History Main / EpiphanyTherapy

* In ''Manhua/GoddessCreationSystem'' Mingluan acts out because he's dissatisfied with being an inferior version of his older brother by engaging in hobbies he doesn't really enjoy while hiding his true self. When he overhears Xiaxi telling the story of the ugly duckling to a crying little girl it affects him deeply, causing him to take actions that are more in line with what he wants and what he's truly good at. It doesn't immediately make him happier, however, because it emphasizes his disconnect with his family.

* In ''Manga/FruitsBasket'', all of the Sohma family have deep-seated emotional problems, and while Tohru helps a number of them quite a lot, progress is realistically slow. For example, in the manga, [[spoiler:it seems like Tohru discovering Kyo's true form is going to be a case of EpiphanyTherapy, but Kyo is largely unchanged in the next volume - just somewhat happier and more trusting of Tohru. He still has major issues around being the cat from the Zodiac]].

* ''Film/TheWoodsman''. Walter does have an epiphany, but that epiphany seems to be that EpiphanyTherapy just doesn't happen, and he will take time to change but can overcome his demons as long as he doesn't give into them.

** Angel also ''have'' an epiphany that is an ''aversion'' of EpiphanyTherapy. He realizes that the fight against evil doesn't end because there's no big win -- so you just keep fighting every day.

* In Creator/PiersAnthony's ''Mode'' series, a single telepathy-assisted Epiphany Therapy session in which Colene confronts a few specific traumatic experiences completely cures her major depression and other psychological problems. It's telepathy, after all.

* Parodied on ''Series/MalcolmInTheMiddle''; when Hal thanks a psychiatrist for curing his sons, the guy starts spluttering that they've turned up many problems that need to be discussed - but they're out the door already.

* In ''[[Fanfic/TaarokosBuffyTheVampireSlayer Taaroko's Season 8]]'', while arguing with Spike about what it means to be a champion, Buffy simultaneously realises that she no longer has any feelings for Spike ''and'' is ready for a relationship with Angel, [[spoiler:even before Angel receives the Shanshu and becomes human]].

** ''ComicBook/XFactor'': One issue has the team going to therapeutic with Doc Samson (the universe's resident superhero psychiatrist). It helps some of them a little and makes no difference to others. Then much of the original team goes back to him... and it's noted by Samson that they're significantly more messed up.
** ''ComicBook/TheIncredibleHulk'': Doc Samson uses this with Bruce Banner/The Hulk to merge their different personalities into one, creating the Merged/Professor Hulk. This was subverted though, as Samson had insisted on following up with regular therapy sessions, and Hulk kept skipping them. It ''might'' have stuck if he had followed the doctor's advice.
** ''ComicBook/UltimateXMen'': Professor Xavier helped a washed-up martial arts student become a competent fighter by telepathically fixing her mental blocks.

* "Ailurophobe" by Creator/AnthonyBoucher had the main character go through this therapy to cure his morbid fear of cats (he couldn't even stand to hear words including the syllable "cat"). Under hypnosis, he realized it derived from an early childhood incident when he nearly died because of an abusive nanny named "Kitty." He was cured of fearing cats; now he had a phobia of ''women''. Ironic, since it was his fiancee who'd wanted him to get over the original phobia.
* In ''Franchise/TheDarkTower'' series' second book, ''Literature/TheDrawingOfTheThree'', Odetta / Detta seems to recover from Dissociative Identity Disorder (incorrectly called schizophrenia in the book) when her two personalities merge; this merged personality calls herself Susannah. Several books later, when Susannah is possessed by a demon, Detta comes back to help Susannah deal with it.
* ''Literature/TheDragonBelow'': Dandra's magically-induced split personality disorder takes a few moments of [[BattleInTheCenterOfTheMind internal conflict]] to resolve.

** In the short story "Ordeal in Space", the protagonist was accidentally [[DramaticSpaceDrifting cast into space]], causing him to develop acrophobia and forcing him to give up space travel. He hears a kitten stranded on a ledge outside his room, nerves himself up to go out and rescue it, and finds that he can now stare into the night sky without fear.

* In Creator/PiersAnthony's ''Mode'' series a single telepathy-assisted Epiphany Therapy session in which Colene confronts a few specific traumatic experiences completely cures her major depression and other psychological problems. It's telepathy, after all.

* In ''Literature/TheWheelOfTime'', Rand al'Thor spent 12 books gradually going mad due to the taint of the Dark One on the male half of the True Source and also the influence of Lews Therin, the man of whom he is the reincarnation and who exists as a voice in his head, that man having been driven completely insane by the taint before his death. Then, when he begins to feel desolate and hopeless about the state of the world and [[spoiler: almost kills his [[MuggleFosterParents dad]] during a heated argument]], he retreats to the top of the mountain that was created by Lews Therin's death throes and considers destroying the world with his awesome powers. [[spoiler:Fortunately for him and the world, he suddenly realizes that he has an opportunity to right Lews Therin's wrongs, so he instead uses his powers to destroy the artifact that made it possible for him to destroy the world, spontaneously integrates a sane version of the Lews Therin personality, and spends the 13th book fixing the stuff he screwed up during Book 12 because he was too busy shutting himself off emotionally.]] The greatest epiphany he has during this moment is that [[spoiler:there were never really two voices in his head -- it was always just him. He would never hear the "voice" of Lews Therin again.]]
* In ''Literature/WarriorCats'', when Firestar fears that Scourge will crush the clans, he laments that there were always four clans in the forest, but Scourge is trying to change that. Then [[TheWatcher [=StarClan=]]] tell him [[spoiler: that there were never four clans, there were always ''five''. Cue Firestar realizing that [=StarClan=] is always with him and that while he has [=StarClan's=] support and the gift of [[BackFromTheDead nine lives,]] Scourge does not.]]
* ''Literature/TheHitchhikersGuideToTheGalaxy''; the Total Perspective Vortex shows someone how insignificant they are in the universe, complete with negative effects, which are [[DrivenToMadness the destruction of the mind.]] It [[spoiler:has [[NoSell no effect]] on Zaphod because he's the most important being in that universe as he's ended up in a fake reality by jumping out a window instead of using the door. ItMakesSenseInContext.]]
* ''[[Literature/NineteenEightyFour 1984]]'' averts it. [[spoiler: Winston]] recalls a traumatic experience and bemoans that recording it has done nothing to avert the pain he feels about it.

* Played with in the Literature/XWingSeries.
** Kell Tainer starts out both stiff with terror at the man who killed his father (who, of course, is part of the squadron he joins) and with the nasty tendency to freeze up in panic when outnumbered in combat with teammates relying on him. He gets his epiphanies, finding that one, Janson is a ReasonableAuthorityFigure rather than prone to YouHaveFailedMe moments, and two, he'd met the love of his life in the squadron and he knows what would happen if he ran in a fight. They're no longer major issues. Still, he's always going to be uncomfortable around Janson, and he still gets the shakes and anxiety when he goes on missions.
** Seemingly played straight with the team's approach to snapping Myn Donos out of his HeroicBSOD, but he still has severe issues that he only really overcomes after two more books' worth of trauma.

* {{Discussed}} in the novel version of ''Literature/FlowersForAlgernon'', when Charlie and Alice watch a movie employing the trope. Charlie complains that the resolution is unrealistic, which -- Alice points out -- is a sign that he (Charlie) is learning to see beyond the surface of things. Note that Charlie may be drawing from his own experience, since his [[AbusiveParents abusive childhood]] left him full of psychological issues (beyond the mental retardation that gets cured, that is) and he needs therapy for a realistically long time.

* ''Series/{{Angel}}''

%%* ''Series/{{Apocalypse}} does this to an unsuspecting volunteer named Steven.

* ''Radio/{{Elvenquest}}:'' Spoofed in the case of Lord Darkness, whose BadBoss tendencies are pegged as being the result of childhood trauma. He goes and confronts the source, a bullying sorcerer/dietician... and remains a bad boss, much to his henchman's dismay. As Darkness explains, he has moved on from the trauma. Now he hurts minions because he ''enjoys'' it.

* ''[[VideoGame/TraumaCenter Trauma Center: Under the Knife 2]]''. After [[spoiler:losing his Healing Touch in the heat of an operation, and being unable to get it back]], Derek [[spoiler:goes back to his first hospital to get help from old friends. Long story short, they push him real hard and he gets it back. StatusQuoIsGod.]]

* In ''VideoGame/TalesOfTheAbyss'', Guy has an intense phobia of being touched by women. He eventually recalls the suppressed memory of the incident leading to his phobia and gets a little better, but he's by no means cured. He can temporarily overcome it if, say, one of his female friends is dangling over a cliff and needs someone to pull her back up, but that's it.
* In ''VideoGame/TheSuffering'', it takes Torque the length of the entire game to come to terms with his psychological issues as he slowly figures out [[KarmaMeter what sort of person he is]] and his fragmented past. Oh, and fights a giant monster representing his psychological trauma, because it's just that kind of game. Even ''then'', when the sequel rolls around, it turns out he's not actually cured, and facing the demons of his past causes a relapse. It still doesn't take years, but it's hardly an instant "have an epiphany and you're better" cure.

* ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII'' as a whole has a subversion.
** It's apparently played straight in the first game, where [[TheHero Cloud]], who has endured all sorts of MindRape and other horrors, has a JourneyToTheCenterOfTheMind that works as epiphany and he comes out of it in his right mind and ready to defeat [[BigBad Sephiroth]]. ...Unfortunately, as sequels to the game show, this burst of assurance is temporary and fragile, and comes crashing down times afterward, because what Cloud ''needs'' is a combination of time and skilled psychiatry. [[DeconstructedTrope It's a fairly accurate portrayal of how epiphanies in therapy work in real life]]--the patient's sudden realization may boost their mood and performance for a while, but without continued work with professionals, it doesn't last.
** Cloud's plight is made worse due to ''new'' trauma that is piled on him in the form of Geostigmata, specifically his own and that of his adopted ward Denzell. His inability to help Denzell coupled with his own agony make him feel like even ''more'' of a FailureHero. It takes [[spoiler:the need to rescue Denzell, Marlene, and other children from the Remnants, the return of his TrueCompanions (including Aerith and Zack in spirit form), the removal of his Geostigma, and the opportunity to beat the crap out of Sephiroth again]] for Cloud to ''finally'' start getting better.

* Averted in ''VideoGame/BaldursGateIIShadowsOfAmn''. Each of the original romanceable characters has their own issues, and it takes ''a lot'' of time (and sensible dialogue choices) for whomever you choose to deal with his/her problems, let alone move past them. If you continue the romance through ''Throne of Bhaal'', this even becomes a DefiedTrope -- [[spoiler: your love interest is forced to confront a wraith masquerading as someone from his/her past that strikes at their deepest fear or doubt.]] Some of them even say that it will take more than comforting words or a good snuggle to help them get over it.

* Averted and [[DeconstructedTrope deconstructed]] in ''VideoGame/{{Celeste}}''. At the beginning of Chapter 6, [[spoiler:Madeline and Theo have a heartfelt conversation by a campfire following their adventures in the Mirror Temple. After they both open up to each other, Madeline feels confident enough to confront Badeline, the manifestation of her unhealthy mental state. She then has a dream where she flies up to see the northern lights with golden feathers, (a new mechanic in the game) where she sees Badeline, and tells her that she doesn't need her anymore, and says that doing this will set them both free. This seems like it would lead to something good, but it [[GoneHorriblyWrong goes HORRIBLY wrong]] when Badeline goes insane and furiously holds Madeline captive with her tentacles. In a desperate attempt, Madeline tries to get rid of her by doing what she did two chapters earlier to curb a panic attack with the feather trick, but this fails hard, with Badeline ultimately slicing the feather in half, followed by throwing Madeline back down to the base of the mountain into a pit of crystals.]]
** The final chapter from the "Farewell" DLC is all about this. [[spoiler: Despite Madeline having mostly conquered her demons while climbing Mt. Celeste, Granny's death and the fact Madeline didn't get to say goodbye ended up causing her to have a relapse of her depression. She ends up having constant dreams about ascending the mountain and bringing Granny back to life, while Badeline [[JerkassHasAPoint rightfully]] points out this is emotionally and mentally self-destructive and she needs to finish grieving and move on. Madeline ignores this and they end up separating while Madeline figures that out on her own.]]
* Parodied in the "Therapy Wars" sidequest of ''VideoGame/SouthParkTheFracturedButWhole'', where the estranged Tweek and Craig go to couples counseling. They mend their bond after beating up a bunch of other kids who represent their relationship problems.

* ''VisualNovel/TokimekiMemorial 4'' has [[spoiler: Okura Miyako]]. While she initially seems just fine, when the protagonists ask her out on a date, then wonders about a rabbit-doll she carries around and later makes a joke about how she'll become a great wife, due to her wonderful cooking, to some guy in the future, she completely breaks. Her dialogue revolves mostly around [[spoiler: things she and the protagonist did as kids]], showing how important is it to her. [[spoiler: Miyako breaks when she feels that the protagonist only [[PrankDate asked her out on a date as a joke]] ''and'' realizes that he has forgotten, or doesn't care about, their childhood events and that they made the rabbit-doll she carries around together. At this point, Miyako breaks and flat-out goes {{Yandere}} on the protagonist, making him fight the rabbit-doll if he goes on a date with another girl, purposefully cooks him terrible food and gives it to him to eat, and overall talks in a very creepy tone of voice.]] The protagonist must date her for a prolonged time when this happens, but the big change comes in one scene where [[spoiler: Miyako lost the rabbit-doll's button eye next to the river and is frantically searching for it. The protagonist "heals" Miyako by telling her that, since they can't find the button, they should give up and rips a button off of his high school uniform and that she should use it for the doll's new eye]].

* ''Webcomic/DomainTnemrot'' has Angel who gained suicidal thoughts while captured by Morris. Despite being free and even beating up Morris at one point, [[http://www.tnemrot.com/comic/9-12/ she still has issues]] about getting in the ring.

'''Jake's Dad:''' Everybody who is ''evil'', Jake. Try letting me finish next time, hmm, yeah?"\\

* ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'':
** During the episode "The Beach", the villains have vented their individual examples of FreudianExcuse and are now feeling much better. So good in fact, that they gleefully trash the house and attack the guests of the cool teens who snubbed them. Interestingly enough, the only one in the group who never actually gets over the problem that gets brought up in the episode is Azula, who seemed to be completely at terms with it. [[spoiler:In the final episodes, it causes her epic VillainousBreakdown.]] Zuko, on the other hand, didn't get over his issues with that situation at the beach either. Uncle Iroh had been working on him for the entirety of the previous two seasons, but he froze before taking the step that would've taken him completely through his HeelFaceTurn. He finally completes it a few episodes later.
** "The Guru". Aang, in order to master the Avatar state, has to unlock a series of chakras by letting go of various Earthly, negative emotions, such as his grief over being TheLastOfHisKind, and the fear of failure against the Fire Lord. Every one of these takes about twenty seconds. The next season shows that he hasn't truly conquered any of them. By the time of ''Legend of Korra'', we learn that he ''never'' got over his TheLastOfHisKind issues. He had three children and the only one he ''didn't'' neglect was the only airbender.
* ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons''