Archive for February, 2012
Mentoring Youthful Patients
Tuesday, February 28th, 2012One example is developmentally determined: therapy with depressed and anxious patients in late adolescence and early adulthood. Creating a viable independent identity for oneself is the task of this life stage. Identity formation involves reworking identifications with parents and other important adults from childhood, rejecting unwanted traits and synthesizing others […]
Existential Issues in the Healing Process
Thursday, February 23rd, 2012Beyond neurobiology and psychopathology, over and above hardware malfunctions in the brain and software programming problems in the mind, it is often vital to address existential issues in the healing process, sometimes starting at the very beginning of the therapeutic relationship. I make an effort to include this aspect of […]
Unresolved Issues
Tuesday, February 21st, 2012Unresolved issues at various stages of life influence the patterns of symptoms, perceptions, and unmet needs that must be taken into account to offer an optimal therapeutic environment for healing in each case. The descriptive diagnostic categories we use today based on symptom lists do not help us to make the […]
The Case of Tommy Continued
Thursday, February 16th, 2012In Tommy’s case the developmental stages at which the traumatic episodes occurred defined the particular ways in which PTSD anxiety manifested itself, both the specific triggers that set off panic attacks and the character and consequences of PTSD anxiety in his life. While developmental factors are not always so crucial and […]
The Case of Tommy Continued
Tuesday, February 14th, 2012His capacity to respond quickly and constructively to my use of early interpretation was confirmed once more in the second session. I wondered why, after months of suicidal fantasy, Tommy chose to cut his wrist, a suicide method that in my experience many women but few men use. He had no […]
The Case of Tommy Continued
Thursday, February 9th, 2012The success of this treatment plan would depend upon Tommy’s intelligence, motivation and capacity to form a trusting therapeutic relationship. Fortunately, Tommy had had loving parents, was endowed with a kind and appealing personality, and was strongly motivated to succeed. He had achieved a 4.0 grade point average during his […]
The Case of Tommy Continued
Tuesday, February 7th, 2012It was in the context of this pervasive insecurity that Tommy had to face the challenges of adolescence and adult life. It is no surprise then that separation from home was associated with fearful intrinsic memories that could be triggered by the slightest setback in his life, bringing up the panic, […]
The Case of Tommy Continued
Thursday, February 2nd, 2012Adults who behave as if they look at life in this immature way often suffer from arrested development caused by traumatization under the age of three years. Given the developmental stage at which the second hospitalization occurred, it is likely that Tommy interpreted the pain and separation of heart surgery as […]