I am fond of the word “cathexis,” perhaps because it is fun to say or appears sort of mysterious. As in what the hell does that mean? I associate it mostly with Freud though I don’t think he made it up.
Very roughly, he seemed to mean by it “the investment of psychological energy in an object” (person, place, thing, belief, idea, activity or basketball team).
Recently, I cathexed with the L.A. Lakers.
More recently, my cathexis has weakened, and not just with the Lakers, but sort of everything. Nothing seems of much interest.
I am used to–while in withdrawal–mysterious aches and pains, muscle contractions, dry mouth, skin outbreaks, but this anti-cathexis may be the worst of it.
After the Lakers took the championship, the LA Times produced an entire section devoted to the Lakers and their struggle towards victory. Time was, I would have devoured that section immediately. But now in anti-cathexsis, I just let the section lie there and I have since thrown it out.
No cathexsis.
I suppose more mundanely I could say that I feel as if I am walking around in the fog. Details are not distinct. Trying to make out what’s there is just too tiring.
I could say that, but I like the word “cathexis.”
