We are in a time when voices are raised everywhere to indicate that we live in uncertain and precarious times. The values that have sustained us for a long time are being shattered, and forced to respond quickly to the demands of everyday life we can feel overwhelmed. A not inconsiderable majority claim values to hold onto, compasses to orient themselves in complexity. In addition to being complex, today's world is substantially nihilistic. In this PsychologyOnline article, we are going to address the concept of therapeutic nihilism and we will explain what is its definition.
Index
- Nihilism
- The power of rationality
- The values that define us
- The dissolution of dogmatism and ideologies
- A psychological therapy for nihilistic spirits
Nihilism.
Nietzsche understood that nihilism is "The most disturbing" of guests. A spooky guest who can justify countless outrages, in addition to leaving us orphans. We are orphans because we have crushed any authority that is capable of undermining any iota of our personal freedom.
Nihilism has been defined as “The lack of an end; lack of an answer to why? Thus, supreme values are devalued and concepts such as "nothing", "emptiness", the "incommunicable" or the "unknowable" define the contours of nihilistic times.
The power of rationality.
In order to Weber, modernity is defined by "Subtle cloak of rationality", which initially at the service of life has been transformed into a “steel vault”. Scientific rationality has produced the irreversible disenchantment of the world.
This disenchanted consciousness has been translated into polytheism of values, in a time deprived of "gods and prophets." It is time to ask ourselves: how can we live without values that excite us?
The values that define us.
Each of us stands on our own values. In the process of psychological therapy, the values - conscious or unconscious - that guide our behavior are shed. Generally, they emerge conflicting values (We love the same as we hate the same person, we need them to take care of us as they leave us our space ...).
Conflicts between different values implies a process of deconstruction and personal reconstruction. The spirit of nihilism undermines the possibility of personal reconstruction because by renouncing ideals, we have no choice but to wander in the darkness of uncertainty and precariousness.
The dissolution of dogmatism and ideologies.
The spirit of nihilism contains a liberating reverse: dogmatism has been dissolved and ideologies have fallen. Thus, the spirit of nihilism can be useful to demolish, to create a "Fertile void" that allows us to rebuild our own identity.
In the process of psychological therapy, nihilism has to be overcome by an "excited look" at our life aspirations.
A psychological therapy for nihilistic spirits.
The psychological basis of nihilists it is similar to that of the fundamentalists. They categorize everything into black or white, and it is very difficult for them to live with the chiaroscuro.
Thus, before a rigid way of feeling and thinking (all or nothing), it has to be approached from the search for elements that allow us to give flexibility to our ideals. The approach to emotional spaces, with the use of fantasies and images, can be an appropriate psychological intervention. Thus, it is not a question of convincing through reason (or the substitute for rationalization) that it is inappropriate to hold on to nihilist or fundamentalist positions, if not to bring to the surface those emotions that allow us to attenuate the inflexible emotions of the fundamentalists and enhance the silenced emotions of the fundamentalists. nihilists.
This article is merely informative, in Psychology-Online we do not have the power to make a diagnosis or recommend a treatment. We invite you to go to a psychologist to treat your particular case.
If you want to read more articles similar to Therapeutic nihilism: definition and concept, we recommend that you enter our category of Clinical psychology.
