Confrontations with the Unconscious (your own and other people's)

The themes of depression (in its various forms) and nervous breakdown have been much in the media recently. Its seems that there is an ever increasing incidence of these conditions amongst celebrities, including politicians and their advisors. People may remember the case of Derek Draper, a "Spin Doctor" in the early years of the Blair government who later fell out with his colleagues and had a "breakdown" (or breakthrough as some might regard it). I think Mr Draper then became a psychotherapist.

In response, some people who have experienced severe mental illness have complained to the media that accounts of their emotional woes, and lows, by high profile individuals trivialise the whole subject. Indeed, it is important to distinguish between the kind of maladie (however apparently intense) which may leave someone temporarily unable to function properly, with a devastating illness which makes it impossible for the sufferer to function for prolonged periods, if at all.

Most people will encounter some kind of depression during the course of their lives, probably brought about by a combination of environmental (personal and work relationships, for example) and physical factors (poor health or a degenerative illness, for instance). For people without the necessary material resources to "buffer" their situation, the treatments available may be inadequate, although this is not exclusively the case : the NHS does seem to provide very good support in some cases.

However, I want to deal here with a "non-medical" approach to mental health, which I would argue, could serve very well the kind of psychic imbalances encounted by many people. In order to do this, I'm going to provide a highly condensed overview of Carl Jung's view of "self-development", of which some form of depression is one stage. Jung also called this "a confrontation with the unconscious", to which I would add the caveat "one's own or other people's".

I arrived in Worcester after what might be described as a somewhat "extroverted" period in my life (I am by nature more of an introvert), which was at once enjoyable and unsettling. However, I would still jump at the chance to return to it ! I knew this time would come to an end, and when it did feelings of depression soon engulfed me. In other words I felt down ! A few months into this "depression" I had a dream in which I was walking along a stony path, in a barren place, towards what I was vaguely aware to be a cave (although I could see nothing ahead of me).

The next day I was in a book shop when I noticed a volume called "The Mind in the Cave", by a South African archaeologist. I'm not going to cover the subject this book just now (I will elsewhere), but safe to say I bought it immediately. So began what I can only describe as a personal excavation of my psyche, and a subsidiary interest in archaeology. Funnily enough, I had contemplated doing a combined degree in archaeology and anthropology when I went to University, but chose English instead as the easier option.

There are various options for tackling depression, some easier than others. Jung believed it was an important learning process : however hard some of the lessons. Initially, the dream that I have described above brought a further sense of privation. The immediate future was going to be tough, I felt. Nevertheless, as the saying goes : "When the going gets tough, the tough get going". Depression is a challenge, which like other challenges requires connection (or re-connection) with the stronger parts of the self, and managment of one's weaknesses.

I would suggest that this approach is relevant to many depressive conditions, removing the need for drug therapies, which may have negative side effects, as wel as extensive counselling or psychotherapy. The latter, like excessive media attention, can encourage what seems to have become a national "disease" in recent years : our culture of "I have a problem, therefore I am" (in the case of the individual); or "We have a problem, therefore We are" in the case of certain social groups.

So my messages are :

• Physician Heal Thyself (or Physicians Heal Thyselves); and
• As with my English Degree, the easier option is can be right at the time