Treatment Implications of a Female Incest Survivor's Misplaced Guilt

Abstract

This paper discusses treatment of an incest survivor who suffered a crippling sense of guilt. The work of discovering and understanding the unconscious fantasies that accompanied the patient's early traumatic experiences led to the alleviation of her misplaced guilt and to more adaptive compromise formations. It is necessary to understand and address the unconscious fantasies attached to the incest, as intellectual awareness of inappropriate guilt does not suffice to diminish it.

Key Words:

• Incest
• trauma
• guilt
• unconscious fantasy
• omnipotent thinking