Does psychoanalysis ever end?

As with death, we tend to deny the ending (Becker, 1973). Yet, no ending in life is like the ending of life, and so when the psychoanalytic relationship is finished, we hope it initiates a new beginning.

What are some problems with treating patients with psychoanalysis?

Some of the problems treated by psychoanalysis include:

• Depression.
• Generalised anxiety.
• Sexual problems.
• Self-destructive behaviour.
• Persistent psychological problems, disorders of identity.
• Psychosomatic disorders.
• Phobias.
• Obsessive compulsive disorders.

How long should you do psychoanalysis?

Length of treatment Psychoanalytic psychotherapy sessions last for 50 minutes. They usually take place once a week, but sometimes more frequently. Within the Trauma Service this treatment is usually offered at fortnightly intervals. Treatment usually lasts for one year, but can vary from four sessions to two years.

Why is psychoanalysis used?

The psychoanalytic approach helps people explore their pasts and understand how it affects their present psychological difficulties. It can help patients shed the bonds of past experience to live more fully in the present.

How useful is psychoanalysis in the treatment of certain behavioral problem?

Psychoanalytic therapy can also be an intense process. It involves evoking emotional responses and often challenges established defense mechanisms. While the process can sometimes result in uneasiness, it can also help you understand the unconscious forces that exert an influence over your current behavior.

How can psychoanalysis help improve the human personality?

Basic Tenets. Psychoanalysis suggests that people can experience catharsis and gain insight into their current state of mind by bringing the content of the unconscious into conscious awareness. Through this process, a person can find relief from psychological distress.

How often is psychoanalysis used today?

Psychoanalytic practice today “People still think that patients come in four or five days a week for an hour at a time and lie on a couch,” he says. While a few psychoanalytic therapists still practice that way, today most see their patients once a week.

Why don’t psychoanalysts have a terminal phase?

Novick (1997, p. 145) convincingly argues that, with honourable exceptions (Balint 1968) ‘neither Freud nor his followers paid much attention to termination as a phase of treatment’ and that ‘for almost 75 years psychoanalysts have been unable to conceive of the idea of a terminal phase…’. Three possible reasons for this dearth seem relevant.

Is psychoanalysis Terminable and interminable?

A good starting point for discussing termination is Psychoanalysis Terminable and Interminable (Freud 1937), written two years before the author’s death at the age of 82. But as Pedder (1988) points out, the English title could more accurately have been translated as Psychoanalysis Finite or Infinite.

What is the best book on termination in psychoanalysis?

These themes are discussed with clinical, personal and cinematic examples. A good starting point for discussing termination is Psychoanalysis Terminable and Interminable (Freud 1937), written two years before the author’s death at the age of 82.

What is psychoanalytic treatment?

Psychoanalytic treatment is based on the idea that people are frequently motivated by unrecognized wishes and desires that originate in one’s unconscious. These can be identified through the relationship between patient and analyst.