Who am I? Am I me, myself – or the other? This is a question Carl Gustav Jung posed to himself as a young boy; he was born after three of his family’s children had died.
To be born in the wake of a loss is an existential condition affecting many, with potentially traumatic effects across generations. Those who were born or given the role to replace a sibling or other family member can suffer from low self-esteem, identity issues, difficult relationships, survivor’s guilt, and protracted or frozen grief. The Individuation process, the central concept of Analytical Psychology, offers hope: in a process akin to a psychological rebirth, replacement children can rediscover their own soul, the essence of their original being.
With examples from clinical practice, this lecture addresses core areas of concern to replacement children and their therapists or analysts.
Join me on this awareness-raising journey towards becoming yourself or helping a family member or friend to do so.