Priya’s affair is neither a symptom nor a pathology; it’s a crisis of identity, an internal rearrangement of her personality. In our sessions, we talk about dut

Priya’s affair is neither a symptom nor a pathology; it’s a crisis of identity, an internal rearrangement of her personality. In our sessions, we talk about duty and desire, about age and youth. and... "“You think you had a relationship with Truck Man,” I tell her. “Actually, you had an intimate encounter with yourself, mediated by him." This article (and others like it) make me kind of think that (A) much of psychology should not be treated as an objective science (2) Objective science is not the only useful contribution. Therapists don't have to be scientific. People get a lot of relief from being able to narrate their life and their feelings. They find beauty or comfort in exploring motivations (from a subjective POV). It can be liberating (and effective) to act within a narrative, to have names for things. A lot of our best art is dedicated to this sort of thing, especially romantic literature. For abstract truth, I don't think most of this article describes it. In the abstract, I think the answer to the question is simple: (1) People (on average) are semi-monogomous, like a lot of animals. (2) It's hard to use cultural conventions to restrict people's sexuality. see exhibit I "The Gays." That doesn't mean that a therapist should just tell this lady "you were just horny."