Karen Horney, also known as the gentle rebel of psychoanalysis, was a German psychoanalyst.
In her later career, during the time of the Nazis, she left Germany and practised in the US.
She is known for criticising the male dominated views on psychoanalysis at the time, including those of Freud, and contributed to many ideas we have adopted to this day.
In contrast to Freud, she believed that humans are not only driven by sex and aggression but by a need for social connection. Her work proved that the personality of children is influenced by heredity as well as social factors and she believed in order to be psychologically healthy women (and men) must learn to let go of striving for a perfect ideal of themselves.
So today, to celebrate Karen – be happy with your imperfect self!