Carl Rogers - Ellen West a Way of Being

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Ludwig Binswanger first diagnosed Ellen West using existential analysis. Using this school of thought showed that Ellen suffered from Bulimia nervosa and dreaded gaining weight. Existential analysis suggested that it is necessary to understand people in a deeper, more philosophical way rather than a strictly scientific way. The psychologist Rollo May exemplified this notion when he said that “Man is the being who can be conscious of, and therefore responsible for, his existence.” In the arena of existential psychology, Binswanger concluded that her bulimia was the expression of an existential vacuum to fill up her needs. Binswanger thought that the initial diagnosis of manic-depressive psychosis was wrong because of a lack of manic phases. Also, her symptoms could be explained as normal rather than pathological, and Ellen West could be diagnosed as a schizophrenic. Finally, in the view of therapeutic nihilism, Binswanger let her leave the Kreuzlingen clinic, and she later died because of drug overdose. Carl Rogers, humanistic psychologist, felt upset that Ellen West was regarded as an object and suggested that she would be better if she treated with client-centered therapy. Rogers also thought that her history was not pathological and she was an active girl. After breaking off her engagement because of disagreement of her parents, Ellen West experienced the estrangement of man from herself. It led her to lose a sense of belief about her experiences. To fit herself to other people’s opinion, she lost weight and developed a dread of gaining weight. Binswanger diagnosed her schizophrenia and he was pessimistic about her condition, fearing she would commit suicide after leaving the clinic; Rogers thought that this kind of thought made Ellen think herself disordered. Rogers suggested that if she opened her mind to her own experiences and accepted them, she could communicate with herself and it would lead her to developing better relationships with others.