What is logotherapy?

A colleague once asked Viktor Frankl to define his school of psychology in a

single phrase, to which Frankl replied, “Well, in logotherapy the patient sits
up
straight and has to listen to things that are, on occasion, hard to hear.” The
colleague had just described psychoanalysis to him in the following terms:
“In
psychoanalysis, the patient lies down on a couch and tells you things that are,
on
occasion, hard to say.”
Frankl explains that one of the first questions he would ask his patients was
“Why do you not commit suicide?” Usually the patient found good reasons
not to,
and was able to carry on. What, then, does logotherapy do? 1
The answer is pretty clear: It helps you find reasons to live.
Logotherapy pushes patients to consciously discover their life’s purpose in
order to confront their neuroses. Their quest to fulfill their destiny then
motivates
them to press forward, breaking the mental chains of the past and overcoming
whatever obstacles they encounter along the way.
Something to Live For
A study conducted by Frankl in his Vienna clinic found that among both
patients and personnel, around 80 percent believed that human beings
needed a reason for living, and around 60 percent felt they had someone
or something in their lives worth dying for.2
The search for meaning
The search for purpose became a personal, driving force that allowed Frankl
to
achieve his goals. The process of logotherapy can be summarized in these
five
steps:
1. A person feels empty, frustrated, or anxious.
2. The therapist shows him that what he is feeling is the desire to have a
meaningful life.
3. The patient discovers his life’s purpose (at that particular point in time).
4. Of his own free will, the patient decides to accept or reject that destiny.
5. This newfound passion for life helps him overcome obstacles and sorrows.
Frankl himself would live and die for his principles and ideals. His
experiences as a prisoner at Auschwitz showed him that “Everything can be
taken
from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms—to choose one’s
attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.” 3 It was
something he had to go through alone, without any help, and it inspired him
for
the rest of his life.
Ten Differences Between Psychoanalysis and Logotherapy
Psychoanalysis Logotherapy
The patient sits facing the thera
The patient reclines on a couch, like a patient. without
passing judgment.
Is retrospective: It looks to the past. Looks toward the future.
Is introspective: It analyzes neuroses. Does not delve into the patient
The drive is toward pleasure. The drive is toward purpose an
Centers on psychology. Includes a spiritual dimension.
Works on psychogenic neuroses. Also works on noogenic, or ex
Analyzes the unconscious origin of conflicts Deals with conflicts when and
(instinctual dimension). dimension).
Limits itself to the patient’s instincts. Also deals with spiritual realiti
Is fundamentally incompatible with faith. Is compatible with faith.
Seeks to help the patient find m
Seeks to reconcile conflicts and satisfy impulses and
his
instincts.
moral principles.

Fight for yourself

Existential frustration arises when our life is without purpose, or when that
purpose is skewed. In Frankl’s view, however, there is no need to see this
frustration as an anomaly or a symptom of neurosis; instead, it can be a
positive
thing—a catalyst for change.
thing—a catalyst for change.
Logotherapy does not see this frustration as mental illness, the way other
forms
of therapy do, but rather as spiritual anguish—a natural and beneficial
phenomenon that drives those who suffer from it to seek a cure, whether on
their
own or with the help of others, and in so doing to find greater satisfaction in
life.
It helps them change their own destiny.
Logotherapy enters the picture if the person needs help doing this, if he needs
guidance in discovering his life’s purpose and later in overcoming conflicts
so he
can keep moving toward his objective. In Man’s Search for Meaning, Frankl
cites
one of Nietzsche’s famous aphorisms: “He who has a why to live for can bear
with almost any how.”
Based on his own experience, Frankl believed that our health depends on that
natural tension that comes from comparing what we’ve accomplished so far
with
what we’d like to achieve in the future. What we need, then, is not a peaceful
existence, but a challenge we can strive to meet by applying all the skills at
our
disposal.
Existential crisis, on the other hand, is typical of modern societies in which
people do what they are told to do, or what others do, rather than what they
want
to do. They often try to fill the gap between what is expected of them and
what
they want for themselves with economic power or physical pleasure, or by
numbing their senses. It can even lead to suicide.
Sunday neurosis, for example, is what happens when, without the obligations
and commitments of the workweek, the individual realizes how empty he is
inside. He has to find a solution. Above all, he has to find his purpose, his
reason
for getting out of bed—his ikigai.