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Episode 42 - Over Apologizing

This Jungian Life

Release Date: 01/17/2019

THE DANGEROUS RIPPLE: EFFECTS OF TOXIC LEADERS show art THE DANGEROUS RIPPLE: EFFECTS OF TOXIC LEADERS

This Jungian Life

How can recognizing and mitigating the psychological effects of toxic leadership protect people from regressing and aligning with dangerous leaders before it's too late? Understanding the effects of toxic leaders is crucial for fostering healthy organizational and societal dynamics. Malignant narcissism and large group regression can lead to destructive leadership, but by integrating psychological insights into leadership training and policy formulation, we can create environments that resist such toxicity. Education, ethical leadership, and community engagement are powerful tools that can...

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Kwame Scruggs: Can mythology save our kids? show art Kwame Scruggs: Can mythology save our kids?

This Jungian Life

Can myth-based storytelling transform urban youth? Kwame Scruggs joins us to discuss how mythology can save our kids. He discovered urban youth development thrives through the transformative power of mythological storytelling. He engages young minds by connecting their experiences with universal themes. His programs incorporate myths that foster emotional healing, personal growth, and a sense of community, guiding youth to see themselves as heroes in their stories. These initiatives offer a holistic approach to education and empowerment by integrating analytical psychology and relevant...

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Psychodermatology: How Skin Communicates Unconscious Conflicts show art Psychodermatology: How Skin Communicates Unconscious Conflicts

This Jungian Life

How do skin conditions give voice to silent suffering in our souls? Our skin serves as a canvas for our emotional and psychological states, manifesting internal conflicts through visible conditions. The symbolic meaning behind skin conditions can reveal deep-seated emotional issues.  Self-inflicted lesions highlight an individual's internal turmoil, serving as a cry for help. We all understand how blushing and sweating provide outer clues about our psychological landscape. Skin, a boundary between ego and the external world, exists as a threshold organ where experiences enter us and...

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IDENTITY CRISIS: When Our Story Falls Apart show art IDENTITY CRISIS: When Our Story Falls Apart

This Jungian Life

How can understanding and reshaping our personal narratives help us navigate and overcome identity crises during major life transitions? A Narrative Identity Crisis occurs when the evolving story we create to make sense of our lives—integrating past experiences, present realities, and future aspirations—becomes disrupted, leading to profound disorientation and psychological distress. This crisis can be triggered by significant life changes, traumatic events, or conflicting social and cultural pressures, causing our coherent self-narrative to fragment. Memory, meaning-making, and emotional...

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Six Swans Jungian Analysis: Transforming Fear into Joy show art Six Swans Jungian Analysis: Transforming Fear into Joy

This Jungian Life

How can we harness inner strength and resilience to transform personal fears and adversities into growth and joy? In our "Six Swans Jungian Analysis," we explore how a fairytale reveals profound insights into transformation, resilience, and the complexities of human emotions. Through a sister's silent endurance, a king's protective instincts, and the ultimate triumph of truth, we can also discover our own inner strength, sacrifice, and personal growth. The fairytale "The Six Swans" teaches us about the enduring human spirit, the transformative power of love, and the journey toward...

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Two Red Books: The Shared Imaginal Realms of Jung and Tolkien show art Two Red Books: The Shared Imaginal Realms of Jung and Tolkien

This Jungian Life

How can the shared imaginal realms of Jung and Tolkien empower us to navigate our personal journeys and transform our understanding of self and community? In exploring the uncanny shared imaginal realms of Jung and Tolkien, author Becca Tarnas uncovers a profound intersection of depth psychology and mythopoeic literature, revealed in their seminal Red Books. Amid the early 20th century's upheaval, both authors undertook personal and universal journeys into the psyche, employing active imagination to engage archetypes such as the shadow, anima, and hero. Their works, brimming with symbolic...

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Encounters with Light: Jung's near-death experiences show art Encounters with Light: Jung's near-death experiences

This Jungian Life

How can near-death experiences challenge and expand our understanding of consciousness and its connection to the transcendent? Carl Jung's near-death experience profoundly deepened his understanding of the psyche and its connection to the universal consciousness, reinforcing his belief in life beyond physical existence. During this transformative episode, he observed Earth from a distance, encountered mystical figures, and experienced a temple-like structure within a meteoric stone, enriching his theories on the collective unconscious and archetypal imagery. This experience left an indelible...

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MARTYR COMPLEX: Selfish or Selfless? show art MARTYR COMPLEX: Selfish or Selfless?

This Jungian Life

How can understanding different aspects of martyrdom help us navigate personal sacrifices and societal expectations in our search for a meaningful life? Individuals with a martyr complex often seek validation for their pain and suffering, which can be a source of protection and nurturing. It can also be a form of manipulation where personal suffering is used to influence or control the reactions of others. This behavior can be harmful, leading individuals to persist in unhealthy relationships or dangerous situations under the guise of nobility or duty. It is important to distinguish between...

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ECLIPSE: archetype of awe, wonder, and triumph show art ECLIPSE: archetype of awe, wonder, and triumph

This Jungian Life

Encountering a total eclipse can evoke a primal connection to nature and the infinite, constellating a deep sense of belonging to the universe and each other. Eclipses profoundly impact observers, evoking awe, transcendence, and a shared sense of unity. These celestial events encourage deep personal reflection and stronger social connections among those who witness them. They transform ordinary moments into extraordinary ones, re-enchanting the world and reinforcing the bond between humanity, nature, and the cosmos. Mysterious and awe-filled, in ancient times, Eclipses inspired myths and...

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Kate Berlant: Art, Psyche, and the Collective Unconscious in DREAM SCENARIO show art Kate Berlant: Art, Psyche, and the Collective Unconscious in DREAM SCENARIO

This Jungian Life

How do dreams intrude upon our Psyche, our roles in others' lives, and our societal identities? "Dream Scenario" is a thought-provoking new film that explores the uncanny power of the collective unconscious to shape culture and be shaped by it. In the movie, Nicholas Cage's character Paul mysteriously starts appearing in others' dreams across the globe. He grapples with the fear of being randomly celebrated by the collective and later demonized. Kate Berlant's role in the film and insights into Jungian analysis and dream interpretation launch our conversation into the growing presence of...

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More Episodes

What is “I’m sorry” as a habitual response really about? There’s the preemptive apology that is offered to forestall possible criticism, the apology that evokes reassurance from others, the apology for falling short of perfection…and more. This episode explores developmental, interpersonal, and intrapsychic dynamics of various kinds of habitual apologizing. We’ll be sorry if it falls short of your expectations.

 

The Dream:

I'm at a holiday "work party" for the very exclusive private school where I work, but it's in a big, old, rather shabby hotel that reminds me of a firehouse where my family used to have annual holiday gatherings. I'm mingling among all of the people and (as is true in my conscious life) can't seem to find a group with which I feel completely comfortable or myself. I feel like a lonely misfit in disguise,  feigning conformity and pleasant attitude.  I go upstairs to where the bathroom is supposed to be, and it feels very far away from the party--the second floor is creepily empty and quiet, with several large, empty rooms. I don't remember actually going into a bathroom, but as I'm about to go back downstairs to the party, I see an infant boy teetering at the top of the staircase on the landing. He is far too small to be walking. I immediately pick him up to save him, and he looks up at me, clearly distressed, and begins speaking as a much older child would. I ask him where his mother is, and he says he doesn't know, and is crying.

 

I don't remember all of what he says, but he tells me that he is in kindergarten. I hold him to my chest and he begins to calm down, eventually falling asleep. I feel affection for him and give him a kiss on the cheek, but I'm alarmed and unsure of what we will do. I go downstairs to the bartender of this party and ask where this boy's mother might be. He says, "probably in the party upstairs."  No one at the work party seems to notice or care that I have this lost baby. I go back upstairs, and as before, there is no one there--just an open door exposing a room with these creepy, industrial looking blue closet doors (almost like storage spaces) underneath a fluorescent light. I feel a deep sense that this situation is not right, and a strong determination to get myself and the baby out of there. The dream ends with me standing on the landing, baby still pressed against me.