OT : A psychosocial question

Renegade 13 · #1 August 13th, 2006, 04:03 AM

Why do people seem to have a need to frequently revisit old emotional scars?

Black_Knyght · #2 August 13th, 2006, 04:30 AM

I have been asking myself THAT particular question quite a bit lately....

Fyron · #3 August 13th, 2006, 04:54 AM

Profound emotional experiences, good or bad, serve as focal points in knowledge of the self. Who we are is, in part, the sum total of everything that has happened to us. It is natural for emphasis to fall on the most prominent experiences.

Black_Knyght · #4 August 13th, 2006, 06:11 AM

A very clinical answer, to say the least...

Slick · #5 August 13th, 2006, 02:16 PM

I'd say that people need to go thru the 5 stages of grief:

denial
anger
barganing
depression
acceptance

This can take a long time and sometimes people get stuck in a stage and can't move past it. People stuck in a stage will revisit the problem without moving through the problem. Once someone truly reaches acceptance, it isn't so bad to revisit the "scar" since you have passed thru the depression phase already. I'm no "sykologist" but I'd read up on managing change/transition to learn more. Hope this helps.

Fyron · #6 August 13th, 2006, 02:41 PM

Black_Knyght said:
A very clinical answer, to say the least...

I thought it was more philosophical than clinical.

Renegade 13 · #7 August 13th, 2006, 03:52 PM

Quote:

Imperator Fyron said:
Profound emotional experiences, good or bad, serve as focal points in knowledge of the self. Who we are is, in part, the sum total of everything that has happened to us. It is natural for emphasis to fall on the most prominent experiences.

This brings up another question: Does experience shape an individual's personality more so than genetics?

Slick · #8 August 13th, 2006, 04:02 PM

yes, as evidenced by studies of twins separated at birth.

Fyron · #9 August 13th, 2006, 04:03 PM

Of course. Genetics plays a roll in instinct, but part of the development of higher animal intelligence is learning to override instinct.

Caduceus · #10 August 13th, 2006, 11:02 PM

Quote:

Why do people seem to have a need to frequently revisit old emotional scars?

It is part of being human. Learning to cope with past psychological trauma is important to facing possible future similar trauma.

Quote:

This brings up another question: Does experience shape an individual's personality more so than genetics?

As a clinician, I can say that both are equally important. I see the same cycle repeated for generations (self-abuse through alchohol, etc.). And then there are those that "end the cycle" - go to college, etc. Life it what you put into it. A three year-old dying of cancer is often wiser than a sixty year-old with lung disease.