u/WolverineNo6184

Hey everyone,
I’m looking for some insight, feedback, or shared experiences from anyone who understands Jungian psychology, archetypes, or the "Dark Night of the Soul."
A while ago, I had two incredibly intense, highly charged visual experiences over two different nights. On the first night, I saw a phoenix in the sky. On another night, I saw an angel in the sky.
Immediately after these experiences, I plummeted into a massive, severe depression. It was so intense that I completely lost my sense of identity. It felt like who I used to be was entirely wiped out. I am still currently in the process of recovering and trying to rebuild myself from scratch.
Looking back through a Jungian lens, it feels like my unconscious mind was using these massive archetypes to signal a psychological "death and rebirth" process. The angel felt like a messenger of a major shift, and the phoenix predicted that I would have to burn down to ashes before I could change. It feels like I've been living through the alchemical nigredo (the blackening/emptiness) phase.
Has anyone else experienced highly symbolic visions or intense synchronicities right before a major psychological collapse or depression? How did you navigate losing your identity, and how did you eventually start to rebuild your new "Self" from the ashes?
I would love to hear your thoughts, feedback, or any advice you might have for someone still on the road to recovery. Thanks.

Hey everyone,
I’m looking for some insight, feedback, or shared experiences from anyone who understands Jungian psychology, archetypes, or the "Dark Night of the Soul."
A while ago, I had two incredibly intense, highly charged visual experiences over two different nights. On the first night, I saw a phoenix in the sky. On another night, I saw an angel in the sky.
Immediately after these experiences, I plummeted into a massive, severe depression. It was so intense that I completely lost my sense of identity. It felt like who I used to be was entirely wiped out. I am still currently in the process of recovering and trying to rebuild myself from scratch.
Looking back through a Jungian lens, it feels like my unconscious mind was using these massive archetypes to signal a psychological "death and rebirth" process. The angel felt like a messenger of a major shift, and the phoenix predicted that I would have to burn down to ashes before I could change. It feels like I've been living through the alchemical nigredo (the blackening/emptiness) phase.
Has anyone else experienced highly symbolic visions or intense synchronicities right before a major psychological collapse or depression? How did you navigate losing your identity, and how did you eventually start to rebuild your new "Self" from the ashes?
I would love to hear your thoughts, feedback, or any advice you might have for someone still on the road to recovery. Thanks.

Hey everyone, just wanted to give a little update on my journey so far.

I started on 20mg for the first 4 weeks, then moved up to 40mg, which I’ve now been on for 5 weeks. Honestly? It’s been slow going. I’ve had about 5 good days in total where I genuinely felt like myself — which I’m holding onto, but I won’t pretend it feels like a lot.

The hardest part for me is that my depression hits mostly on the cognitive side. I get anxiety, brain fog, trouble thinking clearly or processing information. On the bad days, I just feel… slow. Dull. Like I can’t access my own mind properly.

Does anyone else experience this? The cognitive symptoms more than the emotional ones? Would love to know I’m not alone in this.

I had a hypomanic episode during which I saw a phoenix and an angel, heard voices, and felt objectively smarter than usual. Afterward, I crashed to the point where I couldn’t form a simple sentence in my native language — despite normally being fluent in three languages. Things have improved since then, but not back to how they used to be. I still feel like my brain doesn’t function the way it used to; I used to be witty and extroverted.

I told my psychiatrist about this, and since I’m mainly experiencing depressive episodes, he started me on fluoxetine. I’ve been on it for seven weeks now, and during that time I’ve had four separate days where I felt like myself again. I believe the cognitive impairment is temporary and will resolve once the depression lifts.

I would love to hear some positive stories of people who had overcome that