Transitions in Jungian Analysis

Book excerpt: This deeply personal book contains essays and articles that portray the evolution of the author as a practicing Jungian analyst. Themes of illness, death, and violence are inherent within the chapters of this book. She uses metaphors from music to describe transitions, some involve literal death, and others are metaphorical. The chapters of this book provide an engaging and readable review of life from one Jungian psychoanalyst, featuring essays on topics such as physical illness, film, music, video games, and her dog. The author covers problematic psychological and physical conditions, each of which, through exploration and inquiry, provides a transition to a new depth of understanding and a renewed sense of self. The book begins with the death of Power’s Jungian analyst and the subsequent experiences when she began a "new analysis." She describes a "mysterious illness" that took her from being a classical musician to becoming a Jungian analyst. Other chapters include one on the nature of violence, another on the clinical issue of the "negative coniunctio" in the consulting room, and another on body symptoms and illness as "vanishing mediators" that take her from one status to another. A personal and engaging read, this new collection by an experienced analyst will be of interest to Jungian analysts, clinicians in both analytical psychology and psychoanalysis, and those undertaking psychoanalytic training.