“Hall of Broken Mirrors”—Enactment in an Analytic Group of “Difficult Patients”

ABSTRACT

This article focuses on the transformation of dissociated self-states as a curative factor in an analytic group of “difficult patients.” Foulkes (1964) referred to the analytic group as a “curative hall of mirrors.” I would like to integrate group analytic theory with relational psychoanalytic concepts. I propose that when dissociated self-states are expressed in a group, this creates a “broken mirrors” experience that is sometimes expressed through enactment. I develop this idea, and argue that the group mirrors to the patient his image—distorted and defective—and forces him to cope with his “not me” states. I demonstrate, through three clinical vignettes, how dissociated states hinder the reflective space and create a “hall of broken mirrors” experience. I would argue that in a safe space, the patients’ “not me” states can be transformed, and the hall of broken mirrors can turn into a curative hall of mirrors.

Acknowledgements

I am most grateful to Dr. Elaine J. Cooper, my editor and friend, for her unequaled guidance. I would also like to thank Mrs. Ilana Sagi, my ‘good enough mother’ for her support. Last but not least—I thank my patients for sharing their brave struggle within the group.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Sharon Sagi Berg

Sharon Sagi Berg is a Trainer at the CBT training unit, Be’er Yaakov Mental Hospital in Be’er Yaakov, Israel.