Learned Helplessness

So another session with T. I have to keep a dream journal because apparently i don't remember my dreams because i don't want to. I'm apparently dealing with things in my subconscious that my consciousness pushes down as soon as it gets the ability to do so. The result? I have to deal with the issues in my consciousness by writing the dreams down before i push them away and then decoding them with T. If T hadn't assured me the dreams were going to be horrible and full of all the feelings crap that i hate then i'd actually be happy about starting. It'd be fun to learn about dreams now that i actually get them too bad they're horrible and weird. Maybe my dream catchers will work and keep them a little calmer like they have been. That'd be so nice. I doubt it will though.

Oh Learned Helplessness... right... that's the term of the week T taught me. Apparently that's what's going on with me. It's what's wrong with my self-esteem. I've been taught that i'm helpless and i've been in a horrible situation for so long that i don't know how to get out. So now that i've been brought to the possibility of an out i have no idea how to react. He explained it with the lab. A scientist had a dog and in one part of the cage the floor was concrete and every couple minutes the scientist would shock the dog but there was a door to the other side of the cage with a glass wall. The other side had pillows and carpets and was just all nice and cozy where the dog could nap and relax in a happy friendly atmosphere. So for the first couple times the gate was open and the dog would yelp when shocked and run into the comfy room. Then the scientist stuck the dog into the torture room and shut the door. Then when the shocking started the dog went crazy trying to find the way into the comfy room. After a while the dog gave up and just laid down becoming accustomed to the shocks. Then the scientist opened the gate back up to see what would happen...

The dog stayed laying down. Even when the scientist turned the shocks off for a while and then turned them back on the dog just stayed in the same spot a couple steps away from comfy cozy safety. That's Learned Helplessness because the dog had learned that the shocks were what it was supposed to get and what it needed. It didn't know how to get to the other side.


It translates to humans in abusive relationships or any bad situation if you're in it long enough you'll get Learned Helplessness so get out now! Before it's too late!!