No, psychologists don't read minds or sit on a couch. A tough blow for a Monday, isn't it? We're sorry to disappoint you if you came to this article thinking that the psychologist tells you to lie down on a nice couch that appears to cost a considerable amount of money, while he suggests questions to you and you answer them with your eyes fixed on the ceiling and your hands crossed over you.
It looks nice, yes. But we will leave this application more for the movies. The couch is many years old. It was established by Sigmund Freud for the application of his psychoanalysis and since then it has been mythologized as an indispensable element in the psychotherapy consultation. A while ago we showed some examples of modern psychology offices and voila! No, none of them have a couch.
So what?
The origin of the couch: Freud and psychoanalysis
Sigmund Freud made the couch famous for treating his patients. In its initial conception, the patient was placed on Freud's right. The jaw cancer that eventually led to his death left him deaf in his right ear, so he began to treat his patients in exactly the opposite direction, always with the characteristic that the patient did not see the psychoanalyst, while the latter observed his patient from his superior position, analyzing him. Why? Let's remember that Freud was a doctor and that psychology as such did not exist, so he determined that position so that the patient could concentrate better and not be distracted by his gaze.
Scene from the movie “Confessions on the Couch”
So, when it comes to the use of the couch by psychologists, are we faced with another myth of the profession? We could not call it as such, but the dissemination of Freud's images over the years and their extension to the big screen have spread the idea that this is a typical piece of furniture in a good therapy office. Although it has nothing to do with it.
The reality is that it is still used in psychoanalysis today, both by more traditional analysts of the Freudian school and those of the Lacanian school. Although not all of them are governed by strict rules regarding position, what type of couch or sofa to use or its treatment. So, is the couch a determining factor in therapy? No. It is the professionalism of the psychologist and the particular situation of each patient and treatment that defines what to do and how to achieve the objectives set by both. As always, the answer lies in finding the most suitable psychologist for each need. And closing, how do you prefer psychological therapy: with or without a couch?
Scene from the movie “Confessions on the Couch”
By the way, the original sofa shown in Freud's photo can be seen in London.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8rM6nbpGYj8