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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 4 of 4. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by Dinah on October 6, 2003, at 20:27:31
Ok, I've finally found an understandable explanation of working through the transference.
Freud at first thought that gaining insight into your unconscious patterns would be sufficient to change them. Unfortunately he found that his patients were able to gain insight into why they did what they did without changing their behaviors at all. So then he came up with the idea of "working through".
From "Between Therapist and Client" by Michael Kahn:
> "Working through" was the name Freud gave to the process whereby these insights could become so well integrated into the personality, both intellectually and emotionally, that the patient could give up old neurotic patterns.
> At first Freud thought that the way to permit the patient to work through insights was to have her encounter them over and over in one context after another.
(me again)
So I guess that means that your therapist points out to you these patterns as you tell him the events in your life or reactions to people.
Working through the transference means that you work through the insights using the therapeutic relationship, since it is right in front of you, and since the therapist becomes so important to the patient and is therefore likely to bring out a lot of the same patterns. So the therapists points out your patterns as they crop up over and over again in your relationship with him. And eventually you incorporate the insights into your personality structure and give up your neurosis.
So I guess I'll never work through my transference. :) If I'm reacting to my therapist in any of my typical patterns, I'm not at all aware of it. Nor has he brought it to my attention. He's more likely to point out how I react differently to him than to others. He doesn't remind me of my mom or dad, or my husband (who also doesn't remind me of my mom or dad).
Posted by deirdrehbrt on October 6, 2003, at 21:04:14
In reply to Working through, posted by Dinah on October 6, 2003, at 20:27:31
Oops!
Now we understand the process. I wonder if this means that when we understand the process that we'll be able to work through it, and then we'll be able to work through the transference and our own issues. Kind of working through the issue of understanding transference so that we can work through the rest of the issues.
I've wondered if there are some arcane bits of psychological knowledge that we aren't supposed to know, and if we do then therapy won't work with us.
such is life.
Posted by DaisyM on October 6, 2003, at 21:55:29
In reply to Re: Working through » Dinah, posted by deirdrehbrt on October 6, 2003, at 21:04:14
I like the book you cited alot...as well as Inside Therapy, which is a collection of stories and book chapters. I do wonder sometimes if investigating the "process" and understanding some of the techniques, allow for deeper defenses. I recently asked my Therapist about "best practice" options and he said we decide on what we are going to do (talk about) collaboratively and then he "watches the store." I'm watching for the transference but I haven't seen it yet...
Posted by HannahW on October 9, 2003, at 22:52:33
In reply to Working through, posted by Dinah on October 6, 2003, at 20:27:31
This is the end of the thread.
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