Therapy is a journey that takes you through the realms of thought and emotion, to the hidden places within yourself.
Many times, it leads you to places you may not want to enter: dark jungles with hidden demons, born from past experiences that somehow inhibit you and prevent you from crossing borders to reach the desired destination.
Through the journey that is therapy, you are invited to visit these demons, understand their reasons, and learn the motives that keep them there. I believe that these demons translate into our greatest fears, the ones that deeply torment us.
We call them demons because they scare us. Because reaching them is scary, and most of the time, we prefer to avoid them.
And you may wonder… what is the fear? Why can’t we reach them?
The answer has to do with their origin and the reason they are there. These demons exist because they were born as a defense mechanism against painful situations.
And that’s why they are scary: because to face them, or rather to “converse” with them, we must return to those moments where we were hurt, where life hurt, where others, intentionally or unintentionally, broke us a little.
Most of the time, we prefer not to go there, and to continue our journey without stopping, without thinking or feeling. Without questioning our vicious patterns, which are somehow shaped by these demons that inhabit our caves.
What we do through this beautiful journey called therapy is take different directions, deliberately stopping at certain caves to sit down with these demons. And yes, to go to the depths of the moments that hurt us, but with a new perspective: a compassionate and reconstructive gaze.
As you can see, it is not an easy journey, and you must certainly choose a good co-pilot, the one who accompanies you, sometimes inviting you to take certain directions of thought. But you are the one driving the vehicle.
Those who dare to take this journey are the bravest, because they dare to challenge their own being, their own soul.
And yet, therapy is the most beautiful journey.
From this journey, you never come out the same. You emerge in full awareness, without limitations, understanding your demons, their reasons, and their forms.
Understanding that you can do anything, if you remove the chains that hold you back: the demons that limit you.
From this journey, you come out in complete freedom.
And you, do you dare to take this journey?