Several patients – both women and men – have told me about the moving success story of [Britain's Got Talent singer] Susan Boyle with tears pouring down their cheeks. As one patient put it, “I’ve spent most of my life trying to be so good, to do the right thing, to be perfect and it’s been such a waste of time, a waste of life.

“Susan Boyle has broken through all that stuff and has gone ahead and done what she’s wanted to do. She doesn’t have to be somebody she’s not.”

Max Clifford, the publicist, points out that the “magical moments which we as a nation love” are those that challenge our assumptions and prejudices. Boyle has challenged the stereotype of what it takes to be a successful woman – Cinderella has not been transformed into a Princess, she has been a Princess all along, but without the material trappings of one.

A dumpy, 47-year-old Scottish singleton, Boyle is the epitome of an old maid.

“I dreamed a dream in time gone by, when hope was high and life worth living.” These are the opening – and extraordinarily apt – lyrics of Susan Boyle’s astonishing and unexpected rave performance last week on Britain’s Got Talent. A dumpy, 47-year-old single Scottish woman, Boyle is the epitome of the old maid who has long gone past her sell by date. She lives alone with her cat, Pebbles, openly professes that she has never been kissed, is unemployed and has spent most of her adult life doing charitable work and, more recently, caring for her mother who died in 2007.

The youngest of nine children, Boyle developed learning difficulties as a result of being deprived of oxygen at her birth. She was bullied throughout her childhood by other children, although very much protected within her family. Music had always been important in the family and Boyle grew up singing and never stopped.

She has sung in small theatrical productions, in the church choir and is well known in the local karaoke circuit. But she was going nowhere with her career. Her mother had first suggested that she should audition for Britain’s Got Talent following the success of Paul Potts and it was perhaps her mother’s belief in her that played an important part in helping Boyle’s dream coming true.

Boyle made it clear when she first appeared on stage that “I’ve always wanted to perform in front of a large audience.” She was sassy and uninhibited, while at the same time maintaining her professional cool. She was doing something she had always wanted to do and she was giving it her best. After her success, she said she felt “quietly confident” and when asked about her future, said emphatically that these were “baby steps” and it was just the beginning. Boyle remains modest and realistic, commenting on the mistakes she made in her performance that she needs to learn from.

In psychoanalytic terms, Boyle’s performance highlights the difference between the ego ideal and the superego. The Austrian psychoanalyst, Annie Reich, explains, “The ego ideal represents what one wishes to be, the superego what one ought to be.”

The ego ideal is initially based on an idealised image of the parents that the child internalises and that is gradually modified as the child grows and incorporates other characteristics from his environment that form a model to aspire to. In healthy development the superego tempers these aspirations by reminding the ego of its limitations – it keeps the ego grounded.

When there is a disturbance in the child’s early relationships and the child does not have a good sense of himself and of being loved, this can impair the development of a strong ego and the child may become susceptible to a megalomanic ego ideal along with a demanding and punitive superego.

The child attributes the fact that he is not loved to his failure to fulfill the parents’ wishes of who they want him to be. These are the conditions in which an ego ideal is imposed from without. The child does not aspire to an image that is a mixture of his good feelings about himself and his idealisation of his parents; instead the child identifies with and strives for an image of who he ought to be because he feels he has in some way failed to obtain his parents’ love. Inevitably this is an image of perfection that is unattainable and the harsh superego will settle for nothing less.

The cult of the celebrity is today’s primary example of an ego ideal imposed from without and it has an utterly crippling effect on ordinary development. What is so moving about Boyle’s trajectory of success is that she demonstrates the victory of the ego ideal that is genuinely based on “what one wishes to be” as opposed to an imposed ideal from the outside that is predicated on “what one ought to be”.

There is a difference between wanting to perform in front of a large audience and wanting to be a celebrity. Boyle’s success is not that she has been a victim who has vanquished her enemies, but that she has the courage to be herself. We cry because we see in her the seeds of our own liberation.

CONTENTS:

 Chapter 1: Birth

Chapter 2: Aspirations

Chapter 3: Tough Times

Chapter 4: The Media

Chapter 5:  The Performance

Chapter 6: Pebbless, the Cat

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Her frizzy hair, and slow pace at understanding school meant she was a victim to bullying, she claims other kids would call her ‘Susie Simple’. Like many common families in the 60′s and 70′s Susan had a large and close family, she was a sister of eight other siblings which were ready to help her when in need.

Never the less, Susan’s life at home was very much the birthplace of her musical mind and her hidden talent. “I come from a musical family,” says Susan. “It has always been there, from my father down. Singing is always something I have done. It has been in my blood since I was 12 and took part in school productions and shows.”

During her teenage years, Susan attended Edinburgh Acting School and has also appeared in the Edinburgh Fringe Music Festival. In 1999 she recorded a very Scottish version of ‘Cry me a River’, of which 1000 copies of the CD were sold!

This may have been a true wake-up call she needed. With the public taking a liking to her voice, Susan became a regular on stage at the Happy Valley Hotel in Blackburn. Singing the classical melodies of her generation to her local supporters, and local drinkers alike.

Inside Susan beats a heart of Gold, putting others before herself. Since the passing of her late father, Susan put her time and effort into good deed’s including volunteering at her church, and of course looking after her mother.

Susan and her mother held a powerful mother and daughter bond. But at the age of 91, Susan’s Mum, Bridget Boyle passed away leaving Susan very lonely. She would spend vast amounts of time at home doing the simple things like cooking and cleaning, mainly the tasks she would do while looking after her mother.

These were hard times for Susan, alone with just her thoughts and her cat pebbles by her side. For years after her Mother’s death she failed to maintain the drive to continue singing. The younger generation of local children would also trouble her at home, playing tricks like knock-and-run on her.

At this point she knew things couldn’t go on like this.  There was no one at her front door to help. From then on things were to change, Susan was going to sing! And more importantly she was to do it for her mother.

The first opportunity Susan saw was the TV show ‘Britain’s Got Talent’, and with auditions for the third season. She decided to risk it “I had seen Britain’s Got Talent on TV and thought I would have a go,” she said.

As the saying goes; ‘Don’t judge a book by its cover’, Susan understood the importance of talent over looks. She claims Paul Potts a former contestant also shared her qualities of unheard talent and imperfect looks. “Paul Potts was an inspiration to a lot of people.  and I thought I would take my chances” She said.

In October 2008 she traveled to the city of Glasgow, and attended the first auditions. Susan successfully shocked and impressed the judges with ease, putting her through to the auditions judged by Simon, Piers and Amanda. An international reputation and  fame was on the horizon.

From then on the internet has played a significant role in making her voice heard around the globe. The video of Susan’s star performance can be seen on YouTube, with over 20 Million already, it shows an accurate representation of her popularity.