Double Binds and Residing in Our Own Traps

I always find thinking about double bind interesting and disturbing. We seem to live in a world of double binds. The more I think about them, the more I find them.

In working with double binds, I find that they bring many assumptions to the surface. We often assume there are certain ways of making sense of and reacting to situations. But, these ways of making sense and reacting are deeply immersed in the assumptions of a wide range of contexts. In order to come up with real, viable solutions to double binds, we have to step up a level where creative solutions are possible. This “stepping up a level” requires that we step away from the assumptions and typical patterns of response and examine critically the assumptions that trap us in these double binds. Unless we are willing to question these assumptions, we’re destined be subjects of our own (and our culture’s) assumptions.