The Ailing Analyst and the Dying Patient: A Relational Perspective

Abstract

This presentation focuses on one of the author's terminally ill patients. The patient is a Hispanic American physician who is aware of the implications of her illness. At one point, she learns of her analyst's previous illnesses, similar to hers, but in the author's case successfully treated. Of considerable importance to this case study is the author's return for sessions with her own former analyst, so that her feelings about the patient become a subject for analysis. The approach represents a relational perspective. It is intersubjective, co-constructed and mutually processed. Technique and decisions about self-disclosure are tailored specifically for this particular dyad. Dreams of both patient and analyst are presented, along with details of countertransference reactions and the role of the patient's former analytic psychotherapy group. For all its unique circumstances, this case may bring to the foreground other, more common, analytic dilemmas.