John Belushi’s behavior and life can be described using the psychodynamic perspective. The psychodynamic model is the oldest and most famous of the modern psychological models. Psychodynamic theorists believe that a person’s behavior is determined largely by underlying psychological forces which he or she is not consciously aware. These internal forces are described as dynamic and their interaction gives rise to behavior, thoughts, and emotions. Abnormal symptoms are viewed as the result of conflicts between these forces (Comer 2011). I felt the psychodynamic model would help to describe John Belushi’s life and behavior because there were underlying psychological forces that were causing his unusual behaviors and lifestyles.
John Belushi was a well-known comedian, but was hiding a troubling life. Belushi first began his career as a comedian in 1971 when he joined The Second City comedy group in Chicago. In 1973, Belushi began airing on The National Lampoon Radio Hour which was a half-hour comedy program played across the United States. Belushi achieved national fame for his work on Saturday Night Live. Once he turned 30, Animal House was the number one film in the United States, The Blues Brothers: Briefcase Full of Blues was the number one album, and Saturday Night Live was the highest rated late night television program. Even with all his success and fame, Belushi had a different lifestyle and behavior that was not seen by the people watching his shows (Peele 2011).
Belushi’s unusual behavior and lifestyle eventually led to his death. On March 5, 1982, he was found dead in a room in California. The cause of his death was speedball which is the combine injection of cocaine and heroin. The cause of his death was shocking news...
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Catharsis and working through are also important concepts for therapy. Psychodynamic therapists believe that patients must relive past feelings to overcome their problem in the future. To go along with catharsis, working through would be needed over many years to examine the same issues.
A plan that could have worked for Belushi would have been for him to go to a therapist to receive help. With his behavior of cocaine and heroin abuse, a few sessions with a therapist could have helped his situation out. A therapist could have interpreted his actions and seen if he was showing resistance and transference. Looking at his past dreams might have helped his therapy sessions too, and maybe he could overcome his substance abuse addictions. I believe this therapy plan would have been successful for Belushi.
Psychodynamic therapy grew out of the practices of Freudian psychoanalysis which is laid on the opinion that a persons' behavior is affected by the unconscious mind and by the past events and experiences. Psychodynamic therapy normally requires longer time (to some extent two years) as it set on a journey to overhaul an aspect of persons' identity, personality or to effect a key developmental learning missed while an individual was stuck at the earlier stage of emotional development (Goldbreg, 2014).
... By scheduling an activity that the client can participate in and complete, it can give them a sense of mastery in a specific task. This can be beneficial for the client to feel accomplished. Another technique that I feel can be beneficial in therapy is role-playing. Role-playing can be helpful for a client to learn how to dispute irrational beliefs by becoming aware of negative feelings towards theses beliefs (Tan, 2011). In addition, role-playing can help the client to overcome their emotions and practice coping skills that are more effective. The last technique I would incorporate into therapy would be relaxation training. I would suggest ways that can help the client relax including, deep breathing, meditation, yoga, a massage or exercising. By getting the client to have methods to relax, I think it can help with managing their thoughts, feelings and behaviors.
Westen, D. (1998). The scientific legacy of Sigmund Freud: toward a psychodynamically informed psychological science. Psychological Bulletin, 124(3), 333.
Not to mention he never let go of his faith in God and believed in his dream which led to his great success today. However he is a man who gives to people and helps with different charities. He is a man of inspiration who used one passion, which led him to the road of success. His writing, producing and directing over the years has inspired so many people. However he has inspired millions of people to not only dream, but make their dream a reality. He did not let his struggles keep him down. He has inspired me to do better through his testimony.I’am a huge fan of his work, today I dream bigger because of him being an inspiration to my life.A man who had a dream and used his sense of humor to bring joy to so many people in this world who are struggling. His struggles did not break him but made him. Furthermore he continues to inspire people through his movies, plays, and his Faith in
This approach draws on the importance of early experience and how people internalize events that happened in their youth. It draws on the idea that there is a conflict between events that happened in the past and what a person is trying to accomplish in the present. The therapist is very engaged and develops a close relationship to the client, in which the relationship helps model normative relationships that the client can use to generalize. The goal of this kind of treatment is to make the unconscious conscious to the client. The hallmark of psychodynamic psychotherapy is insight and working through, in which the client has deep and reflective epiphanies about themselves. Psychodynamic therapy has also shown to be effective in the treatment of individuals suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. Schottenbauer, Glass, Arnkoff, and Gray (2008) explored the contributions of psychodynamic approach to therapy in individuals suffering from PTSD and trauma. Some of the many contributions psychodynamic treatments include addressing interpersonal issues that are a by-product of PTSD, and also addressing development. Aside of bringing unconscious thoughts forward, the therapist also watches for defense mechanisms that the client might use. These defense mechanisms are important to the therapist, because they provide insight to the person’s wishes, feelings, and impulses. A benefit to using psychodynamic treatment over other approaches is that it is better suited for handling complex cases of PTSD, as well as comorbid cases. In addition to that, because it focuses heavily on interpersonal relationships, it helps create a social support system for the client. Having social support may aid the client in recovering. In the case of Frida, a psychodynamic treatment approach would be effective. A psychodynamic therapist would establish a rapport with Frida before
...n. It is the therapist’s job to listen very carefully to everything that Michael says during their sessions together. Catharsis, the third technique, is when the therapist would guide him through his past and help him relive his problems to eventually overcome them. Finally, working through the now interpreted and understood events is the hardest and longest process of the four. It can take years to complete. As for Michael’s drug addictions, the process is very similar. His past would be uncovered, and he would be encouraged to work through his past conflicts and then, eventually, change the way that he is living (Comer, 2011).
From a psychoanalytic perspective, the goal of counseling is to bring unconscious information to the conscious and strengthen the ego by bringing forth the clients energy to conscious processes (Murdock, 2013). Rasmussen & Salhani (2010) states the following regarding the goal of psychoanalytic theory which further supports Murdock’s statement, “we turn to psychoanalytic theory to understand not only the individual’s conscious, rational thinking, but also the unconscious dynamics and motivation” (Rasmussen & Salhani, 2010).
On August 11, 2014, Robin Williams was pronounced dead in his home in Tiburon, California (Itzkoff). The official cause of death was suicide by asphyxia due to hanging. There was a pocket knife found near his body and he had several fresh cuts on his left wrist. The toxicology reports revealed that there was no evidence of illegal drugs in his system and only normal levels of prescription medication (Robin Williams Biography.com). After his death it was revealed that he had suffered from Lewy Body Dementia. Lewy Body Dementia is a degenerative condition in which nerve cells in the brain are blocked by protein clumps. People who suffer from this condition develop memory and language issues and experience vivid hallucinations. Some medication that is used to treat Parkinson’s disease can make the symptoms worse. Robin Williams family believes that Lewy Body Dementia was a key factor in his suicide even though there is no research provided that proves this (Robin Williams Had Lewy Body Dementia). Even though Robin Williams death was a very unfortunate event, the legacy he left behind is still present today. Just one week after his death, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline had a fifty percent increase in calls. Also after he died, there seemed to be much more conversation about suicide. This
Shelder (2010) describes seven distinguished features of Psychodynamic approach compared to other available therapy forms in his review: focus of effect in relation to client’s express of emotions; understanding resistance in terms of avoidance of important topics and/ or distracting behaviors in therapy sessions; exploring client’s patterns in terms of behaviors, reasoning, emotions, experiences, and connections to others; bringing in the client’s past; examining relational factors and dealings; highlighting the importance of therapy, and bringing in dreams, wishes, or fantasies for exploration.
Furthermore, my goal is to let client fix their problems on their own through insight and guidance from the therapist. I envision a successful therapeutic process being when a client follows their goals and achieves positive outcomes in their lives. I seek to gain a therapeutic process with my clients by building rapport, trust, and helping them gain insight. When my clients are stuck and need motivation, I plan to remind them about their goals and the positive things that will come with change. If family is important to a client, informing the client about their family and their happiness may help motivate them to continue to
He later referenced Freddie Mercury again in his suicide note when he took his life on April 5th of 1994. “I haven't felt the excitement of listening to as well as creating music along with reading and writing for too many years now. I feel guilty beyond words about these things. For example when we're back stage and the lights go out and the manic roar of the crowds begins., it doesn't affect me the way in which it did for Freddie Mercury, who seemed to love, relish in the love and adoration from the crowd which is something I totally admire and envy,” (Cobain “Letter”). Along with Kurt Cobain, Freddie inspired his own stand in to become a
Psychodynamic therapy, focuses on unconscious mind and how past experiences, inner thoughts, fears, and emotions The main goal of psychodynamic therapy is for clients to be self-aware of the past and how it effects who they are in the present. This type of therapy focuses on the underlying problems and emotions that influenced the client’s behavior. (Psych Central, 2016)
Another noteworthy feature of this approach is the chance to empathize. In most forms of therapy, empathy is not used: why would you want to add more conflict to an already difficult situation? Well, as counterintuitive as it may seem, it does have standing. By definition empathy is the ability to understand the feelings of another person. In this context empathy serves as an indirect way for readers to relive and recall their own experiences. The power of empathy is often overlooked. “Humans and other higher primates appear to be predisposed to empathy, to respond emotionally to [a] secure sense of self . . .” (O’Conner). This is significantly better than just plunging into one’s past without buffer material. This feature is also what makes
Psychodynamic approach studies unconscious activities in the mind to elaborate on human thoughts, feelings and behaviour (Bernistein, 2013). Freud was able to treat clients by making them recall negative aspects of their past through psychoanalytic techniques such as free association, dream interpretation and transference (Wollheim, 2008).
Najavits, L., &Strupp, H. (1994). Differences in the Effectiveness of Psychodynamic Therapists: A process-outcome study. Psychotherapy, 31, 114-123.