My approach

There are so many ‘shrinks’ out there… why call on me and how to find one’s way around?

Psychiatrist, psychologist, psychoanalyst, psychotherapist and psychopractitioner…
These names actually refer to different approaches.

Let’s take the example of a patient suffering from a phobia…

The psychiatrist is the only person who can prescribe anxiolytics that may, at the time, alleviate the patient’s suffering.

The psychologist will first and foremost take into account what the patient is aware of. He will no doubt encourage the patient to face up to his fear gradually. Perhaps the patient will then be able to overcome it? But it is highly likely that this phobia will then move into another field, becoming another source of anxiety…

The psychoanalyst will be keen to question what this phobia may refer to. He will see it as the tip of an iceberg, as the manifestation of a trauma buried in the patient’s unconscious. The psychoanalyst will help the patient to become aware of the original trauma, so that to help him get rid of the manifestations that stem from it. It’s a process that can bring about major changes, but it’s a long one because it involves a vast exploration of the unconscious…

Analytical psychotherapy is part of a psychoanalytical approach in that it recognises that our actions are driven by unconscious forces.

Here, however, it is not a question of navigating the depths of the unconscious by ‘letting it happen’. Rather, it’s about implementing a relatively guided introspection which, in the short to medium term, will bring to light ‘what is unconsciously at play’. It also involves providing you with psychological support throughout this process. Finally, although this is not systematic – and this is specific to my own approach – it can also involve accompanying you on a writing project relating to your own history, which then enables you to progress further in the therapy.

Soon, things start to make sense, solutions emerge and, if necessary, your suffering eases. This reactivates your life drive and, in the long term, secures access to the internal resources that can help you overcome painful past experiences more easily.

A few sessions can be all it takes to set up this virtuous circle.

In addition to the process, it is of course important to meet the person who will be your ‘shrink’: the person who will be able to put you at ease and inspire you to move forward, the person with whom your experience will ‘serenely resonate’.

In psychoanalysis, we talk about communication between the unconscious and the unconscious between the patient and the analyst. Having undergone analysis themselves, psychoanalysts know their own unconscious and can identify within themselves what their patients are feeling. Having studied psychoanalysis, they also know what a particular feeling is likely to refer to.

That said, helping others remains profoundly human, and as such a matter of the individual. I’ve always been a creative thinker, and I’ve helped many artists, authors and entrepreneurs to develop their projects. Hence my affinity with creative people in particular. Beyond that, I draw on a life rich in experiences that have taught me that pain can be overcome as long as you take the time to work through it and are supported in doing so. All this, combined with my own training in psychoanalysis and analytical psychotherapy in particular, makes me eminently receptive to the issues and resources specific to creative people.