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The Alchemy of Wolves and Sheep: A Relational Approach to Internalized Perpetration for Complex Trauma Survivors
The literature on psychological trauma and traumatic attachment has progressed over the past few decades, however issues of coerced and internalized perpetration have not been fully explored and deconstructed. This book presents a synthesis of relational and archetypal psychology, trauma and dissociation theory, and highly relevant child soldier literature, to offer new clinical perspectives to assist psychotherapists and trauma patients to achieve more successful therapy outcomes.The Alchemy of Wolves and Sheep offers instructive, cautionary and innovative therapeutic approaches to help transform the lives of survivors of complex trauma. Providing an explanation of how the effects of coerced perpetration trauma are built, and the damage done to the psyches and lives of most trauma victims, the book extends our knowledge base in a thorough deconstruction of the nature of perpetration and its effects on the psyche.Chapters - trauma, dissociation, and coerced perpetration- the child soldier as a model of internalized perpetration- relational concepts in the treatment of trauma and dissociative disorders- treatment trajectory- archetypal constructs as a vehicle for integration.This book provides valuable new perspectives on the psychodynamic challenges and opportunities for mental health professionals treating internalized perpetration in survivors of complex trauma, and will prove essential reading for psychotherapists, psychoanalysts and post-graduate students as well as researchers, legal scholars and policy makers.
- GenresPsychology
280 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2013
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June 11, 2023
WOW!
This is a GREAT/WEIRD/IMPORTANT book.
The alchemy of wolves and sheep is a deep dive on the issue of coerced/internalized perpetration in extreme abuse survivors.
The book utilized case studies from various situations of extreme abuse including child soldier case examples to explore the effects of “coerced perpetration” (whereby an individual i.e. the child soldier, is forced to commit atrocities such as rape and murder by the their adult perpetrators) and “internalized perpetration” (whereby the coerced/forced child perpetrator internalizes the motives and intentions of their adult perpetrators).
If all of that sounds too extreme to be relevant to your experience or in your work as a clinician. I can assure you it’s quite relevant, as most of the cases presented are essentially extreme examples of more common trauma involving religious indoctrination, gang culture, sexual abuse and coercion, and narcissistic abuse etc.
Author Harvey L. Schwartz is a phenomenal writer and intellectual, and he is clearly a fantastic therapist/relational psychoanalyst.
In fact.
I have a difficult time imagining how anyone could be be more erudite, or well spoken on the EXTREMELY difficult and subtle therapeutic issues covered in this book.
I am utterly taken aback by Schwartz’s wisdom, skill and bravery to dive head first into issues that ordinarily defy language, but seem absolutely clear (or at least understandable) in his handling.
Given that.
Some of the issues in this book are highly controversial in the psychology/therapy community. And Schwartz’s seemingly a-critical, apparently unskeptical stance on issues such as Ritual Satanic Cult Abuse left me feeling confused and circumspect as to the credulity of large sections of the book.
THE MEMORY WARS
The term “memory wars” refers to a contentious debate that emerged in the 1980s and 1990s regarding the reliability and accuracy of recovered memories of childhood abuse, particularly in cases of sexual abuse.
The controversy centered around the use of various therapeutic techniques, such as hypnosis and guided imagery, which some argued could lead individuals to create false memories or confabulations.
On one side of the debate, there were those who believed that repressed memories of traumatic events could be accurately recovered through therapy, even if they had been forgotten or suppressed for many years.
They argued that these memories were crucial for survivors to heal and seek justice.
On the other side, skeptics raised concerns about the potential for false memories to be inadvertently created or implanted through suggestive therapeutic techniques.
They highlighted the lack of empirical evidence supporting the accuracy of repressed memories and emphasized the potential for harm, such as false accusations and the potential destruction of innocent lives.
Over time, extensive research has provided insights into the complexities of memory retrieval and the potential for both accurate and inaccurate recall.
Today, the general consensus among mental health professionals is that memory is a highly malleable and reconstructive process.
While traumatic events can be forgotten or initially repressed, the accuracy of recovered memories is difficult to establish without corroborating evidence.
The memory wars led to significant changes in the field of psychology, including increased awareness of the potential for suggestibility, the importance of cautious and ethical therapeutic practices, and the development of more rigorous scientific standards for memory research.
RITUAL SATANIC ABUSE
The topic of Ritual Satanic Cult Abuse was the also the subject of intense controversy in the 1980s and 1990s.
During that period there were widespread claims of Satanic ritual abuse involving alleged cults engaging in extreme acts of violence and abuse. However, extensive investigations and research conducted by experts, including law enforcement agencies and psychologists, found little or no evidence to substantiate these claims.
Many of the allegations were based on recovered memories and testimonies from individuals who underwent therapy or were influenced by media reports.
In several cases, these memories were later found to be inaccurate or fabricated under the influence of suggestive techniques used in therapy sessions.
While it is essential to acknowledge that abuse occurs in various forms, including cults or religious groups, the specific notion of widespread Satanic ritual abuse has been largely discredited due to lack of evidence.
NOTE: I copied most of the previous sections on the ‘memory wars’ and ‘ritual satanic abuse’ nearly verbatim from CHAT GPT.
I thought about rewriting it.
But upon inspection I determined that it was good enough as is. So I said fuck it (silently, to myself) and decided to let it be.
Anyway…
The controversies are by no means sufficient to discredit the self reports of abuse survivors.
I mean…
Ritual abuse exists.
The obvious recent example being NXIVM.
However, I do think it’s worth mentioning and acknowledging that these controversies exist as well.
Schwartz repeatedly refers to recovered memories and ritual Satanic abuse, without commenting at all on the controversy.
I think this is a pragmatic stance for therapist to take. Whereby we would never want to invalidate the lived experience of our clients.
However, I also think it’s either (a) intellectually dishonest, or (b) insufficiently critical for a piece of scholarship (such as this book) to make mention of these issues without also mentioning (let alone seriously addressing) the controversial nature of the issues.
I commend Schwartz for taking such an unwavering stance on a topic that could equate to a whole cloth dismissal of his work. However, I can’t help but also feel woozy about the a-critical nature of this text in this regard.
All of that aside.
I have to say.
This book has really opened my eyes and my mind to a radical, and exciting frontier of Psychotherapy.
And I think this book is AMAZING.
Stunning!
Mind expanding!
Fascinating!
Stimulating!
Important!
A brilliant book by a clearly brilliant author/thinker/therapist/human.
5/5 stars ⭐️ (with minor reservations and HIGH praise).
This is a GREAT/WEIRD/IMPORTANT book.
The alchemy of wolves and sheep is a deep dive on the issue of coerced/internalized perpetration in extreme abuse survivors.
The book utilized case studies from various situations of extreme abuse including child soldier case examples to explore the effects of “coerced perpetration” (whereby an individual i.e. the child soldier, is forced to commit atrocities such as rape and murder by the their adult perpetrators) and “internalized perpetration” (whereby the coerced/forced child perpetrator internalizes the motives and intentions of their adult perpetrators).
If all of that sounds too extreme to be relevant to your experience or in your work as a clinician. I can assure you it’s quite relevant, as most of the cases presented are essentially extreme examples of more common trauma involving religious indoctrination, gang culture, sexual abuse and coercion, and narcissistic abuse etc.
Author Harvey L. Schwartz is a phenomenal writer and intellectual, and he is clearly a fantastic therapist/relational psychoanalyst.
In fact.
I have a difficult time imagining how anyone could be be more erudite, or well spoken on the EXTREMELY difficult and subtle therapeutic issues covered in this book.
I am utterly taken aback by Schwartz’s wisdom, skill and bravery to dive head first into issues that ordinarily defy language, but seem absolutely clear (or at least understandable) in his handling.
Given that.
Some of the issues in this book are highly controversial in the psychology/therapy community. And Schwartz’s seemingly a-critical, apparently unskeptical stance on issues such as Ritual Satanic Cult Abuse left me feeling confused and circumspect as to the credulity of large sections of the book.
THE MEMORY WARS
The term “memory wars” refers to a contentious debate that emerged in the 1980s and 1990s regarding the reliability and accuracy of recovered memories of childhood abuse, particularly in cases of sexual abuse.
The controversy centered around the use of various therapeutic techniques, such as hypnosis and guided imagery, which some argued could lead individuals to create false memories or confabulations.
On one side of the debate, there were those who believed that repressed memories of traumatic events could be accurately recovered through therapy, even if they had been forgotten or suppressed for many years.
They argued that these memories were crucial for survivors to heal and seek justice.
On the other side, skeptics raised concerns about the potential for false memories to be inadvertently created or implanted through suggestive therapeutic techniques.
They highlighted the lack of empirical evidence supporting the accuracy of repressed memories and emphasized the potential for harm, such as false accusations and the potential destruction of innocent lives.
Over time, extensive research has provided insights into the complexities of memory retrieval and the potential for both accurate and inaccurate recall.
Today, the general consensus among mental health professionals is that memory is a highly malleable and reconstructive process.
While traumatic events can be forgotten or initially repressed, the accuracy of recovered memories is difficult to establish without corroborating evidence.
The memory wars led to significant changes in the field of psychology, including increased awareness of the potential for suggestibility, the importance of cautious and ethical therapeutic practices, and the development of more rigorous scientific standards for memory research.
RITUAL SATANIC ABUSE
The topic of Ritual Satanic Cult Abuse was the also the subject of intense controversy in the 1980s and 1990s.
During that period there were widespread claims of Satanic ritual abuse involving alleged cults engaging in extreme acts of violence and abuse. However, extensive investigations and research conducted by experts, including law enforcement agencies and psychologists, found little or no evidence to substantiate these claims.
Many of the allegations were based on recovered memories and testimonies from individuals who underwent therapy or were influenced by media reports.
In several cases, these memories were later found to be inaccurate or fabricated under the influence of suggestive techniques used in therapy sessions.
While it is essential to acknowledge that abuse occurs in various forms, including cults or religious groups, the specific notion of widespread Satanic ritual abuse has been largely discredited due to lack of evidence.
NOTE: I copied most of the previous sections on the ‘memory wars’ and ‘ritual satanic abuse’ nearly verbatim from CHAT GPT.
I thought about rewriting it.
But upon inspection I determined that it was good enough as is. So I said fuck it (silently, to myself) and decided to let it be.
Anyway…
The controversies are by no means sufficient to discredit the self reports of abuse survivors.
I mean…
Ritual abuse exists.
The obvious recent example being NXIVM.
However, I do think it’s worth mentioning and acknowledging that these controversies exist as well.
Schwartz repeatedly refers to recovered memories and ritual Satanic abuse, without commenting at all on the controversy.
I think this is a pragmatic stance for therapist to take. Whereby we would never want to invalidate the lived experience of our clients.
However, I also think it’s either (a) intellectually dishonest, or (b) insufficiently critical for a piece of scholarship (such as this book) to make mention of these issues without also mentioning (let alone seriously addressing) the controversial nature of the issues.
I commend Schwartz for taking such an unwavering stance on a topic that could equate to a whole cloth dismissal of his work. However, I can’t help but also feel woozy about the a-critical nature of this text in this regard.
All of that aside.
I have to say.
This book has really opened my eyes and my mind to a radical, and exciting frontier of Psychotherapy.
And I think this book is AMAZING.
Stunning!
Mind expanding!
Fascinating!
Stimulating!
Important!
A brilliant book by a clearly brilliant author/thinker/therapist/human.
5/5 stars ⭐️ (with minor reservations and HIGH praise).
Displaying 1 of 1 review