André Duqum

How is it an intelligent response?

system.

Because from your perspective, I just love to hear that as it's obviously an epidemic, right?

We have the loneliness epidemics, we have this anxiety crisis.

And amidst a time where we have more external wealth, abundance and comfort, we have widespread internal poverty, so to speak.

And so I'm curious what your thoughts are on anxiety, how it's an adaptive response.

It makes me think of the whole world of defense mechanisms and the way we meet life, right?

with resistance fundamentally.

You write that cynicism is more seductive because it's easier to critique the world than it is to change yourself.

What are the cascade of potential defense mechanisms that one might find themselves enacting in any arena of life and why are they important to examine?

Sarcastic, perhaps, sometimes.

Yeah.

So what would the full list that you see, you know, as a clinician, those that come into your office, what are the variety, the sample platter, if you will, of different defense mechanisms, starting with maybe denial and whatever?

It's a fun game and puzzle to figure out.

I feel like the different aspects of self that show up consistently.

And I think at least for me, I've really grown the most in relationship.

I think having like a mirror to see what's coming up.

If you spend a lot of time alone, it can be pretty easy just to be cruising, you know, and not really have as much insight into the things that are there.

When you think about self-inquiry as a consistent practice we can employ in our life and the various tools to support that, what are your thoughts on how we can understand self-inquiry, deploy it in our life in an effective way, and what you've seen has been really the most effective way to do so?

To take an example of that, I'm curious, for somebody that has these patterns that are deeply ingrained, maybe as a child, they equated their mother's love with performance in life.