Posted by alexandra_k on April 28, 2009, at 10:37:15
In reply to Re: Issues with therapist, posted by alexandra_k on April 28, 2009, at 10:31:34
I remember reading Kohut, actually. Got to the bit about failures of empathetic attunement and how it was precisely those that led to the healthy reorganization of the personality. That that was supposed to be what made it psychotherapy rather than an attempt to 'cure by love'. Kohut thought that failures of empathetic attunement were inevitable. The therapist didn't need to try to bring them about. If the therapist did everything within their power (within appropriate boundaries) to be completely empathetically attuned 100% of the time there would still be failures. They were inevitable. I remember at the time of the failure the thing for me was really about whether he was INTENTIONALLY trying to bring about these failures (thinking to himself 'whatever doesn't kill her will make her stronger, this will be good for her') or whether he really wasn't being such an obnoxious *ss as I was thinking he was...
Not sure if this is making any sense...
This was against a basic background of attunement, though. I guess that was crucial. Without that... There really would have been little point...
poster:alexandra_k
thread:893113
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/psycho/20090421/msgs/893259.html