Healing madness and despair through meeting

An existential perspective on human suffering suggests that the psychoanalytic view of the unconscious poses a difficult dilemma in regard to self-examination: On the one hand, not to pursue introspection may leave one as a person driven by untoward instinctual urges; on the other hand, to vigorously self-reflect, may result in inexorable despair in regard to the limitations and finitude of mortal existence. The author contends that the reason for the dilemma is rooted in Western psychology-a perspective that regards the human being as an encapsulated consciousness, set separately and competitively apart from other objects in the cosmos. This orientation is shown to pose difficulties in treating madness and despair. By the use of clinical material, the author shows how Martin Buber's notion of authentic dialogue can be useful in efforts to bridge the separation between the sufferer and the healer.