Glossary: Abaissement du niveau mental

I'm starting a series of posts with short descriptions of common and important concepts in Jungian psychology. Here's the first one!


Abaissement du niveau mental

A slackness and relaxation of consciousness characterized by lack of attention and an inability to concentrate. Can occur spontaneously in mental illness, or it can be cultivated, as in active imagination, or the use of certain drugs. In such a state it’s easy for unconscious contents to emerge; as such, it’s important that the ego is strong enough to withstand the onslaught. An abaissement du niveau mental can lead to an enantiodromia, as the ego can no longer keep opposites apart. Such experiences require reflection and analysis to successfully integrate the unconscious contents. Also referred to archaically as “loss of soul”. (See also libido, depression, regression, and active imagination.)

It is a slackening of the tensity of consciousness, which might be compared to a low barometric reading, presaging bad weather. The tonus has given way, and this is felt subjectively as listlessness, moroseness, and depression. One no longer has any wish or courage to face the tasks of the day. One feels like lead, because no part of one's body seems willing to move, and this is due to the fact that one no longer has any disposable energy… The listlessness and paralysis of will can go so far that the whole personality falls apart, so to speak, and consciousness loses its unity…

Abaissement du niveau mental can be the result of physical and mental fatigue, bodily illness, violent emotions, and shock, of which the last has a particularly deleterious effect on one's self-assurance. The abaissement always has a restrictive influence on the personality as a whole. It reduces one's self-confidence and the spirit of enterprise, and, as a result of increasing egocentricity, narrows the mental horizon

- Jung, "Concerning Rebirth," CW 9i, pars. 213f