Wrapping Up: Reflection on my Madrid Internship Experience

Whoa! My time here in Madrid flew by much faster than I expected, and although I’m quite sad to be leaving, I’m walking away feeling incredibly grateful for the opportunities I’ve had to learn and grow while here.

As I’m sure you are all aware, my blog’s title is no longer applicable to current situation. After two weeks of attending The Madrid Center of Psychoanalysis, Mariah and I reached our breaking point, and were pulled from the program ever so graciously by Tania. Reasons for our leaving stem from the same difficulties I mentioned within the second to last paragraph of my previous blog post. After week one, Mariah and I both continued to feel underestimated by our Lecturers, in our ability to comprehend the subject matter and the language in which it was being presented. Thankfully Tania compassionately allowed us to terminate our program at the Madrid Center for Psychoanalysis, and we began our internship at Spiral the following week.

For those unfamiliar, Spiral is drug and alcohol rehabilitation center set in the heart of Gran Via. There, Mariah and I sit in on live group therapy sessions in which clients reflect on doubts they have in themselves and the program. In addition to Client’s struggles with substance abuse, several also express self-esteem issues, symptoms of depression, and narcissistic personality traits. Sessions become so dramatic at times I feel as though I am sitting in on a live episode of Dr.Drew Celebrity Rehab! Many of the clients are quite talkative and love cracking jokes about each other, and attempting to speak English with us. Although melodramatic at times, Spiral has very much opened my eyes to the harsh outcomes of addiction while at the same time allowing me to empathize with patients on levels I never thought possible.

Even though the internship component of my time spent in Madrid didn’t go according to plan, I am eternally grateful for all of the wonderfully eye-opening and pleasurable experiences, memories, and people I have encountered for the duration of my study abroad experience.

Week One Reflection

After several surprisingly cool and rainy days spent meandering through the streets and eats of Madrid, I was eager to meet with my internship coordinator and discover how I’ll be acquiring hands on experience within the field of Psychology.  As my classmates and I waited for our separate coordinators to arrive, two University of Minnesota students from a separate program here in Madrid entered the room and informed us that they would be accompanying Mariah and I for the duration of our internship experience at the Psychoanalysis Center. Much to our surprise, both students spoke fluent Spanish, which has been particularly helpful.

Finally, the director of our program, Pedro, arrived and led us to private room in which he attempted to enlighten, entirely in Spanish mind you, us all upon the central topics and themes in which we would cover for the following six weeks. In addition, we were given a stapled pamphlet that described the lesson plans and the various coordinators teaching them for everyday of the week. I found this process beneficial, for I felt better assured in the Center’s organization and time management skills than expected. After our twenty-minute or so program synopsis ended, Mariah and I felt confident in our ability to converse at a decent pace in Spanish, although much to our dismay, we couldn’t have been more wrong.

When I first entered the Psychoanalysis Center, I was shocked by how unbelievably quiet the clinic was. With so many conference style rooms and libraries, I assumed there would be patients, employees, or even a janitor around somewhere, but no. The only other trace of human life besides our daily coordinator and was and continues to be a sole receptionist.

Although our lesson plans are laid out and organized to the tee, our coordinators are not. Every morning we are greeted by an unfamiliar face that proceeds to lecture us for 3 hours straight on the same Freudian principles we learned from the day before, only applying it to an alternative population such as cannibals or babies, or even cannibal babies’ (yes someone tried to argue this).  Although Mariah and I have decent Spanish comprehension abilities, our speaking abilities are subpar. As a result, some lecturers discourage us from attempting conversations in Spanish, and order the other two fluent students to translate for us every three minuets despite our constant nods and “sí’s” of reassurance. I do appreciate this gesture, however I sometimes feel it as a slight stab at my competence.

All in all, although I do find some of the lectures interesting, my time thus far at the Psychoanalysis center feels more like a seminar than an internship experience, but I’m hoping that Tania can somehow assist me in changing a few things.