Analysis for Paulette, 10 December 1998

This is how you described the room:

This strange, yet familiar feeling room is warm with piles of pillows on the bed. The colors are warm glows of blue and green, like the sea. There's soft music playing reminiscent of the ocean. The walls are wallpapered with opaque seaside scenes and shells. The furniture is light oak and robust in nature, like drift wood. I feel secure.

The initial room is the subject’s childhood. What interests us here is the general atmosphere of the room, in addition to the level of furnishings described by the subject. This comfortable room suggests a childhood that was pleasant. The depth of description tells us that the subject has strong memories of childhood.

You wanted to leave the room.

The subject wanted to become an adult.

This is how you described the forest:

As I stroll into the forest I see tall, handsome fir trees. The canopy is high above and filled with colorful flowers which only grow in densely populated forests. It is dark due to the density, but streams of light flow in from the break in the canopy. Mushrooms abound and small animals are skittish, but friendly.

The forest is growing up, and the trees are those adults with whom the subject interacted at that time. Tall trees imply that the adults had a strong influence on the subject. A semi-dark forest tells us that the subject felt somewhat oppressed by the attention the adults gave.

This is how you described the path:

The trail is clear, and the way is visible. The trail winds gently between the trees to allow the olfactory sense to revel in the aromas. The way is clear and all too short for well traveled trail.

Adolescence is represented by the path through the forest. The visibility of the path tells us that the subject had a good idea of what to expect from adolescence. That the path is free of obstructions indicates that the subject had no problems during adolescence.

This is how you described the water:

Here at the end is a quickly flowing river with rapids of great might. The river has seen many millennium of rock formations and changes in its path. The water, though quick moving, is serene in nature and secure in its ways. The rocks and bumps formed over the years are just minor obstacles to its ultimate end.

The water is the subject’s sexuality. What interests us here is the clarity of the water (representing attitude) and its movement (representing libido). Rushing, violent water indicates a powerful, vigorous, and quite possibly compulsive sex drive.

When you came to the water, you crossed it.

The subject is open to new sexual experiences.

This is how you described the cup:

Look, there's some water to drink!! That's such a lovely crystal container. The cut glass vessel is uniquely shaped like a pear. The water is clear and tastes delicious.

The vessel, or specifically the practicality of the vessel, is how the subject approaches marriage or bonding. A decorative container indicates that the subject views marriage as a romantic adventure.

You took the cup and filled it.

The subject is interested in marriage, and sex will be a significant part of that relationship.

This is how you described the key:

What's that? A key? It's so big and heavy. I wonder if it opens up a trunk full of clothes. No, I think it opens up a treasure box full of dreams.

The key is the ideal career for the subject. What interests us here is how the key appears (representing how others view the career) and what it may open (representing the subject’s goals for the career). Keys that allow access to treasure or other valuable things indicate that the subject is fixated on gaining wealth through a career. On the other hand, the “box of dreams” could imply that the subject expects emotional fulfillment instead. Old-fashioned keys suggest that the subject desires a traditional career.

You confronted the bear.

In a crisis, the subject prefers the direct, no-nonsense approach.

When you came to the wall, you jumped over it.

The wall represents death: by jumping over it, the subject not only acknowledges death but has come to accept its finality.