The idea of transmitting energy/ affect is both fascinating and frightening. It is amazing that someone can ignite a mood or a feeling in an individual without even speaking to them. But it is scary that the transmission can occur with negative affects as well. I was shocked when Brennan wrote about the analyst who had a fantasy about her patient bringing a gun, and the patient revealed in the same session that she was having murderous fantasies about the analyst (pg.28).
This story makes me think that we have some creepy extra sense instilled in us. But I can see from an evolution standpoint how transmission of affect would be adaptive. In the case of the analysts, if she were to not pick up on the murderous affect that the patient was transmitting she would have been surprised or unprepared if her patient would have attacked her. With transmission of affect, the analyst is able to keep her guard up.
In chapter 2, Brennan talks about the transmission and energy of depressed individuals. She states that their transmission of anger is inverted back on themselves and this depletes their energy. I find this to be true. Because people with depression are more likely to engage in hostile acts such as cutting and suicide. And many lose interest in activities they once enjoyed and have a constant feeling of exhaustion.
What is sad about depression is that many individuals with this disorder end up pushing others away. Brennan writes about James Coyne view on this matter which states “rejection of depressed persons results from the negative mood they induce in others (pg.43).” And when the depressed individuals are rejected they become more angry and depressed and the cycle continues.
It is important to consider these findings when diagnosing someone with depression. In our society, we tend to think that there is a magic pill that will cure all of our problems. While the patients who do need antidepressants should take them to relieve their symptoms, depressed patients should also engage in counseling or psychotherapy to address the anger that they are transmitting within. Because if we give medicine to a patient who doesn’t have a chemical imbalance we are not addressing the real source of the problem, and we are not helping the individual get better.
Awesome Post, Donah. As you saw on my blog, I think the modern trend of over-prescribing antidepressants is going to have some drastic consequences. I think that even some individuals who do have a chemical imbalance should not be put on anti-depressants. Sure, there may be some people who are psychologically sound and reasonably well adapted to life in the modern world, but that independently have a neurotransmitter imbalance. But I think these are the minority of cases. Most cases of depression originate out of psychological issues, which then manifest themselves in the form of an actual neurotransmitter imbalance (like, for example, Brennan's example of someone who has no-one to transfer their affect to, and it gets transformed and internalized).
ReplyDeleteI was also intrigued by Brennan's suggestion that the visual/aural were not at the forefront of affect-transmission. (Perhaps we do have extra-sensory perception!) I don't generally think of my sense of smell as being vital to my wellbeing. How wrong I am!
Final Point: You talk about the cycle of depression, and I just wanted to praise this view. To the average person, depressed people are just "lazy" and they're depressed because they don't do anything. Many people don't realize that it's BECAUSE they're depressed that they can't muster the energy to do anything to combat that depression. It truly is a vicious cycle.
One of the great ironies of angry people is that they tend to congregate - and in turn become more and more angry as they feed off of each other's own anger. A good example of this would be extremist hate groups or terrorist cells - they have something they hate, its existence makes them angry to an extent that they wish to do something about it, and thus they seek each other out. Ideology certainly plays a part in the growing anger (or on the other hand, depression from the hopelessness of the cause) but simply being around other angry people feeds the attitude, creating a vicious cycle that takes things to the extreme.
ReplyDeleteNaturally, we tend to label such people as crazy, mentally deficient or chemically/physically deficient.
I think that the "extra sense" you're talking about is related to human pheromones, as we discussed in class Tuesday. Like you said, it is effectively an evolutionary adaptation, primarily designed to help people communicate without really communicating. That being said, I agree with you on the idea that we can't just give medications to people in the hope that it'll straighten them out chemically; in a number of cases a person is feeling sad because they've effectively convinced themselves that feeling sad is the most logical emotion to feel, so to speak. While addressing chemical imbalances might work wonders for some, it is but a single weapon in the arsenal of psychotherapy.
ReplyDeleteLike our classmates have said, I think it's our pheromones that help us detect what others are thinking. We talked a lot in class about how scents and odors can change our emotional balance completely and make us feel something solely based on the fact that it's a scent. It's weird because we never know that it's happening, but it can sort of be connected to a tennis match. You have to read your opponent, and almost be there best friend in order to beat them. You never know which spot they will choose to hit the ball at, but by observation and understanding of your opponent you can know them on a completely different emotional level.
ReplyDeleteThe notion that affect is necessarily transmitted is indeed fascinating and frightening! I too can see how being able to detect the affects of others might be an evolutionary advantage. On that note, do you think some people are more receptive (or susceptible) to other’s affects? And are some people better than others at transmitting their affect to others (though it occurs unconsciously)?
ReplyDelete