Visiting a psychoanalyst in Argentina is considered as a routine, like going to a hairdresser to fix your haircut or to a dentist. Seeking mental health treatment is the norm, moreover, Argentinians have no stigma to talk about it in public. Over the last three decades, the country almost doubled the number of psychologists per capita, becoming a world-leading country with around 198 psychologists per 100,000 inhabitants. What are the main triggers that made people call Argentina as "Freudlandia"? The commonly discussed issues such as migrant's impact on society and high receptiveness everything coming from Europe, especially France, Italy and Spain, remains the question unanswered. However, psychoanalysis hardly ever linked to the country's cultural representations of it its need and how it goes against the country's politics and economy.

Argentinian president Mauricio Macri lives in Olivos, province of Buenos Aires. Twice a week, before entering Casa Rosada, he stops by a private consultancy. He's been doing psychotherapy over 25 years. When he got elected, he said that the first thing he will do on his first working day is to consult with his psychoanalyst.

In 2017 Pope Francis, another famous Argentinian, in an interview given to sociologist Dominique Wolton, revealed that he had weekly sessions with psychoanalytic for six months when he was 42. He didn't explain why he did it but mentioned that there was "strong need for it and it helped".

Tomas G. visited for the first time psychoanalyst when he was a school-

age. His parents were separating and mom insisted that he should do therapy. "My mom is psychoanalyst, so as my grandfather. I had no other option", he explained. Later, when he turned 19, he sought for the therapy himself. "I was going once a week, sometimes twice, when I had problems.

It helped me a lot. It's like a place to relax. Sometimes when you are alone, you don't spend an hour thinking about your problems and personal issues, how to make your life better. But on the session where you exteriorize, you end up with reflections on those things and it helps you. It's not a particular problem, but something always comes up". He has been visiting psychoanalysts for around ten years and took a break last year.

"The most common issues people bring to therapy are anxiety, depression, isolation, confusion about life choices: where to live, what to do next; relationships, and how to navigate the endless life options available and choose one life. The last point is key, as the issue of learning to navigate the abundance of choices has become a key theme in most treatments", said Alejandro Pawliszyn, Argentinian-American psychoanalyst, who lived, studied and worked both in Argentina and in the US.

"I grew up in Avellaneda, Buenos Aires Province, in the '70s. Spending time with people, in their homes, talking and listening has been my favourite activity since I can remember. As an adult, I chose psychology as a profession because of my fascination with people, with systems and with the various ways in which people can function, healthily and unhealthily", he said. "People ask me all the time "how do you do it, how can you be listening to people's problems all day?" My answer is "I love people. I love meeting them, talking, listening. I love working with them on their personal projects. I experience profound joy in connecting and seeing the art, drama, pain, joy and adventure of human change. And I get to play a role in supporting someone in finding relief, healing, figuring things out, exploring, trying new ways of living. It is a very fulfilling activity both ethically, intellectually, emotionally. I am privileged".

Anxiety is a term used by psychologists to describe a feeling of tension, worried thoughts, our reaction to stress which brings physical changes such as the rise of blood pressure. It could be performed as feelings of uneasiness and insecurity about something, agitation, hyperactivity, tension, poor concentration, irritation, poor sleep, tiredness, negative emotions etc. Anxiety affects all domains of life, however, it is not always easy to detect it: not everyone is going to be vocal about their feelings and many are actively trying to disguise their suffering. Ana Lebovich, another psychoanalyst, also states that anxiety problems dominate in her practice: "Anxiety problems are quite frequent, as well as problems in a couple and with parents".

This is not a new deal: according to the World Health Organization, mental health is deteriorating throughout the world; levels of anxiety and depression increased over last decade 18% and 15% respectively. It is estimated that hundreds of millions people currently have anxiety, depression or even a combination of both. For the past twenty years, Argentina was always in Top-10 countries with highest level of anxiety. But what led the country to the stress?

In his study of cultural differences, Geert Hofstede, a Dutch psychologist, determined that Argentina has a high score on Uncertainty Avoidance Index (UAI) - 86, which means this nation values certainty and stability and presents a strong need for rules, regulations and control. This index explores to what extent members of society feel comfortable with uncertainty and ambiguity. In other words, how society feels about the future that would always remain unknown. People with a high score are slow in the adoption of innovations, experience xenophobia, favour predictability and clear instructions. Ironically, over the past decades, Argentinians have experienced anything but certainty and stability due to political turmoils and economic crises one after another. This significantly increased their need for it and led to a high level of anxiety.

The twentieth century was marked by the overthrows and de facto governments. In total there were 6 successful ones, in 1930, 1943, 1955, 1962, 1966 and 1976. In between democratic governments were brief or had undemocratic factors such as persecution of the opposition or the press. Agitation and instability were very common in political and economic life in Argentina during the century. Economic crises also became common after the crash of 1929. And as a result, the society experienced deep divisions and faced strong struggles and fights during this time. All these problems were often reflected in the mood and state of mind of the population, generating anxiety and altered people. Thus political turmoil, economic crisis one after another, loss of assets, inflation and devaluation overlapped with people's fear of ambiguity, strong need for rules and secure employment.

"Many of my clients are afraid of losing the job or that money from their salary won't be enough to maintain the family", said Ana Lebovich.

"Individuals are profoundly affected by their surroundings so yes, social conflict affects people negatively and can promote mental health distress. People do come to therapy seeking help figuring out what to do when unemployed, or highly stressed due to job instability for them or a loved one, and for the overall deterioration of the social fabric associated with the recent deterioration of the economy", said Alejandro.

People fight differently with anxiety disorder. Some of them drink alcohol or take drugs. For example, Russia is also very high on Uncertainty Avoidance, is placed 6th on Depression level and 4th on Alcohol and Drug Use. 1 in 6 Americans takes psychiatric drugs, in other words, antidepressants. Others develop breathing techniques and meditation. It seems that Argentinian way of dealing with the problem is going to a psychoanalyst. Three factors were decisive for it to happen that way: a well-developed middle class, the tendency to absorb everything that comes from Europe and the culture of going to the bar and talk to people.

Although migrants, who entered the country at the beginning of the past century, were mostly low-skilled agrarian or factory workers, they wanted to give their children a better future they had not had: a university education.

In 1918 an important university reform was carried out that allowed the democratization of the higher education institutions. Since then the universitarian population grew and included aspirants from the lower classes. This helped Argentina to become a country characterized by its majority middle class during the 20th century. Different studies place the percentage of this around 75 or 80% of the population. This context also favored the development of Psychoanalysis. Being a country with a strong European migratory base and with a middle-class conformation achieved during those years, allowed the Psychoanalysis to find a massive audience for growing and becoming an extended practice throughout the country and especially in the City of Buenos Aires.

"...psychoanalysis is essentially an urban, middle-class phenomenon [...] it is absolutely true that psychoanalysis has been very popular among the urban middle class (particularly in the city of Buenos Aires) since the 1960s, thus generating a sort of "cultural inertia" that exists to this day. Terms of psychoanalytic origins have permeated everyday speech, while people speak openly about their therapy", said Mariano Plotkin, history professor at National University Tres de Febrero and author of the book "Freud in the Pampas".

The popularity of psychoanalysis is often explained by the roots of the theory, its place of birth, Europe, and the influence it has on the lives of Argentines. Historically, even before the strong migrations at the end of the XIX century, Argentina was inspired by Europe and its civilization. The thinkers and politicians who laid the foundations of the country always saw in Europe and in the Europeans their model to follow. They looked so much for resemblance, that Buenos Aires was known as the South American Paris.

Afterwards, as already have been mentioned, the migratory working class populated the country and influenced on it. Also, their children became an active part of the universitarian life. This context favoured the development of Psychoanalysis, first between 1920 and 1960 when Freud ideas were brought by European intellectuals. And then during the 60's, when Lacan's ideas were first introduced in the country and several social and cultural changes were occurring in the Argentinian society. As always in Argentina, there was a great reception of anything that came from Europe and many viewed psychoanalysis as an emancipatory doctrine after the cultural boom initiated when Perón was overthrown in 1955.

"Argentine intellectual elites were always very receptive to everything coming from France," explained professor Plotkin.

Buenos Aires is one of the places where tourists go to cafes not only to satisfy hunger but for excursions as well. Some cafes are full of legends, remain richly preserved, designed floors and vitrage windows, high ceilings, with charismatic waiters who work for decades in the same place.

Argentinians are very social, so for them, it's a perfect place for meeting with friends to discuss random topics such as the economics of the country or talk openly about personal issues.

"There is a lot of culture of communication, dialogue and talking in bars that has much to do with the desire to talk that is also linked to the psychoanalytic clinic". Pablo Rolando has his private consultancy and teaches psychology at the University of Buenos Aires. "The word of a friend or an equal does not have the same symbolic place as talking to an analyst who listens from another side. An analyst is not a friend, he does not fulfill that function, rather he guides someone to listen to himself, behind what he says. In short, being listened by a friend or by a psychoanalyst is very different".

"Best psychologists are the ones who find the way to you. It is not easy to find a good one, with whom you will have a connection. It's like a looking for a couple to some extent. You have to tried a lot unless you find the perfect match", described Joaquin J., an argentinian who twice sought psychoanalytical help.

Although Buenos Aires is the capital of Psychoanalysis and Argentina the country where it is more popular, there are some other examples around the globe. The neighbouring countries of Chile, Uruguay and Brazil also developed a taste for the therapy sessions. But maybe the most resemblance case of study in France, the homeland of the already mentioned Jacques Lacan. With an UAI level very similar to Argentina, the french society also experiences anxiety and depression and often looks in the divan the solution for these problems. With health disorders and problems growing bigger all around the world, it seems Psychoanalysts are here to stay, and the recent numbers of students enrolled for each faculty at the The University of Buenos Aires support this idea. In 2017 for the first time, more students enrolled in the faculty of Psychology than in Law. Psychology was the fourth faculty in importance after Medicine, Economic Sciences and Architecture. So, as the common saying in Argentina states: "the problems are solved speaking", in this case, with the psychoanalyst.