In Israel, In Treatment Is In

A Service of Dr. Val Karan - 558 Anderson Avenue - Cliffside Park, NJ 07010 - http://karan4u-info.blogspot.com/ - (201) 943-2726 - [email protected] -

September 2008

KARAN 4U NEWSLETTER

In Israel, In Treatment is In

Dear Family, Clients, and Friends,

I am writing this on the eve of the seventh anniversary of the attacks on the World Trade Centers. September 11, 2001 is indelibly etched into our collective minds. That morning, I was driving across the George Washington Bridge on my way to work, and I could plainly see acrid black smoke pouring from the Twin Towers. Suddenly the stark reality of terror came ashore to my home town, to my native country. At the beginning of September 2001, I wrote a Newsletter entitled "Let My People Flow." It described my impressions of the Israeli psyche as I saw it during my summer trip to the Holy Land. It was the height of the intifada and there was a horrible suicide bombing the day we arrived which killed 14 people and wounded 132 men, women, or children. Yet I found that the Israelis reacted with an uncanny calmness and remarkable resilience in the face of terror and death. They seemed to be determined, implacable people. They continued to go about their lives as if there were no terror, going with the "flow" to maintain a sense of control in uncertain times. Not more than a week after I published this newsletter, Al Qaeda attacked the World Trade Centers. Much has happened since that fateful, unforgettable day. I focus often not only on the American psyche since 9/11 but what seems to be happening to the Israeli mindset. Are the Israelis still flow-meisters? As Israel celebrates its 60th birthday, is the country showing signs of maturing as well? This year I had a chance to see first hand. I spent more than two weeks in Jerusalem during the Passover Holiday season. As an avid film watcher, I have also spent countless hours this year watching a flurry of movies originating in Israel. The impression I am getting from cinema and from direct observation is that a radical shift in consciousness is taking place in Israel: from the national collective culture that emphasized toughness and suppression of emotions, Israel, it seems to me, now projects a more individualistic culture that emphasizes introspection and personal development. To better appreciate how far-reaching this new cultural approach is, consider the historical context. The state of Israel was created in the twentieth century by pioneers of my grandparents’ and parents’ generations. These men and women, survivors of pogroms, the Great Depression, and the Holocaust,

generations. These men and women, survivors of pogroms, the Great Depression, and the Holocaust, had little tolerance for anyone who did not work hard. They were tough and even gruff, and they didn't have time to worry or be depressed. The pioneers who settled in Palestine had to be even stronger and more resolute as theirs was a constant struggle for survival in an inhospitable environment. The Sabra, a prickly cactus with a mushy inner core, became the trademark for the new, native Israelis who could be abrasive, stormy, and not submitting mindlessly to authority or convention. Psychotherapy for these people? Fagetaboutit! When I first visited Israel in 1969 flush with a Masters in psychology, I could not at the time imagine the role of clinical psychologist in Israel. I spoke to a leading psychologist in the country who graduated from my college, and he painted a bleak picture of the field in a land where denial, abrasiveness, suppressing true feelings, and venting (i.e., complaining without taking action) were primary survival mechanisms. When I returned to Israel in 2001, I still got the distinct impression that analyzing or dwelling upon problems was not an Israeli pastime. I recall that a cousin asked me to explain what a psychologist can do for a person that, say, a friend cannot do, and I don’t think he was swayed by my answer. Fast forward to the present time and it is clear that many of the fundamental Sabra characteristics are still evident in Israel. However, whether due to increased air travel and globalization or the media revolution, today's Israelis live in a capitalistic, digital world with a more materialistic, hedonistic, egocentric orientation. Furthermore, where even the boundary setting capacities and viability of the nation-state are uncertain, there is growing fragmentation, polarization, and identity confusion among the people. The upshot is that Israelis are becoming more invested in trying to relieve emotional problems through American style talk therapy. This is rather remarkable considering that American style baseball has not been successfully transplanted to Israel. “Baseball is too boring and not much happens,” popular opinion in Israel goes. Yet the same fast-action-seeking Israelis fell in love with an Israeli TV show called B’Tipul in which the main character spends most of his time in a chair just talking and listening. This was a daily half-hour drama about a 50ish psychotherapist who treated a different regular patient each day of the week- except for Friday when he went to see his own therapist to discuss cases as well as some mid-

A Service of Dr. Val Karan - 558 Anderson Avenue - Cliffside Park, NJ 07010 - http://karan4u-info.blogspot.com/ - (201) 943-2726 - September

life issues of his own. The show swept the Israeli Academy Awards for best drama series, best Director, best screenplay, best actor and best actress. Ironically, the therapist was played by Assi Dayan, the son of General Moshe Dayan, who with his eye patch was possibly the most quintessential Sabra of all time. B’Tipul was so successful and so innovative that it became the first Israeli drama series to be bought by US television. HBO imported the series, translated it and modified it only slightly, and recast it as In Treatment, starring Gabriel Byrne and Dianne Wiest. The series ran for eight weeks, and I thought it was one of the best television programs I had ever seen. The series was renewed for a second season, and production on Season 2 will begin this fall in New York with a debut scheduled for 2009. The cases were compelling; and Dr. Paul Weston, the therapist, played by Emmy nominated Byrne, was at times brilliant (the show received three other nominations, including one for Wiest). Instead of an all-wise guru, the therapist portrayed by Byrne is a flawed man who finds his own life mirrored in his clients and who questions his marriage and his professional abilities. In short, In Treatment revealed for the whole world some of the deep, personal, archetypal problems of life in Israel. On Mondays, we followed the case of Laura, an attractive young anesthesiologist in the midst of a relationship crisis with a boyfriend who is also struggling with flirtation and boundary issues with other men, including her therapist. On Tuesdays, Paul’s patient was Alex, an arrogant Navy pilot who sought therapy after a disastrous mission in Iraq. (In the Israeli version, Alex was an IAF pilot floundering in the aftermath of a deadly accident in the Palestinian territories; and his father was a Holocaust survivor.) On Wednesdays, Paul treated Sophie, a precocious teenage gymnast whose career and life were on hold as she struggled to deal with her parents’ mistakes. On Thursdays, Jake and Amy came to talk about their extremely volatile marital relationship. On Fridays, Paul visited Dr. Gina Toll, his own therapist and former supervisor, to explore Paul’s own disintegrating marriage, his “lack of patience for some patients,” and even unresolved issues from his earlier work with Gina. Through these mesmerizing encounters, we come to know Sophie, Laura, Alex, Paul, Jake, and Amy from the inside out or, as one critic put it, “as if looking through a telescope onto their souls.”

It is perhaps no coincidence that these forays into unexplored emotion are happening as Israel is turning 60 years old. Ethics of the Fathers, a classic Jewish text devoted exclusively to the ethical and moral statements of the Sages, states that “Ben Shishim L’Zkaynah,” meaning “at 60 a person is old and wise.” One can, therefore, argue that Israel is achieving a new maturity, a coming of age in dealing with feelings. For the first time, the stigma of therapy seems to be lifting; and there appears to be a willingness to seek out psychologists and therapists. There is an affirmation that talk therapy can be a helpful and healing experience. Make no mistake about it: Israelis are not flocking en masse to counselors, healers and traumatologists. While there may be more acceptance of the concept of psychotherapy, I suspect that the number of people actually engaged in therapy in Israel is still quite small. Obviously, many Israelis are still ambivalent or skeptical about traditional therapy. Impatient for speedier results, some of these skeptics are seeking alternative types of treatment. Lots of Israelis, I have been told, visit ashrams in India, turn to Kabala, or rely on antidepressants rather than spend months in a therapist’s office. And what about those who do complete a full course of psychotherapy? As “In Treatment” showed, not every patient who worked with Paul had a happy dénouement or could claim complete victory over self-defeating patterns. Therapy is not a magical panacea, particularly for some problem situations that are practically intractable. There is also the risk that too much “therapism” erodes self-reliance: In One Nation Under Therapy, Christina Hoff Sommers and Sally Satelthe describe the American psyche becoming vulnerable, emotionally self-absorbed, anguished and apprehensive because of overdependence on therapy. Fortunately, there are fundamental characteristics in the Israeli mentality which I feel will protect against the excesses or dangers of therapism. As a vestige of the pioneer Sabras, the Israelis of today still maintain a strong nonconformist, in-your-face attitude towards authorities, even therapists; and in general they are blessed with vibrant vitality, a sense of irony, and unrestrained hope. In short, gone are the days when Israelis with psychological problems such as anxiety and depression were met with diffidence and intolerance from those who considered therapy disgraceful and shameful. No longer is psychiatric distress accepted as part of everyday life with sufferers forced to “suck it up.” Like the sabra plant itself, Israelis still exude great strength and toughness, especially on the outside. At the same time, on the eve of the country’s 60th anniversary, Israelis are demonstrating the unprecedented wisdom and courage to be more open-minded to professional assistance, when needed, to deal with life’s inner angst. Best wishes for a Happy and Healthy New Year!