Whereas previously the individual had defended against the threat of incongruent organismic experiences by keeping them out of awareness and thus denied to the self, this significant event forces the incongruity into awareness. The result is intense anxiety and a state of disorganization as the self-structure is broken. The individual now acts out those previously denied aspects of his experience, and as a consequence loses all confidence in himself or herself, feeling crazy and worthless. This is in fact the process that Rogers went through during this crisis. His self-image was that of a warm therapist, but this psychotic client evoked organismic responses of fear and a wish to withdraw that he could not accept into awareness. When her hostility broke his defenses and suddenly forced his fear and wish to withdraw into awareness, he urgently acted on those previously denied experiences and ran away. As a result of having thus acted out organismic experiences that he had previously felt the need to deny to his self, he lost all confidence in himself, feeling crazy and worthless. He was able to recover his self-worth only after undergoing a therapeutic relationship in which he received unconditional positive regard, empathy, and congruence.
Taken from :PSYCHOLOGY’S GRAND THEORISTS How Personal Experiences Shaped Professional Ideas - Amy Demorest