|
The
author
describes
a
particularly
perilous
frontier
on
the
psychoanalytic
landscape
–namely,
the
treatment
of
suicidal
patients
with
serious
personality
disorders.
Using
a
clinical
example
of
egregious
boundary
violations
by
an
analyst,
he
describes
specific
countertransference
pitfalls
that
lead
to
mishandling
the
patients’
expressions
of
suicidal
despair.
These
include
disidentification
with
the
aggressor,
failure
of
mentalization,
collapse
of
the
analytic
play
space,
reactions
to
loss
in
the
analyst’s
personal
life,
omnipotence,
envy
of
the
patient,
and
masochistic
surrender.
The
author
emphasizes
the
unique
vulnerabilities
that
accompany
analytic
treatment
of
such
patients.
|