Neil's experience: "There are lots of opportunities to build alternatives to the incumbent system."

“A group collective can easily attract the projection of the Self and swallow up the individual who succumbs to it. Identification with political parties or religious creeds would be examples of solutio within a group.”  -Edward Edinger, Anatomy of the Psyche.   After a therapist was instrumental in helping him overcome a some serious challenges in his life, Neil was so inspired by the process that he decided he wanted to provide a similar service to others.  He went  back to school, devoting a great deal of time and significant financial  resources to the study of transpersonal therapy.  The first two years were amazing: full of growth and connection.  After his second year,  Neil needed to step away for a time in order to save money to complete the program.  When he returned after his leave of absence, something was different: the students were speaking a new (Social Justice) language, and there was a new mandatory DEI course which seemed entirely out of place in the context of the program’s other teachings. Following the DEI course, Neil was so disappointed and disturbed that he decided he could not stay in the program.  He was able to speak with the founder and head of the school prior to leaving, and to his  surprise, the founder agreed with him about the inappropriateness of the inclusion of CSJ ideology.  He revealed to Neil that he was forced to include it in order to maintain accreditation, and that the accrediting body was responsible for structuring the DEI course.  In this conversation Neil provides details of his experience and shares how he has pivoted, adjusting his career goals despite the setback and finding a creative and fulfilling alternative way to use his skills to help people who need support.   Neil recommends the book “Spiritual Dimensions of Psychology” by Hazrat Inayat Khan. You can find more of Neil’s work at his blog on Medium: https://medium.com/@seidr Here is the letter that Neil wrote to CCPE: https://medium.com/@seidr/separating-political-ideological-signal-from-therapeutic-noise-5129987cc252   If you would like to contribute to my legal fund, thank you!  The fund is at: https://www.givesendgo.com/theradicalcenter   And if you appreciate this ongoing project and would like to support my continued work in this area you can chip in at any of the following  (thank you very much!): https://www.paypal.me/jleslieelliott https://www.buymeacoffee.com/radicalcenter https://www.patreon.com/theradicalcenter