Metaphorical associative cards: a deep tool for self-knowledge

Have you ever had something bothering you inside, but it’s hard to explain in words? The feeling is there, but you can’t understand the meaning? It is for such situations that the language of metaphors exists – figurative, deep, irrational, but very precise.

⠀ And today I want to introduce you to one of the psychological tools – metaphorical associative cards (MAC).

Where did MAC come from?

Metaphorical cards appeared at the intersection of art therapy, psychoanalysis and gestalt.

The first popular log “OH-card” was created by German artist Eli Ramstein together with Canadian therapist Moritz Egetermeyer in the 1980s. ⠀ They sought to create a tool that would help people express what is sometimes difficult to explain – their feelings, internal conflicts, stories and experiences – through visual images.

And they succeeded: today there are hundreds of MAC logs, and they are actively used all over the world.

What are metaphorical cards?

This is a set of cards with images, words or a combination of both. The cards do not have a fixed meaning – everyone sees in them what resonates specifically with them.

For example, on one card there is a girl in the rain. One client will say: “This is about loneliness”, another – “About freedom”.

This is the magic of MAC: you yourself create the meaning, opening the way to a deep internal dialogue.

What topics do MAC work with? Metaphorical cards can be used both in psychological counseling and in coaching, in personal searches or even in working with teams. They are effective for:

– working through emotions: anxiety, resentment, anger, fears

– exploring internal conflicts

– improving relationships with yourself and others

– finding resources and support during difficult periods

– career choice and self-realization

– increasing self-esteem and awareness of your own value

– working with traumatic memories (a soft, ecological method)

How does it work? MACs interact not with logic, but with our subconscious. It is the source of our reactions, decisions, behavioral scenarios. Sometimes it is difficult to get to the heart of the problem. And the image is precise, instantaneous, honest. ⠀

During a MAC session, the client chooses a card – intuitively, not with the mind. And begins to say: what does he see? What does he feel? How is this akin to life? ⠀

This process includes deep self-knowledge – we see our situation from an unexpected angle. This can be the beginning of great internal healing.

What does working with metaphorical cards give?

Contact with yourself – honest and deep

Unexpected insights sometimes one card gives an answer that could not be found for years

Transformation of the view of the situation

Expansion of awareness – about your desires, needs, boundaries

Gentleness: MACs do not traumatize, they respect your pace and safety

Resource: it is easier to find support through images than just words

Do you need to have talent to work with MACs? Absolutely not. They are not about art or analysis of symbols – but about your inner experience. You can not see anything “wrong” – only the way you see.

Therefore, MACs are not magic, but the result is sometimes truly magical. They do not solve everything for you, but they help you understand yourself better, find answers inside, where they have always been simply hidden behind the noise of thoughts.

If you want a soft, but deep way to look at yourself from the inside, I invite you to a meeting with MACs. Perhaps it is there that you will see what you have been looking for for a long time

Psychologist Irina Omelchenko