On mental pain: From Freud to Bion

Abstract

The author analyses the concept of mental pain, which as Seelenschmerz had already been described in the works of Freud, and systematizes the theoretical and clinical contributions of Bion to the issue of mental pain. Various developments of the concept are examined throughout Bion's work, as well as the different links that he established between mental pain and different theories on frustration, thought, psychic transformations, and the early infant–mother relationship. Conceptual links between different theoretical models are proposed, and clinical data are presented with implications for clinical work. How to conceptualize and deal in clinical practice with unnameable and unthinkable mental pains—emotions without a name—is one of the issues the author aims to answer in this article.

Keywords:

• Frustration
• thought
• transformation
• early infant–mother relationship

Notes

1. “The concept of “container–contained” corresponds to an abstraction model of psychoanalytical realizations, representing a psychoanalytic element to which Bion bestowed the signs of ♀: “container” and of ♂: “contained”, meaning feminine and masculine respectively, but without having a specific sexual connotation. Because of alpha-function operations, a baby is capable of incorporating relations of the kind present in ♀♂. One word could contain a meaning, or the opposite: a meaning could contain a word” (Lopez-Corvo, 2003, p. 70).

2. “α-function represents an abstraction used to describe the capacity to change sense experiences and emotions into α-elements capable of producing thoughts” (Lopez-Corvo, 2003, p. 26).

3. K-Link (Knowledge link) represents a psychoanalytic element used by Bion to denote, together with L-Link (Love link) and H-Link (Hate link), one of the human passions or feelings (Lopez-Corvo, 2003, p. 166).