Welcome back to Volume 2 of Inkblots & Interpretations!
Ink-Spot Musings…
I continue to marvel at our fascinating and dizzying, often terrifying, world, which evokes a range of contradictory reactions for us to process. There are right answers and wrong answers, different points of view, and questions about when to take a stand and when to be flexible and keep an open mind.
Some things seem crystal clear, like we’re toxifying our planet, kindness is a virtue, lies are bad, and the truth is good, human rights and women’s reproductive rights should be inalienable, and guns are a big part of the problem.
At the same time, we are forced to grapple with complexities in the world. Some things aren’t so clear. But as mere mortals, it’s far easier and often more satisfying to simplify complex problems, reducing them to the blacks and whites––especially when we can attach anger, fear, and hate to our favored position–– than it is to hold two or more opposing points of view in one’s mind at the same time.
For most of us, clinging to blacks and whites versus tinkering with the ambiguity of inkblot experiences is a significant challenge for the human mind.
Whew! I’m not sure which of my mental compartments released these thoughts, but they’ve clearly been on my mind, especially these days as we ponder the immensity of our polarization. When I think of our polarization, I think about Melanie Klein….
In formulating her theory of development in early childhood, Austrian-British psychoanalyst Melanie Klein posited two early developmental stages or positions, the paranoid-schizoid and depressive positions. Not to veer too far into the psychoanalytic weeds or to do a disservice to Kleinian theory by oversimplifying, but in her earliest phase of development, which Klein called the paranoid-schizoid position, the child’s psychological experience is characterized by the perception of external threat and fear of invasive malevolence coming from the outside.
The world is essentially split into good and bad elements, with the bad being projected and attributed to those that are perceived as threats, while the “all-good” is kept inside. With development, the child progresses to what Klein called the “depressive position, where the individual can bring together the good and the bad, eventually paving the way for empathy and understanding of others’ points of view.
Some of us never reach this integrated state of mind and remain stuck in a paranoid-schizoid mindset. At other times, we may regress back to this position and lose our ability to view things from another’s perspective.
Our Collective Social Trauma
I continue to think about our collective societal trauma and how we are all living through significant societal disruptions that have upended our sense of security and constancy.
Most would agree that 9-11 was a societal trauma that laid the groundwork for further aftershocks that disrupted our collective sense of self. The 2016 election, followed by the pandemic and January 6th, were further eruptions that changed how we view the world, our institutions, our neighbors, and ourselves.
When communities experience a major disaster, such as earthquakes, floods, hurricanes, and the like, the initial shock is followed by a lengthy period of reintegration of the devastating losses and changes, including heightened mistrust and blame for the authorities.
Turning away from the darkly shaded musing so far, here’s something more colorful.
I’ve been thinking about reunions and renewal. Late spring is the time of year for high school and college reunions. I just had my 50th college reunion, so this is a topic close to my mind and heart.
First, where the hell did all those years go!? Really, a half-century!? Besides the typical kinds of anxious anticipations, dreads, and disappointments that typically characterize reunions, I was struck by the powerful connections that I experienced. There were many short, heart-felt connections––those 5–10-minute reacquaintances following a big hug where the focus was on reminiscences.
Then, there were a handful of deeply meaningful catchups, during which we shared how our lives have unfolded since graduation. Finally, and equally gratifying, were the myriad connections with classmates whom I’d never known before the reunion.
Sometimes, these lasted only a few minutes, but like delicious tapas, they were rich and satisfying.
Recent Blogs
Over the last two months, I’ve written several blogs on matters I thought were timely and fascinating. Here is a sampling:
I wrote this in an attempt to humanize mental health struggles. By introducing some of the more obscure and forgotten illnesses, I hoped to provide a small window into the private struggles that some have with conditions that most of us have either never heard of or cannot comprehend.
Much has been written about this common experience of feeling like an impostor, but for both personal and professional reasons, I wanted to write about what, for many, is a hidden source of anxiety and shame.
Other Writing Projects
My colleague Dr. Ali Khadivi and I release our second edition of Assessing Psychosis: A Clinician’s Guide (Routledge) in July. The second edition will include new chapters on psychosis risk, conspiracy theories vs delusions, and assessing psychosis within forensic and multicultural contexts. We’re planning to conduct workshops in Europe this summer and into next year.
The audiobook version of my second novel, Tears Are Only Water,will soon be released and available wherever audiobooks are sold. It features a dual narrative format with three gifted actors reading chapters from the major character’s POVs.
“TAOW blends themes of trauma, madness, and recovery together with Indigenous healing and arcane mathematical facts and formulae and wraps them all in a blanket of mystery and criminal intrigue.”
"A mystery that keeps you guessing and a compassionate look at several souls who are locked in their past and the painful journeys they must take to become whole.
Full of insights into the human psyche and the negatives of compartmentalizing trauma and letting it retard personal growth..with plot twists, it keeps the reader intrigued, and the characters draw you into their stories. Entertaining and heartwarming, a must-read..."
I continue to be immersed in my WIP, Whispers, a sequel to Tears Are Only Water featuring the return of Carmine and Kitts who become involved in another psychological mystery.
I’m currently 15 chapters in and am enjoying the journey. I’ve particularly valued my consultations with experts who help lend authenticity to my story. So far, I’ve consulted with a math professor who is helping me understand how clues can be hidden inside complex mathematical equations.
Here is a teaser from Chapter 1
Chapter 1
The Smell of Blood
June 20, 2023, Georgetown, Washington, DC
Most people can’t recall the smell of blood. Raven couldn’t until she walked into the waiting room of Dr. Prokop’s office. The door was left ajar, unlike she’d remembered when patients always entered by pressing the four-digit code into the keypad by the door. The waiting room was as she’d recalled––a dimly lit, shabby shrink décor with an eclectic mix of modern and ancient furniture.
Only this time, she was assaulted by a sickeningly sweet, metallic smell that no one should know, but everyone does. She had forgotten what her senses never had.
“Hellooo? Uh, Hey Dr. Prokop…. It’s me, Raven, knocking on your chamber door. Dr. Prokop? Yoo hoo. Remember we have a 6:00. My sister called and said you had time.”
The door to his office was cracked open, exposing the beige wall to his inner sanctum. God, how she’d hated gazing at that wall for all those months, or was it years? Her mind was in a jumble as lightly tapped the door. Pushing it open, she looked inside and began to wretch.
What to Read?
I’m making my way through Barbara Kingsolver’s masterfully crafted tome Demon Copperhead.
I’m also reconnecting with my interest in anthropology, my college major, and reading Yuval Noah Harari’s Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind. Harari makes this highly accessible to the layperson with an interest in where we came from.
Thank you for another wonderful update, Jim. I truly believe there's a collective social trauma due to all the reasons stated. I appreciate your thoughts on healing, good reads, and lovely photos!
Thank you for another wonderful update, Jim. I truly believe there's a collective social trauma due to all the reasons stated. I appreciate your thoughts on healing, good reads, and lovely photos!