The Psychotherapist as “Wounded Healer”: A Modern Expression of an Ancient Tradition

Rice, Cecil A.

doi:10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199736393.003.0008

Cited by 4 publications

(9 citation statements)

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“…In psychotherapy, the concept of being wounded as a psychotherapist goes back to the early years of psychoanalysis and the description of the wounded healer as an archetype by C.G. Jung (Jackson 2001;Kirmayer 2003;Rice 2011;Jung 1969). But still today 'wounded psychotherapists' are confronted with selfdoubts and social stigmatization (Zerubavel and Wright 2012;Martin 2011;MacCulloch and Shattell 2009;Gladis 2008).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Biographical similarities between spiritual healers and their clients in Germany – a qualitative study

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Besch

Jeserich

et al. 2015

Anthropology & Medicine

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Spiritual healers in contemporary Germany comprise a heterogeneous and growing group, yet little data exists about them. Therefore, one aim of this study was to learn about which biographical aspects and events were important to the process of becoming a healer and which biographical aspects drove clients to consult a healer. The study was based on semi-structured interviews combined with participant observations. All data were recorded digitally, transcribed, entered into the software program MAXQDA and analysed subjected to Content Analysis. In total, 15 healers (nine male, six female) and 16 clients (13 female, three male) were included. According to the healers, a talent for healing can be inborn, inherited or developed through life experiences. Most of the healers experienced a crisis, which prompted their transformation to healers (the wounded healer type). A smaller group became healers mainly out of interest without going through crisis and by focusing on the spiritual attitude itself (the healer by interest type). The basis of healing is seen as a connection to a transcendent reality, which enables an open, loving and empathetic attitude. The experience of crises and illnesses and the importance of spirituality are major biographical similarities between healers and clients. Near-death experiences as an extreme form of crisis were reported from a few healers and clients. The connections between healing talents and crises, including a deepened exploration of near-death experiences and questions regarding inclining towards spirituality could be of interest in further studies.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Biographical similarities between spiritual healers and their clients in Germany – a qualitative study

Stöckigt

Besch

Jeserich

et al. 2015

Anthropology & Medicine

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“…This suggests that the WH can also be described in personalized terms pertaining to one's particular type of trauma. Rice (2011) echoes the above insight in arguing that the nature of the wound presages domain-specific vulnerabilities that require attention, as he eruditely opens up the concept for discussion across several parameters. He identifies Freud, Adler and Jung as WHs and balances views of expressing therapist injury as useful material for therapy with unattended woundedness obstructing client healing:…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 90%

“…Juxtaposing psychotherapeutic and shamanic literatures reveals that practitioners from these domains have been constructed in broadly similar ways; namely as charlatans, mentally ill and 'wounded healers' (Hadjiosif, 2020). Although the concept of the 'wounded healer' (WH) originates in shamanic traditions, it springs up in the discourse of several interrelated mental health professions such as psychiatric nursing (Conti-O'Hare, 1998;MacCulloch & Shattell, 2009), counselling psychology (Martin, 2011), clinical psychology (Farber et al, 2005), psychiatry (Kirmayer, 2003), social work (Straussner et al, 2018), criminology (LeBel et al, 2015) and many schools of psychotherapy (Arnaud, 2017;Farber, 2017;Rice, 2011;Zerubavel & Wright, 2012); most notably the Jungian tradition of psychoanalysis (Merchant, 2011;Wong, 1997). Portrayals of psychotherapists as WHs have proliferated in the past few decades (Amundson & Ross, 2016;Millon et al, 1986;Rippere & Williams, 1985;Sherman & Thelen, 1998), the suggestion being that the experience and overcoming of emotional pain imbues one with both interest and insight in human suffering.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The ethos of the nourished wounded healer: A narrative inquiry

Hadjiosif

2021

European Journal of Psychotherapy & Counselling

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Despite a plethora of texts on the 'wounded healer', little systematic research has been conducted on unpacking the implications and embedded assumptions of this concept. This paper takes the 'wounded healer' into the research arena by approaching it reflexively as an analytic tool to explore therapists' personal and professional development. Six therapeutic practitioners who identified with the concept were selected by means of theoretical sampling and were interviewed with a view to provide a narrative of their development as 'wounded healers'. Interviews were analysed using a tailored, multi-lens approach within a narrative epistemology. Besides attending to the narrative features of the accounts, the paper discusses findings in relation to three key themes: 'entering a community of wounded healers'; 'formulating the wounded healer'; and 'deconstructing the wounded healer'. Unpacking this modality flexible yet historically loaded construct necessitates challenging the 'wounded healer' as fixed identity and replacing it with an ethos that can lead to training, supervisory, and clinical recommendations facilitating psychotherapists' reflection on their woundedness. This complex process could allow them to engage in all aspects of professional practice, including research, from a position of an expert by both experience and training.

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“…On a different tack, it also does not seem plausible to suppose that therapists in general are psychologically unhealthy or suffer inordinately from emotional distress or do so to a greater extent than almost any other occupational group, despite the venerable and no doubt partially valid ''wounded healer'' tradition (e.g., Guggenbuhl-Craig, 1971;Halifax, 1982;Rice, 2011;Rippere & Williams, 1985). It is common for therapist candidates to be screened with respect to their suitability for the profession when seeking admission to training programs and to be observed by instructors and supervisors during the course of training.…”

Section: Clinical Practices and Summarymentioning

confidence: 99%

Utilization of personal therapy by psychotherapists: a practice‐friendly review and a new study

et al. 2011

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This article offers both a practice-friendly review of research on therapists' personal therapy and a new study of personal psychotherapy among 3,995 psychologists, counselors, social workers, psychiatrists, and nurses in 6 English-speaking countries. The prevalence of personal therapy as it relates to professional discipline, theoretical orientation, gender, and career level are studied. Findings showed that 87% of the overall sample embarked on personal therapy at least once: 94% of analytic/psychodynamic therapists, 91% of humanistic therapists, 73% of cognitive-behavioral therapists, 82% of the novice therapists to 89% of senior therapists. Both the existing research and this new study demonstrate the extraordinary commonality of personal therapy among psychotherapists, and encourage further use for professional training, clinical practice, and therapist self-care.

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The Psychotherapist as “Wounded Healer”: A Modern Expression of an Ancient Tradition

Cited by 4 publications

References 0 publications

Biographical similarities between spiritual healers and their clients in Germany – a qualitative study

Biographical similarities between spiritual healers and their clients in Germany – a qualitative study

The ethos of the nourished wounded healer: A narrative inquiry

Utilization of personal therapy by psychotherapists: a practice‐friendly review and a new study

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