Some forms of psychotherapy rely on common sense. The kinds that I am involved with and introduce my clients to often sound like nonsense until their effect becomes clear. ‘Secrets as symptoms’ is to my mind a very down to earth way of stating the obvious.

We all know that if we try to keep quiet about things we are unhappy with we usually end up ‘exploding’ or at least getting a headache, or that it’s possible to say exactly what we wish we did not. All of these things, the metaphorical explosion, the headache, and the wrong thing said, are symptomatic of things that were trying not to be said.

When the truth comes out it is often unwelcome.

‘Common sense’ can be a form of thinking that represses interesting, challenging thoughts. We need to be wary of it and to find places where no stone remains unturned in thinking about ourselves.

Freud had so much to say about this kind of thing that his thoughts have evolved into millions of books about psychotherapy, many of which try to have the last word on the subject (try reading some Lacan) but none of which do. Instead their authors become scrutinised for what they failed to take into account, usually in their own thinking.

Never mind.