Basic anxiety can be roughly described as a feeling of being small, insignificant, helpless, deserted or endangered in a world that is out to abuse, cheat, humiliate, betray, envy... . And special in this is the child's feeling that the parents' love, their Christian charity, honesty, generosity ... may be only a pretense.

Like all sciences and all valuations, the psychology of women has hitherto been considered only from the point of view of men.

Life as a therapist is ruthless; circumstances that are helpful to one neurotic may crush another.

There is no such thing as a normal psychology that holds for all people.

Because it corresponds to a vital need, love is overvalued in our culture. It becomes a phantom - like success - carrying with it the illusion that it is a solution for all problems.

It would not be going too far to assert that ... conflict confronts every woman who ventures upon a career of her own and who is ... unwilling to pay for her daring with the renunciation of her femininity.

[Neurotics are] torn by inner conflicts ... Every neurotic ... is at war with himself.