by Ekaterina Kobzeva
I have always been curious and open-minded. One of my most important goals in this present life is to experience the wholeness, which means, first of all, the acceptance of different approaches, visions, opinions and experiences, including therapy and spiritual practices. The range of different therapies I’ve tried is quite wide. Spiritual practices are even wider.
So, this time I was thrilled to attend the 23rd International Congress of Analytical Psychology. Luckily enough I live just a three hours’ drive to Zurich, where the genius of C.G. Jung resided for 53 years. This year the Congress was dedicated to 150th Anniversary of Carl Jung’s birth.
What can I say?
I’m thankful to dear Nassos for diving with me into this adventure (please, don’t blame him, I have extraordinary capacities to convince😊😊) The Congress took place at the Zurich Congress Hall, a beautiful historical building on the shore of Zurich lake. There were 1800 participants of the Congress from all over the world. (I hope, in less than 100 years Regression Therapy Congress will be of the similar size.)
Participants from Switzerland, Austria, Germany, France, very large community from the US and the UK, Russians, Czechs, Ukrainians, Bulgarians. Japan, China, Argentina, Brasil and many, many other countries were present. Regardless of nationality and the huge number of people around, the atmosphere was very warm and welcoming. Even for us, the other “camp” representatives.
There were from 9 to 11 sessions simultaneously in different rooms! Mostly 90 minutes lectures or studies’ reports. Most subjects were very appealing and the choice was hard to make. Important to point out: 98% of the speakers were reading their presentation and the text was projected onto screen along with PowerPoint slides. We were a bit disappointed, but there was a reason for that. The texts of all lectures were uploaded to the Congress website and translated into 9 languages. So, the participants with more basic English could follow the presentation easily.
Needless to say, the technical aspects, such as screens, microphones, etc., were perfect. Except some small rooms. Sometimes rooms were literally too small to give space to all participants. We were sitting on the floor. Especially on the lecture on Psychedelics, where the discussion was incredibly interesting.
The timing and the schedule… what can I say. It couldn’t be anything but perfect in my beloved Switzerland. We were very impressed by how the staff always managed to be on time. Even when Nassos (or Sonu Shamdasani 😊?), triggered an energy breakdown causing a false fire alarm. All people, 1800 persons, I remind you, had to go out of the building and come back to rooms, but the presentations were finished in time. It was funny to notice an indescribable similarity between Nassos and Sonu — in their manner of speaking? In their energy? And, as I discovered, in the reputation of the causes of technical disasters.
Among the speakers I really loved are: Tina Stromsted from California, who gave a Movement as Active Imagination workshop; Donald E.Kalsched who was explaining how we can detect the dissociation and defence mechanisms in dreams (I’d love to talk with him about my today’s dream); Kristina Schellinski, an analyst from Geneva, presented her personal story and clinical cases – the auditory stand up applauding at the end of her presentation, deep, emotional, but at the same time very logic and informative. And of course a real-time “therapy and dream interpretation” session with an AI called Mim. by Robert Bosnak. That was 15 minutes of wonder, admiration and laughter when the AI was saying every 20 seconds: “I continue to be silent”.
What can be concluded from these days. They have the same questions as we do in regression therapy:
- Will the AI “therapy” replace the human therapy?
- How can we be more open and communicative with other areas of social and psychological support, given that they often perceive themselves as overly psychological and disconnected?
- Yes or no to psychedelics?
- Can on-line sessions be as effective as off-line ones?
- The wars and how can we at least try to change what is happening now?
- How to integrate more body work in the practice?
- How to be effective and “fast” but respect client’s readiness for the change?
- Etc., etc., etc.
What I found resourceful and interesting for myself – is to use more field resonance and information in my sessions and to combine regressions with conversational therapy. In my own experience, this particular combination, especially post-regression integrative sessions, even with another therapist, gave fantastic results (and more billable hours for us as well).
Needless to mention, that synchronicity of the 3 days was just perfect even when we missed the 1st part of concert in Luzern, simply being late for it.
I won’t describe the context here, would be too long, but the phrase itself, by Lara Lagutina, an analyst from the UK, touched me to the depth of my Self: We dream the same dream, and this is how we meet.
Be Happy!
Katja Kobzeva
P.S. Nassos suggests that EARTh should build a body of spies and every year should be sending them out to other congresses to collect information, a sort of an Intelligence service. I think he got contageous travelling virus of mine 😊
