I was in Port Edgar earlier today, between the 2 road bridges, watching the Forth flow past, onwards under the rail bridge.

The view is iconic and the photo (Courtesy of the Guardian) catches the scale and drama astride the River Forth. Two of the bridges are for road and one for rail traffic, the county of Fife and city of Edinburgh see a daily flow of thousands of people and vehicles. Both places need this arterial connection of bridges for daily life, commuting, work, travel and leisure.

It occurred to me as a metaphor for the 3 ego states, Parent, Adult and Child and how we need all 3 to function effectively. When I look at the river I see how the unconscious ripples in waves, sometimes calm and then stormy and tempestuous and how the energy flows between the bridges and ego states. The Ego States can be activated and busy in the same way as when the traffic and trains are working at peak times or shut down and deactivated when there are faults on the line or when an accident or repairs are required.

Boats of many kinds and sizes bob and sail up and down the river, buoyed along by the tides, currents and winds, tacking and turning to make headway. I began to think about the boats as our thoughts, feelings and behaviours which ebb and flow, sometimes pushed along by the currents and breezes which weave between the bridges and how our attention can focus on a particular craft whilst others fade into the background, still there but unnoticed.

I then thought about how the nautical charts and maps out the safe course for marine vessels and makes clear where the hazards lie, such as sandbanks and wrecks, strong dangerous currents and jagged rocks on which the vessels can founder. The analogy fits the role of the therapist and how the work we do, brings all these factors together in a 3 dimensional view, to spot where the difficulties are to steer a safe and successful course through the journey towards the destination, together.

The 3 bridges need regular checks and maintenance to keep them safe and working well, the Forth Road Bridge was closed for several months, inactive whilst traffic started to use the new Queensferry crossing.

The metaphor might be understood as the Forth Road bridge as the Adult ego state, quiet and underused, the Rail bridge as the Parent and the Queensferry crossing as the Child ego states. The Parent dominating the landscape, powerful and imposing. The Queensferry crossing, busy and bustling, getting attention when there's and accident or incident, stopping traffic!The Adult under repair and strengthened and open for business, each bridge and each ego state making their contribution in smooth functioning and well being.