Art as an expression of a disordered and healing self

Abstract

There is a long-overdue need for the integration of art therapy with Self Psychology. The increasing numbers of people with Narcissistic Behaviour Disorders who present in the first author's private practice for psychotherapy and art therapy makes this need more acute as effective intervention for such patients becomes critical. Various authors have detailed the application to and success of art therapy in disorders that involve self-mutilation, food-, drugs-, and alcohol abuse. The data presented in this paper are part of a more intensive and in-depth study of two women who were diagnosed with Narcissistic Behaviour Disorders marked by variations of sexualised self-mutilation and eating disorders. The impetus for this study came from the frustration of the psychotherapist in using dogmatic optimal frustration, neutrality and abstinence, and anonymity, which were unsuccessful in working with these patients. The move to a Self Psychology paradigm allowed for a more successful and healing approach to working with the patients whose needs were more meaningfully met through art and an appropriate paradigm for narcissistic disturbance.

Keywords:

• Art therapy
• Self Psychology
• narcissistic
• eating disorders
• substance abuse
• sexualised self-mutilation

Notes

1. Dr. Kilian acted as the psychotherapist-researcher and Professor Pretorius was the supervisor of the research. Supervision of the therapy was conducted by an independent third party. The laborious use of phrases like ‘psychotherapist-researcher’ and ‘psychotherapist’ will be replaced with first person references, referring to Dr. Kilian, the first author of this paper.

2. Gogga is an informal word used in South Africa that refers to an insect; more specifically a ‘creepy-crawly’.

3. The words on the photo are not clear due to the nature of the material used. The words in descending order are as follows: overeat, compulsive needy, fill a hole, weak, pathetic, shame, poor me.