“The Human being is not a mere victim, but a co-creator of his own life.” (V. Frankl)
Toward the end of my month in Vienna, when I had finished my intensive four-week German course and took some time off from my clinical practice, I decided that it was time to pay a visit to the influential existential psychotherapist, psychiatrist and neurologist, Viktor Frankl, who founded the Third Viennese School of Psychotherapy (the first two being those of S. Freud and A. Adler, Frankl’s predecessors and mentors). The house where he had resided on Mariannengasse was turned into a very interesting, multi-media interactive museum in 2005. I looked forward to this encounter, as with a long-lost friend.
I first encountered Viktor Frankl during my first year of university, but not during my studies at McGill, which other than a course on Cognition/ Cognitive Psychology (which I found fascinating and certainly influenced the course of my studies), my other courses were pure “basic science” (Chemistry, Biology and Physics) that year. It was through some philosophically-inclined people at my university residence that I was recommended Frankl’s best known work, “Man’s Search for Meaning” (which has been published in 150 editions and sold ten million copies worldwide). And I very precisely recall reading this poignant, thought-provoking book during the Summer after my first year at McGill, on my first trip to Austria. I consider this a synchronicity [1]of sorts… For those who have not yet read this autobiographical and highly recommendable book, it is worth noting that the first half is a detailed description of Frankl’s experience at concentration camps during World War II and his first observations, as a psychiatrist, of the factors that made some inmates resilient and those that weakened the spirit, the psyche, the body and, ultimately, the will to live. The second half details the development of Logotherapy and Existential Analysis, the new type of psychoanalysis stemming from Frankl’s observations in the camps and his previous clinical experience. (Frankl had already begun writing this part before being sent to the camps with his parents, wife and brother, none of whom survived the ordeal. This manuscript was entitled “The Doctor and the Soul”, setting the stage for what was to come. It is paradoxical that this manuscript was burnt by Frankl’s captors, and that this destruction is the element that led to Frankl’s survival: in order to prevent a cardiovascular collapse from falling asleep while ill from typhus fever, he kept awake reconstituting his lost manuscript on scraps of paper, driven by both a will to survive and by a strong sense of purpose.)
Upon entering Frankl’s museum, previously his place of residence since his release from the camps in 1945 until his passing at the age of 92 years in 1997, I become acquainted with the young Frankl, his origins, his family, his medical studies, and his correspondence with Freud and Adler, who was his mentor until the latter excluded Frankl from his association for his “unorthodox views”. (Not only Freud was victim to his ego, apparently…) Frankl’s first experiences as a physician, even before specializing in psychiatry and neurology, already in the 1920’s included suicide prevention in university students (the rate of which declined drastically with the implementation of a counselling program at the end of the academic year) and in severely depressed women. At the time, he looked not only to the root causes of the ailments experienced by his patients, (childhood trauma notably, as would have been the first intention in Freudian analysis as well), but developed a novel forward looking, resilience-centered approach by asking “What keeps people healthy?”, also known as “salutogenesis”.
Over the course of the visit, I was confronted with the three main pillars of Frankl’s logotherapy through a series of interactive exercises, videos and other pedagogical tools that Frankl may have used in his own practice :
1.) Freedom of Will : “Human freedom is not freedom from conditions but freedom to take a stand and to face whatever conditions might confront him”: a rather Stoically-inspired stance, in my view
2.) Will to Meaning: the desire to shape existence in a meaningful way, through concrete goals and actions, according to one’s values
3.) Search for Meaning: the main motivational life force, which according to Frankl could be found through experience with reality (interaction with the environment and others), creativity and contribution to society, and choosing one’s attitude in the face of suffering.
“There is nothing in the world that enables one to overcome internal discomfort and extreme difficulties more than awareness of a task to do in life.” (V. Frankl)
As one can notice from the above, much of Frankl’s concerns revolve around Meaning and Purpose. Having Purpose (be it a greater cause, caring for others, cultivating meaningful relationships or developing one’s creativity, to name just a few) not only enriches one’s life but has also been found to be protective when confronted with trauma or stressful events, thereby favouring resilience[2] and post-traumatic growth.[3] Frankl described this in his works based on the concentration camps experience and in his patients throughout his clinical and pedagogical career. Conversely, the absence of meaning can lead to burn-out, bore-out and especially brown-out[4] syndromes, as described in the workplace but also in other settings. A recent study has also correlated purpose with a lower risk of mortality, regardless of gender or ethnicity.[5] Hence, if you have not yet found (or have lost) your life purpose, which can also evolve with age and circumstances, there are some good reasons to search for it!
And here is an instructive video based on Marcus Aurelius's (the great Roman Emperor and philosopher) advice on finding/ defining Purpose:
“I have found meaning in my life by helping others find the meaning of theirs.” (V. Frankl)
Existential philosophy is most certainly derived from existential therapy. When I first discovered French philosophers Jean-Paul Sartre, Simone de Beauvoir and Albert Camus through their literary writings, in my early teens, I was powerfully attracted to existentialism and the afore-mentioned concepts of freedom, personal choice, responsibility and meaning. And as far as I can remember, I have always recognized finding and embodying Purpose and Meaning as essential to human flourishing. Unfortunately, classic Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy (which is my original training in psychotherapy) does not address these issues, but some more recent, “third-wave” approaches such as Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) do give importance to identifying and working with one’s core personal values. I integrated the exploration of personal values according to different areas of life into my practice several years ago (after training in ACT), thereby enriching the healing process of my patients and assisting them in their transformative journey beyond therapy as well. And I believe that Frankl can be thanked for this positive change in my practice and the benefit it has brought to my patients. My encounter with him in Vienna has made this clear.
“Man is pushed by drives, but pulled by Values.” (V. Frankl)
Frankl’s influence in society, and his legacy to psychotherapy and philosophy has been immense, and although he is lesser known than Freud by the general public, his contribution to the elevation of the human spirit is of great importance for Humanity. In a world where traditional values have become all but lost, and in which the specificity of being human seems to be on its way to extinction, notably with the hubris-laden quest for artificial immortality, dissociated from all form of spirituality, and the delirious transhumanist movement, Frankl brings us back to our true nature, including the often unaddressed (in psychotherapy) spiritual dimension. His psychotherapeutic movement, which can even be generalized into a life philosophy, is more relevant now than ever before…
“Being human is to be Free.” (V. Frankl)
[1] Term coined by C.G Jung to describe an event, which on the surface would appear to be coincidental, but actually may have some deeper meaning for the person who has experienced it.
[2] The ability to « bounce back » or return to normal functioning after a traumatic event
[3] Constructive change in one’s worldview, including a reinforcement of one’s strengths, commitment to values and strengthening of meaningful relationships, following a traumatic event
[4] Brown-out syndrome occurs when there is a lack of coherence between personal values and the values represented by the job itself
[5] Koichiro Shiba, Laura D. Kubzansky, David R. Williams, Tyler J. VanderWeele, Eric S. Kim. « Purpose in life and 8-year mortality by gender and race/ethnicity among older adults in the U.S. » Preventive Medicine, 2022