Psychoanalysis of maturescence (definition, metapsychology, and clinical practice)

Translations of summary

This article offers an entirely new way of addressing middle age or mid‐life. It uses the neologism maturescence to denote this process's metapsychological feature, and it proposes a meta‐psychology of maturescence in order to allow a ‘direct understanding of maturescence’ instead of the ‘indirect understanding of maturescence’, which psychoanalytic literature generally alludes to. The paper examines somatic processes specific to male and female climacterics and is focused on to the tension between the soma and the body. It examines the drive increase that Freud posed in climacterics and the somatic climacteric imbalance that begets specific drive activity demanding psychic work, with very different pathways depending on the individual's specific working‐through activity. It discusses what happens to the individual when he/she is no longer able to procreate and begins to age; why this process is equivalent for individuals who had children and for others who could not or did not. This somatic event provides a universal constant from which it is possible to understand any individual variable.

Psychanalyse de la maturescence (définition, métapsychologie et pratique clinique)

Cet article offre une perspective radicalement nouvelle sur la façon de considérer le milieu de la vie. Le néologisme de maturescence permet de désigner l'aspect métapsychologique de ce processus et de dégager une métapsychologie de la maturescence qui débouche sur une « compréhension directe de la maturescence » en lieu et place d'une « compréhension indirecte de la maturescence » que la littérature psychanalytique évoque généralement. L'auteur de cet article étudie les processus somatiques qui caractérisent la ménopause et l'andropause et centre sa réflexion sur la tension entre le soma et le corps. Il examine le postulat de Freud d'accroissement pulsionnel à la ménopause/andropause. Le déséquilibre somatique qui s'ensuit, engendre une activité pulsionnelle spécifique nécessitant un travail psychique empruntant différents chemins suivant l'activité de perlaboration inhérente à l'individu. Il discute de ce qui se produit chez l'individu lorsque celui‐ci n'est plus en mesure de procréer et commence à vieillir, ainsi que des raisons pour lesquelles ce processus est équivalent chez tous les individus, qu'ils aient eu ou non des enfants. Cet événement somatique donne lieu à une constante universelle à partir de laquelle il est possible d'accéder aux variables individuelles quelles qu'elles soient.

Psychoanalyse der “matureszenz” (definition, metapsychologie und klinische praxis)

Dieser Beitrag beschreibt einen ganz neuen Zugang zum Verständnis des mittleren Lebensalters. Mit dem Neologismus „Matureszenz” bezeichnet der Autor das metapsychologische Merkmal dieses Prozesses; er postuliert eine Metapsychologie, die „ein unmittelbares Verstehen der Matureszenz” anstelle des „indirekten Verständnisses” ermöglicht, mit dem die psychoanalytische Literatur gewöhnlich arbeitet. Der Beitrag untersucht somatische Prozesse, die für das männliche und weibliche Klimakterium charakteristisch sind, und hebt insbesondere auf die Spannung zwischen Soma und Körper ab. Erforscht wird die Steigerung der Libido, die Freud für das männliche und weibliche Klimakterium postulierte, und das somatische klimakterische Ungleichgewicht, das eine spezifische Triebaktivität stimuliert, die psychische Arbeit einfordert. Je nach der individuellen Aktivität dieses Durcharbeitens erfolgt diese auf ganz unterschiedliche Weise. Der Beitrag untersucht auch, was mit dem Individuum geschieht, wenn er/sie nicht länger fortpflanzungsfähig ist und zu altern beginnt, und warum dieser Prozess für Personen, die Kinder hatten, und für andere, die keine Kinder bekommen konnten oder wollten, der gleiche ist. Dieser somatische Vorgang ist eine universale Konstante, die es ermöglicht, die je individuellen Variablen zu verstehen.

Psicoanalisi della maturescenza (definizione, metapsicologia e prassi clinica)

Questo articolo propone un modo completamente nuovo di riflettere sulla mezza età. Ricorre al neologismo maturescenza per denotare gli aspetti metapsicologici di questo processo e propone una metapsicologia della maturescenza per consentire una ‘comprensione diretta della maturescenza’, invece della ‘comprensione indiretta della maturescenza’, alla quale, in genere, allude la letteratura analitica. Il lavoro prende in esame i processi somatici specifici del climaterio maschile e femminile e si concentra sulla tensione tra il soma e il corpo. Analizza l'aumento della carica pulsionale, che Freud colloca nel climateri, e lo squilibrio somatico del climaterio che produce una specifica attività pulsionale che richiede di essere lavorata psichicamente, con percorsi molto diversi, a seconda della capacità di elaborazione specifica dell'individuo. Esamina, inoltre, quello che accade nel soggetto quando non è più in grado di procreare e comincia ad invecchiare; perché questo processo è equivalente per coloro che hanno avuto figli e per coloro che non li hanno avuti o non hanno potuto averne. L'evento somatico costituisce una costante universale dalla quale deriva la possibilità di comprendere le variazioni individuali.

Psicoanálisis de la madurescencia (definición, metapsicología y clínica)

Este artículo implica una manera completamente nueva de abordar la mediana edad o mitad de la vida. Utiliza un neologismo, madurescencia, para denotar las características metapsicológicas de este proceso, y propone una metapsicología de la madurescencia que permite una “comprensión directa” de este fenómeno en lugar de una “comprensión indirecta”, que es a la que alude, en general, la literatura psicoanalítica. Este trabajo examina los procesos somáticos específicos del climaterio masculino y femenino y se centra en la tensión entre soma y psiquis. Estudia el aumento pulsional planteado por Freud para el climaterio y el desequilibrio somático durante este periodo. Este desequilibrio genera una actividad pulsional específica, que exige un trabajo psíquico con distintos recorridos, dependiendo de la actividad de elaboración singular de cada individuo. El autor analiza lo que le sucede al individuo cuando ya no puede procrear y empieza a envejecer, y por qué este proceso es equivalente para aquellos que tuvieron hijos y para los que no pudieron tenerlos o no los tuvieron. Este acontecimiento somático brinda una constante universal a partir de la cual puede entenderse cualquier variable individual.

Key words:

• midlife
• moratorium
• soma
• body
• working‐through
• climacteric

1. An early version of this paper was accepted and delivered at the International Psychoanalytic Congress in Prague, 2013. Translated from the Spanish by Arthur Brakel.

2. Guillermo Julio Montero is a full member of the International Psychoanalytic Association (by virtue of belonging to the Argentine Psychoanalytic Association), and the President of Fundación Travesía (Psychoanalysis for Midlife Transition and Crisis) (est. 1989) [www.fundaciontravesia.org.ar].

1. An early version of this paper was accepted and delivered at the International Psychoanalytic Congress in Prague, 2013. Translated from the Spanish by Arthur Brakel.

2. Guillermo Julio Montero is a full member of the International Psychoanalytic Association (by virtue of belonging to the Argentine Psychoanalytic Association), and the President of Fundación Travesía (Psychoanalysis for Midlife Transition and Crisis) (est. 1989) [www.fundaciontravesia.org.ar].

Notes

1. An early version of this paper was accepted and delivered at the International Psychoanalytic Congress in Prague, 2013. Translated from the Spanish by Arthur Brakel.

2. Guillermo Julio Montero is a full member of the International Psychoanalytic Association (by virtue of belonging to the Argentine Psychoanalytic Association), and the President of Fundación Travesía (Psychoanalysis for Midlife Transition and Crisis) (est. 1989) [www.fundaciontravesia.org.ar].

3. I acknowledge that the relative neologism ‘middlescence’ has some currency in medical practice. Notwithstanding this usage, I advocate my own neologism ‘maturescence’. A maturescent individual is one who has aged but is not yet old. ‘Maturescence’ is a prior stage to what psychoanalytic literature has traditionally referred to as ‘senescence’.

4. The word ‘adolescence’ derives from the Latin adolescens‐ntis (3rd conjugation) and means ‘the one who is growing’. It consists of the prefix ad ‘toward’ and the verb alescere ‘to grow’ or ‘develop’.

5. By putting scare quotes around the pronoun ‘his’ I emphasize the strictly narcissistic nature of this search. To allude impersonally to the ‘herb of immortality’, as many authors have, avoids admitting that the hero first seeks the formula for his own benefit, rather than for the entire community's benefit, which is the end result.

6. From this moment on, every time I refer to both the male climacteric and female climacteric, I will use the noun ‘climacterics’, in plural.

7. In Spanish the verb used for ‘taking’ pictures is sacar ‘to pull out, remove’. It is especially pertinent in the context of this article.