Five Major Channels of Resistance
■ Introjection
o Tendency to uncritically accept other’s beliefs and standards without assimilating them to make them congruent with who one is
o Passively incorporate what the environment provides, spending little time on becoming clear about what we need or want.
■ Projection
o Disown aspects of self by assigning them o the environment
o Trouble distinguishing between inside and outside world
o Disown attributes of self that are inconsistent with self image and put onto other people
o Avoid taking responsibly of feelings and person one really is
o Keeps self powerless to initiate change
■ Deflection
o Process of distraction
o Keeps difficult to sustain sense of contact with reality
o Overuse of humor, abstract generalization, and questions rather than statements, resulting in emotional depletion
o Diminished emotional experience by seeking through and for others
■ Retroflection
o Do things to self rather than others
■ Confluence
o Blurring differentiation between self and environment
o Fitting in, absence of conflict, belief all people feel and think the same way
o High need for acceptance and approval
o Stay safe, never express own feelings
o Therapist uses W’s questions to get client to open up
Other Forms of Resistance
■ Control of environment o Resistance to contact
o Boundary disturbance
■ Blocks to energy manifested by o Tension in part of body
o By posture
o Keeping body tight and closed
o Not breathing deeply
o Looking away from people when speaking
o Numbing feelings
o Speaking with restricted voice
