Trauma in Dreams
Author: Christopher Chayban
Looking at the ego, and its capacity to incarnate (assimilate) archetypal content into consciousness for healing a split psyche, is one-way to use the Jungian approach to trauma in dreams. The ego, as a functional complex is dismembered in trauma and needs to be re-membered or put back together.
Rather than striving towards ego cohesion, the inner figures that show up in the traumatized subject’s dream-scape take on either a protective of persecutory role. These inner figures are what Donald Kalsched calls “archetypal defenses,” which can operate like a psychic auto-immune disease and attack even healthy impulses of the psyche. Therefore, it can keep the person from growing into their wholeness due to the fear of re-traumatization (Archetypal Defenses pg.4).
According to Kalsched, when someone experiences trauma or unbearable pain, especially in childhood, the psyche splits into two lines of development: one-line regresses or stays in its innocence, the other matures and grows up too fast (Psychological Perspectives pg.192). What comes to mind is the example of dissociative identity disorder (multiple personality), which is displayed beautifully in the show called “United states of Tara” (IMBD). The lead role is played by Toni Collette who illustrates so well the impact of the “trauma complex.” Her character “Tara,” is a woman with a traumatic childhood, struggling as a married woman with a mental disorder to manage a family. Whenever she gets triggered emotionally, she goes into the “trauma trance” that Kalsched has noted (Psychological Perspectives pg.197), before she enters one of her alter personalities. Her ego is no longer present when these inner figures take over and she is cut off from the experience (Psychological Perspectives pg.197). Flooding of her unconscious, that wells up into consciousness, is a result of an archetypal possession by both light and dark inner figures. Tara is able to develop a relationship to her inner figures but sometimes the trauma becomes too great that possession can show up as unconscious rage, which is repressed and “high voltage” archetypal energy that is too much for the ego to contain (Psychological Perspectives pg.197).This manifests as one of Tara’s alters (Bryce), who is more violent than the other personalities and kills the other personalities off (Wikipedia).
Now there isn’t really a deep dive into Tara’s dreams, but with the Jungian approach trauma shows up as archetypal defense systems that are of either; a protective or persecutory nature. In dreams of the trauma effected, these show up as angelic and demonic imaginal figures. The protector may take the form of an angel, a wise old man, a fairy friend, or a great good mother who accompanies the child and gives him or her strength. The persecutor may manifest as a witch, an axe-man, an evil angel, a devil, a rigid, stone-cold statue, an extraterrestrial, or a terrorist with an AK47. (Psychological Perspectives pg.196) However, this inner figure will do whatever it has to do in order to prevent a repeat of the original, unbearable experience (Psychological Perspectives pg.196), also seen by one of Tara’s alters. The reason for this disruption is experience cannot be metabolized or symbolized (Psychological Perspectives pg.195) properly.
When it can be symbolized, a helpful spiritual figure can appear (Psychological Perspectives pg.200) to provide healing of the trauma. The divine can incarnate better when our childhood is mirrored by a proper self-object, like a therapist or with an emphatic relationship. This allows for the archetype to become humanized (Psychological Perspectives pg.199-200) and guides the individuation process as the ego is more able to manage the high watt voltage that the trauma and archetype bring to the table.
The symbol helps metabolize the trauma. It’s as if the symbol is a kind of psychic Pepto Bismol that relieves traumatic indigestion. The function of trauma regulation was originally carried by the religious systems. In my opinion, that is one meaning of the Biblical phrase, “give us our daily bread.” It’s a psychic bread, the right food for our psychic diet, to keep us strong and healthy. With the religious systems falling by the wayside into our post-religious, post-meaning societal abyss, it seems to me that anxiety and depression has correspondingly increased, as there is no symbolic container any longer to regulate the traumas. Sure, there are still symbols of transformation to be found in the movies, sports, and whatever else we may busy ourselves with. But these are all consciously created and known, contrary to the symbol which is unknown, these symbols quickly become signs and I think that’s why we have so many movies and shows, because we can’t keep up with our hunger for meaning. We are snacking and not eating the symbolic meal that has been cooked for us. The symbol is unknown, a mish mash of things rolled into, it’s meaning can only be inferred indirectly. I believe we are still missing the mystery part of the symbol. The numinosity of the symbol is as Rudolph Otto describes as a “Mysterium Fascinans,” which means, a fascinating mystery. Oddly enough, the mystery isn’t that big of a mystery, I think it is the letting go of control. That is one way we can keep a little bit of control and the known, while keeping the mystery. The need for control arises from fear of the unknown and produces a symptomatic anxiety as a result of this desire. The autonomic nervous system was doing things for us just fine before we decided to interfere. We actually only really control one thing, that is voluntary muscle movement, which allows us to direct our breath if we want to. That’s it. If we are to ever to return to a good healthy psychic diet and let the symbol do its work, I think the letting go of control and outcome is going to be essential to its balance.
Resources:
Kalsched, D. (1998). Archetypal defenses in the clinical situation:a vignette. Journal of Analytical Psychology, 43, 3-17.
List of United States of Tara characters. (2018, October 02). Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
Sieff, D. (2008). Unlocking the Secrets of the Wounded Psyche: Interview with Donald Kalsched. Psychological Perspectives, 51(2), 190-207. doi:10.1080/00332920802454197
United States of Tara. (2009, January 18). Retrieved from https://www.imdb.com/title/
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