---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Only that I've never met a psychoanalyst…"
description: "\"“Only that I've never met a psychoanalyst who didn't – at least subconsciously – offer his system as a substitute for religion. Present company include..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/df0/frank-herbert-262_business_only-that-i-ve-never-met-a-psychoanalyst_2777538.jpg"
---

#  Only that I've never met a psychoanalyst who didn't – at…

![“Only that I've never met a psychoanalyst who didn't – at least subconsciously – offer his system as a substitute for religion. Present company included. We set ourselves up as little gods – all-knowing, all-healing. People resent that and rightly. We have polite labels for our failures. We agree…” quote by Frank Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/df0/frank-herbert-262_business_only-that-i-ve-never-met-a-psychoanalyst_2777538.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/df0/frank-herbert-262_business_only-that-i-ve-never-met-a-psychoanalyst_2777538.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/df0/frank-herbert-262_business_only-that-i-ve-never-met-a-psychoanalyst_2777538.jpg)

> ““Only that I've never met a psychoanalyst who didn't – at least subconsciously – offer his system as a substitute for religion. Present company included. We set ourselves up as little gods – all-knowing, all-healing. People resent that and rightly. We have polite labels for our failures. We agree among ourselves that anything bearing one of those labels is, of course, incurable.’ Dr””

[Frank Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-herbert/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

He critiques psychoanalysis for replacing religion, positioning analysts as god‑like figures, and labeling failures as incurable.

**In simple terms:** Psychoanalysis mimics religion, labeling failures.

Key Takeaway

Question authority in therapy.

Themes

psychoanalysis religion authority

Mood

critical thought‑provoking

Type

philosophical analytical

When to use this quote

- mental health treatment
- spiritual counseling
- academic critique

Key Concepts

God complex labeling skepticism

Questions to Reflect On

- How can we recognize and avoid substitute beliefs?

A Different Perspective

Is any system truly free of dogma?

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Business](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/business/) [Psychoanalyst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychoanalyst/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/)

## Related quotes

> [I'd figure out ways to use role-playing in the healing of people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerry-washington/i-d-figure-out-ways-to-use-role-playing-in-the-healing-of-people/)

[Kerry Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kerry-washington/)

> [“Healing is delivered through believers like you and I. When we lay hands on the sick, God has an opportunity to heal them. If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/praying-medic/healing-is-delivered-through-believers-like-you-and-i-when-we-lay/)

[Praying Medic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/praying-medic/)

> [“Woody Allen once said that 90 percent of life is about showing up. Ninety percent of healing people in psychological pain is shutting up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-ablow/woody-allen-once-said-that-90-percent-of-life-is-about-showing-up/)

[Keith Ablow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-ablow/)

> [My sister had some ailment and convulsions that she suffered from, and she had been sent to some place to go and get healed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-tambo/my-sister-had-some-ailment-and-convulsions-that-she-suffered-from-and/)

[Oliver Tambo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-tambo/)

> [“Simply put, if you know Jesus and you believe He is still healing people today, He will heal the sick through you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/praying-medic/simply-put-if-you-know-jesus-and-you-believe-he-is-still-healing/)

[Praying Medic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/praying-medic/)

> [I believe that animals are more healing than people; they don't have in their mindset to lie, break promises, be verbally abusve, unaccepting of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-linn/i-believe-that-animals-are-more-healing-than-people-they-don-t-have/)

Gail Linn

> [“the Buddha may well have been the original psychoanalyst, or, at least, the first to use the mode of analytic inquiry that Freud was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-epstein/the-buddha-may-well-have-been-the-original-psychoanalyst-or-at-least/)

[Mark Epstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-epstein/)

> [Freud pointed out, in his Problem of Lay Analysis, that it is extremely unlikely that a young man who would throw the best years…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-goodman/freud-pointed-out-in-his-problem-of-lay-analysis-that-it-is-extremely/)

[Paul Goodman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-goodman/)

> [To a psychoanalyst, a woman pilot, particularly a married one with children, must prove an interesting as well as an inexhaustible subject. Torn between…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-thaden/to-a-psychoanalyst-a-woman-pilot-particularly-a-married-one-with/)

Louise Thaden

> [“For a psychoanalyst to be any good with Franny at all, he'd have to be a pretty peculiar type. I don't know. He'd have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-salinger/for-a-psychoanalyst-to-be-any-good-with-franny-at-all-he-d-have-to-be/)

[J.D. Salinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-salinger/)

> [I went to a psychoanalyst. He explained things about my love life that I found very impressive... almost scary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/britney-spears/i-went-to-a-psychoanalyst-he-explained-things-about-my-love-life-that/)

[Britney Spears](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/britney-spears/)

> [Being a good psychoanalyst, in short, has the same disadvantage as being a good parent: The children desert one as they grow up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morton-hunt/being-a-good-psychoanalyst-in-short-has-the-same-disadvantage-as/)

Morton Hunt

> [I cannot conceive how anybody in his right mind should go to a psychoanalyst.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-nabokov/i-cannot-conceive-how-anybody-in-his-right-mind-should-go-to-a/)

[Vladimir Nabokov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-nabokov/)

> [I'm going to my psychoanalyst one more year, then I'm going to Lourdes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-allen/i-m-going-to-my-psychoanalyst-one-more-year-then-i-m-going-to-lourdes/)

[Woody Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-allen/)

> [If you can't, or won't, think of Seymour, then you go right ahead and call in some ignorant psychoanalyst. You just do that. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-you-can-t-or-won-t-think-of-seymour-then-you-go-right-ahead-and/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

## More by Frank Herbert

> [“He who can destroy a thing has the real control of it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-herbert/he-who-can-destroy-a-thing-has-the-real-control-of-it/)

[Frank Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-herbert/)

> [“A leader, you see, is one of the things that distinguishes a mob from a people. He maintains the level of individuals. Too few…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-herbert/a-leader-you-see-is-one-of-the-things-that-distinguishes-a-mob-from-a/)

[Frank Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-herbert/)

> [“I will tell you this only once. Homosexuals have been among the best warriors in our history, the berserkers of last resort. They were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-herbert/i-will-tell-you-this-only-once-homosexuals-have-been-among-the-best/)

[Frank Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-herbert/)

> [“Between depriving a man of one hour from his life and depriving him of his life there exists only a difference of degree.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-herbert/between-depriving-a-man-of-one-hour-from-his-life-and-depriving-him/)

[Frank Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-herbert/)

> [The surest way to keep a secret is to make someone think they already know the answer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-herbert/the-surest-way-to-keep-a-secret-is-to-make-someone-think-they-already/)

[Frank Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-herbert/)

> [“how inevitable it was that the aristocrat would refuse his final duty—which was to step aside and vanish into history.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-herbert/how-inevitable-it-was-that-the-aristocrat-would-refuse-his-final-duty/)

[Frank Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-herbert/)

> [“What we should have done was test the gift first. We should have probed for dangers. We were too bedazzled by it, though.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-herbert/what-we-should-have-done-was-test-the-gift-first-we-should-have/)

[Frank Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-herbert/)

> [“Have you noticed, Stil, how beautiful the young women are this year?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-herbert/have-you-noticed-stil-how-beautiful-the-young-women-are-this-year/)

[Frank Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-herbert/)

> [“Humans are born with a susceptibility to that most persistent and debilitating disease of intellect: self-deception. The best of all possible worlds and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-herbert/humans-are-born-with-a-susceptibility-to-that-most-persistent-and/)

[Frank Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-herbert/)

> [Face your fears or they will climb over your back.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-herbert/face-your-fears-or-they-will-climb-over-your-back/)

[Frank Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-herbert/)

> [Many have marked the speed with which Muad'Dib learned the necessities of Arrakis. The Bene Gesserit, of course, know the basis of this speed.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-herbert/many-have-marked-the-speed-with-which-muad-dib-learned-the/)

[Frank Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-herbert/)

> [“The assumption that a whole system can be made to work better through an assault on its conscious elements betrays a dangerous ignorance. This…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-herbert/the-assumption-that-a-whole-system-can-be-made-to-work-better-through/)

[Frank Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-herbert/)

> [The power to destroy a thing is the absolute control over it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-herbert/the-power-to-destroy-a-thing-is-the-absolute-control-over-it/)

[Frank Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-herbert/)

> [Providence and Manifest Destiny are synonyms often invoked to support arguments based on wishful thinking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-herbert/providence-and-manifest-destiny-are-synonyms-often-invoked-to-support/)

[Frank Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-herbert/)

> [If you ask "Should we be in space?" you ask a nonsense question. We are in space. We will be in space.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-herbert/if-you-ask-should-we-be-in-space-you-ask-a-nonsense-question-we-are/)

[Frank Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-herbert/)

[Explore all 776 Frank Herbert quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-herbert/)

## More Business quotes

> [Companies with cultures that celebrate diverse opinions and encourage the exchange of ideas have an advantage when solving difficult problems. A company that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doug-mcmillon/companies-with-cultures-that-celebrate-diverse-opinions-and-encourage/)

[Doug McMillon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doug-mcmillon/)

> [You can laugh at me, but I understand show business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ksenia-sobchak/you-can-laugh-at-me-but-i-understand-show-business/)

[Ksenia Sobchak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ksenia-sobchak/)

> [“Start a business, not a startup”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/start-a-business-not-a-startup/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/take-some-books-and-read-that-s-an-immense-help-and-books-are-always/)

[Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/)

> [I'm a business first and foremost so whatever my business is, it's separate from my personal. It's like whatever I do business wise, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/snoop-dogg/i-m-a-business-first-and-foremost-so-whatever-my-business-is-it-s/)

[Snoop Dogg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/snoop-dogg/)

> [Many early-stage entrepreneurs make one simple mistake: Describing this 'big picture' in vague concepts and words.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sunil-nagaraj/many-early-stage-entrepreneurs-make-one-simple-mistake-describing/)

[Sunil Nagaraj](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sunil-nagaraj/)

> [Nobody has a crystal ball, and part of evolving a business plan is to say, 'I might have said we're going left, but I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-kavanaugh/nobody-has-a-crystal-ball-and-part-of-evolving-a-business-plan-is-to/)

[Ryan Kavanaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-kavanaugh/)

> [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-dragon/i-think-a-business-guy-is-different-from-an-artist-they-walk/)

[G-Dragon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-dragon/)

> [ “\[S\]ometimes, when you are a food person, the possible irrelevance of what you are doing doesn’t cross your mind until it’s too late. (Once,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-ephron/s-ometimes-when-you-are-a-food-person-the-possible-irrelevance-of/)

[Nora Ephron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-ephron/)

> [If you have a different mindset, you will have a different outcome: if you make different choices from your peers, your life will then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-ma/if-you-have-a-different-mindset-you-will-have-a-different-outcome-if/)

[Jack Ma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-ma/)

> [“Some say the Earth is angry Because he wants no company; I say the Earth is angry Because he lives alone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-k-jemisin/some-say-the-earth-is-angry-because-he-wants-no-company-i-say-the/)

[N.K. Jemisin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-k-jemisin/)

> [ If the State does not acquire supremacy over \[vast private\] enterprises, it becomes their puppet, and they become the real State. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/if-the-state-does-not-acquire-supremacy-over-vast-private-enterprises/)

[Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/)

> [It's not just that families can't buy a home or start a business without some savings tucked away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-cooper/it-s-not-just-that-families-can-t-buy-a-home-or-start-a-business/)

[Jim Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-cooper/)

> [I'm not into business at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freddie-mercury/i-m-not-into-business-at-all/)

[Freddie Mercury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freddie-mercury/)

> [I've long believed one of the mainsprings of our own liberty has been the widespread ownership of property among our people and the expectation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/i-ve-long-believed-one-of-the-mainsprings-of-our-own-liberty-has-been/)

[Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/)

[Browse all 39,016 Business quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/business/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“Only that I've never met a psychoanalyst who didn't – at least subconsciously – offer his system as a substitute for religion. Present company included. We set ourselves up as little gods – all-knowing, all-healing. People resent that and rightly. We have polite labels for our failures. We agree among ourselves that anything bearing one of those labels is, of course, incurable.’ Dr”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Frank Herbert"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-herbert/only-that-i-ve-never-met-a-psychoanalyst-who-didn-t-at-least/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Business"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-herbert/only-that-i-ve-never-met-a-psychoanalyst-who-didn-t-at-least/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/df0/frank-herbert-262_business_only-that-i-ve-never-met-a-psychoanalyst_2777538.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/df0/frank-herbert-262_business_only-that-i-ve-never-met-a-psychoanalyst_2777538.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/df0/frank-herbert-262_business_only-that-i-ve-never-met-a-psychoanalyst_2777538.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Only that I've never met a psychoanalyst who didn't – at least subconsciously – offer his system as a…” — Frank Herbert",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Frank Herbert",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-herbert/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“Only that I've never met a...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-herbert/only-that-i-ve-never-met-a-psychoanalyst-who-didn-t-at-least/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-herbert/only-that-i-ve-never-met-a-psychoanalyst-who-didn-t-at-least/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
