Letting Go

Abstract

This essay is an individual reflection on an aspect of the analyst’s personal history of loss and developmental trauma, as well as part of a theoretical exploration of the varied unconscious forces always at play in analytic work. Using her own experience, the analyst facilitates the working through of disappointment and fear in the mother–child dyad, leading to greater self-acceptance and understanding of difference on the part of both analyst and patient.

Keywords:

• development
• loss
• memory
• mourning
• trauma.

Notes

¹ The Apgar score is a simple assessment of how a baby is doing at birth, which helps to determine if the newborn is ready to meet the world without additional medical assistance. The scale is from 1 to 10, 10 being a perfect score.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Susan Klebanoff

Susan Klebanoff, PhD, is the coeditor of two books, Ghosts in the Consulting Room and Demons in the Consulting Room (Routledge, 2016). She is on the faculty of the Stephen Mitchell Relational Study Center and an adjunct clinical supervisor at NIP. She is in private practice in New York City.