Reflections on Long-Term Relational Psychotherapy and Psychoanalysis

"Susan Lord has done it again- this time pulling together a riveting collection of intimate "stories from inside long-term treatment" written by a wide-ranging group of gifted "relational" clinicians: a group that is diversified with respect to training and orientation but that shares a common bond, namely, a passion for cutting deep and broad; infinite compassion and heart; tremendous courage and determination; strong belief in the transformative power of "mutuality" and "relationship"; keen ability to negotiate therapeutic impasses; indestructibility and capacity to survive relational turbulence; and unwavering faith in the psychotherapeutic process as a means of effecting enduring and characterological change. Lord, who clearly holds "moments of authentic meeting" as central to the work of healing old wounds and facilitating the emergence of new possibilities, is offering readers (whatever their level of expertise or therapeutic approach) the rare opportunity of peeking into the sacrosanct chambers of experienced clinicians who are daring to reveal tender, loving, and vulnerable details about how they enable clients to triumph over their internal demons and realize their potential. In response to the frequently asked question, "How long will this take?" I have often found myself responding, "It depends upon how ambitious we are." The beautifully and compellingly crafted narratives in this generous and tender volume certainly speak to the reality that if client and therapist dare to dream big and aim high, then the sky is truly the limit; the vignettes reinforce the idea that "you should shoot for the moon because, if you miss, youll still land among the stars." Bravo to the thirteen therapists who first gave their hearts to their clients and are now giving their hearts to us. Thank you, Dr. Lord."-Martha Stark, MD, Faculty, Harvard Medical School; Co-Founder/Co-Director/ Faculty, Center for Psychoanalytic Studies; award-winning author of 7 Books including Relentless Hope: The Refusal to Grieve "This edited collection makes an important contribution to the literature on longer-term analytic treatments. Susan Lord has invited an interesting group of authors who grapple with the knotty question of "How long is enough treatment? These authors make the solid case that developmental relational traumas leave deep lasting internal injuries that may require longer-term treatments. Threaded through the chapters are case examples demonstrating the hallmarks of effective relational treatment: empathy, recognition, authenticity, attunement and the complexities of attachment ruptures and repair within the context of trauma histories. This book should become required reading for those in mental health training and for practitioners in the field."-Jill Salberg, Ph.D., ABPP, clinical associate professor and clinical consultant/supervisor, New York University Postdoctoral Program in Psychotherapy and Psychoanalysis; faculty and supervisor, The Stephen Mitchell Center for Relational Studies, The Institute for Contemporary Psychotherapy and visiting faculty, Tel Aviv University, School of Continuing Medical Education; editor of Good Enough Endings: Breaks, Interruptions and Terminations from Contemporary Relational Perspectives (2010) "Concepts of time and the illusion of timelessness are central to understanding both the unconscious and psychoanalysis. Still, few if any books address these notions as they directly impact treatment duration. Susan Lords excellent collection is a welcome exception. She and an outstanding roster of contemporary contributors turn a relational lens to questions as old as psychoanalysis itself: How much is enough? Is there such a thing as too long? This book belongs on the shelf of anyone who is interested in the study and practice of psychoanalysis."-Steven Kuchuck, DSW, President, Inter

Susan A. Lord, PhD, is a Clinical Associate Professor in the Social Work Department at the University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH, USA. She is a Taos Institute Associate, an Associate Editor of the Journal of Family Therapy, and maintains a private practice in York, Maine.

Introduction Part I: The Terrain An Interview with Joyce Edward JOYCE EDWARD & SUSAN LORD Long-Term Psychotherapy: Whyever Not? (A Question of Assumptions) PATRICIA DEYOUNG It Takes as Long as it Takes: Therapists Subjective Experiences of Long-Term Therapy JEAN KOTCHER In Defense of Long-Term Treatment: On the Vanishing Holding Environment WILLIAM S. MEYER Long-Term Treatment in the Rearview Mirror WILLIAM S. MEYER Part II: Trauma and Issues of Attachment Mourning the Melancholy Object: Giving Voice to Traumatic Experience CAROL GANZER The Role of Ethnicity and Culture in the Long-Term Treatment of Childhood Trauma SHOSHANA RINGEL It Takes a Long Time to Grow Young: Working Relationally with Developmental Trauma NATALIE PEACOCK-CORRAL Masks, Walls and Metaphors: Reflections on Long-Term Treatment KATHY FARGIONE Part III: How Could It Be Otherwise? Being Still: Sitting with Suffering in Long-Term Relational Practice JOAN BERZOFF Till Death Do Us Part: Relational Work and Terminal Illness SUSAN LORD Looking Back Through 38 Years of Practicing Relational Psychoanalysis in Search of Answers to the Question of Interminability STEFANIE SOLLOW GLENNON Neuropsychoanalysis and the Repressed: Rendering What is Possible in Long-Term Psychotherapy JANE ABRAMS The Longest Goodbyes: Analysis Everlasting ANTHONY BASS