How to understand a personal crisis.
John* was a young man and suicidal. He had recently split from his partner and had spent three days drinking. His sleep was erratic, and his mind playing over the same thoughts of guilt and anger. He had begun to feel anxious, his heart beating hard in his chest. The only solution seemed to be under a train, and he had been pulled from the tracks by police officers. How did he get here?
Often in psychiatry, we see those who have reached the end of their coping mechanisms, and as such only see one escape. But to understand them, and to help, requires knowing something about the nature of ideas and the mind. This cannot be separated from someone’s experience, and so it means knowing very much about them and their story. This is John’s.
The nature of John’s suffering
John was an idealistic young man who had difficulty relying upon others but was in denial of his need for personal connection. There was a lack of trust developed from his early relationships with his parents and this drove him to seek independence from early on. He could not trust love but relied on recognition from others for his achievements.
