My job is to support and help people in their quest for a better life and understanding themselves. Today, like many other days, I am sitting in my office waiting for my patient. His name is Marco, and he is often late. Marco is an interesting and complex person, but his habit of constantly being late and missing sessions sometimes throws me off balance.

Today is no exception. I'm sitting in my cozy office, looking at my watch. Fifteen minutes have already passed since the appointed time, and Marco is still not there. I decide I need to pause and go out into the hallway to pour myself some coffee.

The corridor of our center is quiet and calm; peace always reigns here. I slowly and happily pour myself a cup of hot coffee, enjoying the aroma of freshly ground beans. Coffee for me is a small ritual, a way to relax and take a little break from thoughts about work.

I sit on a small sofa by the window, overlooking a small park. The trees have already dressed themselves in bright green leaves, and everything around is coming to life after winter hibernation. I think about my patients, about their stories, about how each meeting with them is a step towards understanding and healing.

Marco, however, is a special case. He is goofy but charismatic, and clearly avoids delving into his problems. His tardiness and absences are not just a matter of discipline. This is a way of avoiding confrontation with what really worries him. I understand this, and therefore every time he does come, I try to use our time as efficiently as possible. Money is always a painful topic for all male patients, patients like Marco are a beggar-hard worker, and like all workers, he wants to be loved, but love is expensive. How to earn money and change your social status? No way!

Today, however, he is gone again. I look at my cup, wondering how I can help Marco overcome this barrier. Maybe we should try a different approach? Or discuss again the importance of regular meetings?

I return to the office, preparing for the session. There are footsteps in the corridor, a familiar knock on the door. Marco enters, slightly embarrassed by his tardiness, but with his characteristic smile.

- Sorry for being late, Senor Deus,” he says, sitting down in a chair.
- It’s okay, Marco,” I answer. - Let's start.
Each of our sessions is a small step towards a big change in which patients believe, like Marco, they believe that I can do something or know something, but this is not so, I have no idea how to help him, but I can listen to him - for money.
Marco has been attending my sessions for almost four months now. Marco is a thirty-year-old man who works as a cleaner in a parking lot, and he understood perfectly well that while working at this job, he was unlikely to buy such a car. Well, maybe in ten years, and even if he “sits” on only salads, or practices fasting, his credit history is meager so he is unlikely to get a loan for a car. His main problem is his obsessive dream of buying a car, which has become a source of his constant stress and neuroses. His desire was so strong that even in his dreams he saw himself next to her. It was a beautiful new Audi R8, black.
From the very first session, Marco talked about his dream. He wanted to buy a car to improve his quality of life and feel more independent and successful. But his earnings did not allow him to save the required amount, which caused him a feeling of hopelessness and disappointment.
Each session began with complaints. Marco talked about how he works hard, but his efforts do not bring the desired results. He believed that all his problems boiled down to his inability to buy a car. He spoke about it with such emotional intensity that sometimes it seemed that he was talking about something much more significant than just a material thing.
“You see, doctor,” he began, dropping his shoulders and sighing tiredly. - I'm already tired of this. I want to live, not exist. Once I have a car, everything will change. I will be able to go to nature, not depend on public transport, I will have more time for hobbies. But now all my money goes to renting an apartment and food. I just don't see a way out.
I listened to him, trying to understand the underlying reasons for his experiences. One day I asked him a question:
– Marco, what does this car mean to you? Why is it so important?
-It’s a symbol of freedom,” he answered after a long pause. – I feel trapped. It seems that there is a job, there is a roof over your head, but this is not the same. It seems to me that without a car I won’t be able to feel complete.
We began working on helping Marco learn to find joy and fulfillment in other aspects of his life. I invited him to think about what else could bring him a sense of freedom and independence. Gradually, he began to understand that his dream of a car had become a kind of defense mechanism, a way to avoid deepe

Over time, his attitude towards his dream changed. He began to appreciate small joys more, became more confident in himself and his capabilities. We discussed ways to improve his financial situation, but the focus shifted to his personal growth and emotional well-being.

A few months passed, and Marco no longer looked so depressed. He no longer began sessions by complaining about not having a car. Instead, he shared his successes, new hobbies and plans for the future.

This experience showed me how important it is to be able to see behind external desires and problems the deep causes of human suffering. After all, sometimes, in order to help a person, you need to help him understand himself and his true desires. There’s just one thing here, why am I telling all this? Marco is extremely naive.

- It really works! I am now back in this city again for work, in my Audi R8! - He shouted joyfully.
- I congratulate you, but don’t you think it’s strange that you made an appointment with me to tell me this, you have nowhere to throw the money?
- Power of Thought! Here's how I did it! Now I’ll tell you everything, doctor, it’s a real miracle! Maybe there is even a God! You told me that you are depressed and you don’t see the meaning in life, I also want to help you, it’s a miracle, just listen to me doc! Having formulated an Intention in the future, you set yourself a task in the present, and, conversely, any problem in the present can be turned into an intention in the future. Fulfilling your Intention is a journey from your present state to your desired state. This is your life path. Imagine that along this path there will be interesting and surmountable obstacles that will temper you and make you stronger; you will meet different people from whom you will learn something new and improve. Your path will develop you and benefit your loved ones, your homeland and the whole world. You must have the desire to make this journey. And you must believe that the goal is achievable and worth pursuing.
- Wow! Now listen, you have been working all this time, earning money, most likely you are still working to this day without days off, you haven’t been to therapy for a long time because you work in another city, and you are in this city only because your idiot boss has loaded you with his problems and threw a meeting with managers on you; they happened to be in this city, and the boss knew that you were from here and sent you.
- Yes, that’s right, but how did you recognize the senor?
- Listen, I just spoke stupidly at random, I basically can’t know this, I just voiced the most likely events, listen, you earned money for your car only because you worked hard and denied yourself basic things, you don’t even have a wife and children, It wasn’t hard for you to collect the amount in cash, now your credit history is more or less established and now you don’t work so hard, take more days off, rest, it’s harmful to work constantly. Don’t put nonsense into your head, this is just your subjective opinion, this is your illusion that you have achieved something, if everyone worked at work like you, then anyone would buy themselves the car of their dreams, and it doesn’t matter if they are negative or positive, or an esotericist, an atheist , Satanist, all this doesn’t matter, because all this doesn’t exist, well, if only you would just dream and your dream would come true, but no, you worked, you did everything to buy it. You’re great, you earned enough to buy a car, but that’s not the power of thought, it would be the power of thought if they gave you this car, or another example, if you won a casino, a lottery, but you earned it with your own labor, you did it you, in any case, you would have earned money for a cool car by working and working, you chose to believe in your illusion, working at work, and then you bought a car.
- You are right. Maybe I just believed so as not to fall into depression again, I don’t want to take Antidepressants or sleep again, well, after talking with you, my chest somehow felt heavier, I’ll go.

Of course, I didn’t want to destroy the illusions of this hard worker, but why are people so susceptible to esotericism and this topic of “the power of thought?”

Unfortunately, psychiatry and psychology do not deal with adequate statistics, because there are so many suicides from unsuccessful desires, people who believed in the “power of thought,” but this power does not exist, some even take out loans, some mortgage real estate because they are sure that if If he starts his private business, he will definitely succeed, and if someone succeeds, that lucky person will definitely be sure that it is his power of thought or the power of positivity, God and someone else. “The power of thought” is expensive, more expensive than my technique. What if I did some statistics like this? Maybe I’m like all these lectures, webinars, seminars on magic seminars that theatrically copy psychological techniques and mix all the crap with mysticism and esotericism?? People become rich not from their inner attitude, but from hard work and luck, luck is more important here. But "What is Luck?" Or have I become sentimental over the years or is Luck pure mysticism and does it exist?
My work is filled with emotions, stories and experiences of my patients. Today turned out to be a particularly difficult day: several difficult sessions in a row, each of which required full dedication. As the last patient left my office, I felt like I urgently needed some time to myself.

I left the office and headed towards the exit of the building. It was pleasantly cool outside, and I took a deep breath of fresh air, feeling the tension gradually leave my body. I decided to allow myself a little weakness - a cigarette, which I usually smoke in moments of particular stress.

Lighting a cigarette, I looked around. People were rushing about their business, some were talking on the phone, others were talking animatedly with a colleague. Cars rushed along the road, creating a continuous background noise. This bustle seemed strangely peaceful to me. Every person, every machine is part of a large, continuously moving mechanism.

I took a drag and blew out a puff of smoke, watching it dissolve into thin air. Thoughts about work and patients gradually faded into the background. I began to reflect on how often I forget about myself while caring for others. My work is important and meaningful, but I am also a human being, and I need time to recuperate.

The cigarette burned slowly and I used this moment to just be here and now, observing life around me. Over there, at the crossing, is a young mother with a child in her arms, patiently waiting for the green light. A little further on is an elderly man walking slowly along the sidewalk with a thoughtful expression on his face. All these people are part of the city bustle, each with their own history and their own concerns.

I thought about how important it is sometimes to just stop and look around. There are so many moments in our lives that we miss, rushing from one thing to another. But it is these moments, these small scenes of everyday life, that help us feel connected to the world.

The cigarette came to an end, and I threw it into the trash can standing nearby. Another deep breath of fresh air and I felt a little lighter. Time to return to the office, but now I had the feeling that I was at odds with myself. In the office, I was leafing through and looking for the most popular esoteric mystics who create popular mixes of therapies, their therapies are very specific and based on mysticism, I decided to talk, consult, communicate with a slightly different specialist, but in truth, I am tormented by doubts that all this bullshit with mysticism it is deception.
I found the most advertised meditation center on the Internet, the reviews were excellent, but this is what alerted me, but what also attracted me was that a former Psychiatrist-therapist, named Mario Galetti, gives lectures there, with his past experience, he interested me, I decided not to waste time and today, right now, go there, the center is on the outskirts of the city, I can get there in an hour, the center is open until six in the evening, if I go right now, I’ll have time to communicate.

Today I myself find myself in the role of a person looking for answers.
I'm heading to a yoga center to meet a mystic psychologist or whatever he is? My colleague, as it was written on his website, is a passionate supporter of alternative practices. I hope that my communication with this yogi will open up new perspectives for me and help me in my work. Yes, today I have an unusual task. I'm heading to a yoga center to meet with a mystic psychologist. My interest in this meeting stems from a desire to understand how alternative methods can complement traditional psychotherapy. But I admit honestly, I have doubts.