Inside Out – Disney Pixar Psychology

So it’s the long school summer holidays again and I face the challenge common to most parents of balancing work with entertaining the children. On lovely weather days like today that entails writing this blog whilst the children play in the fountains at Granary Square in London’s Kings Cross. At times like this my main state of mind is gratitude.

On more typically British summer days the fail safe entertainment is a trip to the cinema. On one such rainy day last week I took my two to see Disney Pixar’s latest release Inside Out. Now that we are past the Bambi and Dumbo stage the kids films are pretty enjoyable for adults (although I must say that I loved Bambi and Dumbo too) and, as a Psychotherapist, I was particularly looking forward to seeing Inside Out, as the main action of the film is set in the inside workings of the character’s minds. The premise is that the mind is run by five emotions, Joy, Sadness, Fear, Anger and Disgust, shown primarily in the mind of Riley, an 11 year old girl. The first emotion to arrive after Riley’s birth is Joy, and Joy pretty much runs the show until Riley’s family relocate. At this point Riley is faced with the challenge of losing her friends and her childhood home and the emotion of Sadness starts to have a greater influence on her. A situation develops that results in Joy and Sadness being absent from the control panel of Riley’s mind for some time and life really becomes difficult for Riley with Anger, Fear and Disgust in charge. The central message of the film, for me at least, is that Joy can’t always be in charge and in fact, it’s not appropriate or helpful for Joy to be the primary emotion. Joy learns that Sadness, in particular, attracts more love and support for Riley at times of need than Joy can. The other core message of the film is that all of the emotions are allowed to be there and are necessary to the balance of the character’s life.

The film’s message that Joy doesn’t need to be in charge all of the time reminds me of the ongoing focus in popular psychology literature on the pursuit of happiness. Although I wouldn’t argue with the aim of feeling happy, it is unrealistic to expect oneself to be happy all of the time and holding that expectation can actually increase the chances of feeling exactly the opposite. Human experience is complex and to have a singular goal of ‘happiness’ takes away the subtleties and nuances of other feelings, reducing the richness of life. As we have all read somewhere, you can’t know happiness, or Joy in the film’s narrative, without knowing Sadness.

I’m also in full support of the film’s point that all emotions are allowed. I cringe at the phrase ‘negative emotion’ that is so frequently used in my profession. All of the emotions in the film other than Joy could be classed as ‘negative’ and, therefore, up for reduction or elimination in some forms of therapy. We feel Anger when our values have been offended or we have been threatened. That sounds useful to me. We feel Fear when we are in danger. Our survival chances would be severely limited without that emotion. Disgust guides us away from people, places, practices and even food and drink items that may be dangerous for us, although in the film this is mainly focussed on broccoli for Riley. Sadness is so closely connected to the so called ‘positive’ human traits of empathy, compassion, love and connection as to be inseparable from them, as Sadness is from Joy in the film. We need all emotions in balance as either one of these five feelings being in charge would be detrimental to a person’s life experience.

I’m not going to examine the question of whether or not the five chosen emotions were the ‘right’ ones as, clearly, the film needed to be contained to some level and, broadly, I think Disney did a great job with the choices they made. What is missing, of course, is the concept of a rational mind, which is so familiar to psychotherapy thinking. Riley’s mind is exclusively managed by emotions. Mindfulness tells us that when we combine the reasonable, rational, left brain with the emotions and sensations of the right brain we find our Wise Mind, a place where can access all of our resources. This is not addressed in the film although the idea of integration is. At the beginning of the film Riley has a number of separate personality islands in her mind, such as Goofball Island, representing her fun side, Honesty Island, symbolising her value of telling the truth, Family Island …. you get the idea. During the challenge of the home relocation each of these islands is systematically and dramatically destroyed, until the film’s happy resolution (this is Disney after all) when a new, singular, larger and fully integrated personality island develops, along with an expanded console for the emotions to drive Riley’s life experience.

One of the aspects of this film that I think will be useful to my work as a Psychotherapist is the clear visual image I now have to support clients who feel like they are managed by one primary, (usually judged as negative), emotion. I can see in my mind’s eye the characters of Fear and Sadness when I’m working with my clients who are dominated by anxiety or depression and I can imagine these characters pushing Joy out of the way whilst they run the console of my client’s mind. For those clients who have seen the film, we have this shared internal image and, consequently, a shared language which is helping me to guide them into a more compassionate relationship with the part of them that is currently running the show of their mind.

Other attractions to the film from a psychotherapy point of view are the film’s attempts at acknowledging the subconscious, dreams, our internal thought train, short, long term and core memories. All in all Inside Out really is an accomplished film, beyond its significant value as a piece of entertainment.

As I turn my attention back to the children running about in the fountains in Granary Square I have to admit that the main emotion on show here, as well as in my heart, is Joy. Although that little boy over there is securing the full attention of his mother as he cries with sadness at being told it’s time to go home and that little girl is holding her father’s hand very tightly as she looks in fear at the water …

Contact Local Counselling Centre for help with any emotional concern. hello@localcounsellingcentre.co.uk 01462 674671 option 2

Jo Coker, LCC Director, writes on #CarersWeek

I first met Anne three years ago. She was a very fit 70-year-old woman who lived alone and told me that she was totally exhausted. For 7 years she had been looking after her daughter, Gemma, and 17-year-old granddaughter, Lucy, following Gemma’s diagnosis with aggressive breast cancer. Sadly, her son-in-law found the whole process of the diagnosis and treatment too much to bear, and following a very severe depression, had left the family. This meant that much of the burden of care and finance had fallen on Anne. Increasingly Lucy, as she got older, was helping with her mother’s care and was classified as a young carer.

With Gemma terminally ill, Anne struggled with her emotions as she faced losing her much-loved daughter, supporting Lucy and the sheer physical aspects of Gemma’s illness and care. She told me that the nights were the worst as it was the only time she could think and that sometimes these thoughts were very bleak. In particular she worried about the future and her physical and mental ability to care for Lucy as she got older. Anne said that Lucy was wonderful in helping care for Gemma, but she was concerned about the impact that this role would have on her in the future.

Anne and young Lucy are part of the army of carers in the UK. It is estimated that 10% of the population are carers, though typically it takes two years for people to recognize that they are in the role of being a carer. Carers come from all walks of life, cultures and can be any age, they provide unpaid support to family members, neighbours or friends who otherwise would not be able to manage alone. Their unselfish actions save the country a massive amount of money so it is only right that in #CarersWeek we celebrate their selfless actions and offer some helpful tips on how to cope.

• Most counties offer local countywide carers support information websites, which have useful information and guidance on benefits, respite care and support groups. As well as social events targeted specifically for those who are caring and who are young carers. There is also psychological support available, so contact them and get some much-needed help.
• Tell your GP. Very often GP’s do not know a person is a carer. Telling them will enable them to also offer support and practical help.
• Do not rebuff offers of help. Many people like to help and support carers in their role, so if someone offers to sit while you go out for a few well-earned hours, take them up on it.
• Think about what you need in life, failing to take care of your needs can lead to resentment, so if a daily walk or swim makes you a happier, better carer investigate how you can accomplish this.
• Keep healthy yourself! Watch your diet and lifestyle. It is easy to seek comfort through food or drink, have treats but do not become reliant on them.
• Look after your psychological health. If you need some counselling then seek it out. There are many low cost services, Local Counselling Centre, some of which will provide home visits or online help.
• Reach out to others in a similar position. They will have tips and will be able to offer support also. Joining a forum can be really helpful and can be done from home.

Anne and Lucy received much needed support and respite from their local carers group and also Macmillan Nurses, who enabled them to care for Gemma until her death. Both were provided with ongoing psychological support and are coping well a year on. Lucy has just started her second year studying Medicine at University and wants to be an Oncologist. It would seem her role as a carer did have a lasting effect, but a positive one!

If you are struggling as a carer contact Local Counselling Centre and speak to one of our specialist therapists. Sessions are available from just £15.00. Contact LCC on 01462-674671