A Rhizome of the Non-Understandable: Gender Diversity and the Emerging Androgynous in Clinical Practice

This essay is the outcome of research carried out by a group of Latin American analysts led by Mario Saiz. Analyzing 400 dreams collected from their patients between 2021 and 2025, they explored the emergence of the androgynous figure. The analysts identified images that corresponded neither to the anima nor to the animus. They associated them with the rhizomatic androgyne, a shape-shifting, non-binary figure of the psyche. This androgyne is envisioned as a living symbol of inner transformation. The study shows that the androgyne emerges during periods of crisis, of transformation of the identity or profound inner challenges. The researchers were able to distinguish three forms of the androgyne: undifferentiated, in transitus, and differentiated. The clinical case of Francisco is cited to illustrate the three forms via the analysis of the dreams that occurred during his therapeutic journey. The dream experiences exemplify the transition from a narcissistic merging to gradual integration of opposites. The androgyne figure prompts us to rethink Jungian practice as we confront diversifying genders and sexes. It is the symbol of an emerging soul that cannot be reduced to inherited categories. The analyst’s role consists in accompanying the incomprehensible, welcoming new forms of identity, and recognizing the plurality of the human psyche.