Being a therapist in this political climate—regardless of what side you are on, is a painful experience. There is tension and horror no matter where you go and depending on what part of the world you’re in, increasing violence might be part of the day to day. As a Canadian, I am luckily not in a place that has been torn by war or political unrest like the attempted assassination of the President or bombs being launched into crowds. Before becoming a therapist I was a Political Science major in my undergrad. I spent years learning about the middle east, American politics, and the world from anthropological origins to ancient Greece to modern day. Before I enrolled in my Master of Arts in Counselling Psychology I was considering a program called “Government Corruption”. I had a letter written for recommendation and I was ready to submit the application when I had a change of heart.
Over time I’ve become disillusioned by the political landscape and not because of this side versus that side but because there’s something inherently depressing about watching the world fumble along regardless of whatever advocacy thrashes around and tries to change the world. I say that as somebody who is an advocate, so I am not saying advocacy isn’t good, just that I became disenchanted by the political landscape. As a centrist by nature—a curious person who wants to see the good in everybody—I often find myself exhausted by the nature of politics. So—how does one be a therapist in a world that is increasingly more divided? Perhaps the first answer is to switch from the macro to the micro. This has been the reasoning for my career switch. Rather than trying to ‘save the world’ through politics, I decided to help the people around me, in hopes that as each one of us heals, the world itself can be changed. At the very least, I think therapists are in a position where we can work with people in their unease and help them understand the political landscape from their point of view. I want to caution therapists working with somebody of a different political ideology and remind them not to judge, but to listen. At the end of the day I find that most people simply want the best for their family and friends and community—how to get there is where the arguments happen.
The following quote by Rousseau goes through my head whenever I think of politics and the structures that humans adhere to:
“Man is born free; and everywhere he is in chains. One thinks himself the master of others, and still remains a greater slave than they.”
I think this idea is deeper than the political world and laws—we often find ourselves in a psychological place where we feel like we’re trapped in society and our ideals. Unpacking this unease is something that therapy could be utilized for, but the definition of chains is likely different for each client. At the end of the day, politics is the interaction of human beings. There is no way around this. After all, we should remember the words of Aristotle who said, “man is by nature a political animal”.