There is currently a severe division among U.S. citizens that often pits husbands against wives, adult children against their Parents, siblings against each other and friends against friends. People are bringing politics into personal or family counseling more than ever before. It used to be a simple matter of helping clients to speak up for their beliefs but if the outcome is to provoke a family division, it may not be in the best interest of the clients' relationships. Many people simply stop talking to the person in conflict.
Politics in Therapy: A New Approach for Resolving Emotional Distress
Conflict and the Rise in Division Within Close Relationships
The truth of the matter is that it is not uncommon for people to have strong negative emotions about the people that they love most. The current political divide in our country creates an escalation of the conflict to a new and intense level for some people. In fact, a recent poll stated over 60% of the population in the southern U.S. reported that they favored secession from the U.S. For many this division creates a secession from certain family members, as well. This type of conflict often leads to other conditions like depression, anxiety, resentment and break up of important relationships.
The Therapeutic Process
Counselors often hear a client state the need for resolving mixed feelings such as, "I love my parents but hate their offensive political views." The psychological counseling methoos utilized in Emotional Transformation Therapy (ETT®) can frequently help resolve emotional disturbance of this type within minutes.
In this method the process rapidly brings this type of contradictory emotions to neutrality without anyone needing to give up their political views. By reducing the intensity of the contradictory emotions in the context of an existing relationship, this results in a new perspective.
Sometimes this procedure achieves resolution in as little as 15 minutes for long-term relief. At other times, it may take up to two-to-three sessions for clients to report experiencing relief. (This may be due to the complexity of other unsettled dynamics in the relationship.) However, it is stunning to observe distress about the conflict between melt away.
The therapeutic procedure involves working with one person experiencing the conflict, although trying this approach for both parties within the dynamic has not yet been observed. People generally describe the result uniquely, based on their individual dynamic, but it includes terminology such as: acceptance, peace or simply neutrality.
If this therapeutic modality was more widespread, one can imagine the potential for leading to repair of issues within so many families and relationships and ultimately lead to societal calming.