Psycho Pathology Week 8 10-18

Psychopathology 10/18/2006 Object-Relations Theory -

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Looks at how relationships w/ others are, what needs are met and not met in relationships More about relationships than the drives as in Freudian theory Connection highly valued, incorporation of others into self is seen as happening Absolute independency & dependency is not valued, mature dependence is the goal Attachment is a primary need of people A true self is when someone lives to their potential, who behaves congruently with their inner self o Needs flexibility from parents, not too rigid o The true self has a sense of wildness, enthusiasm that isn’t held back by constraints Everyone has an internal, unconscious world of relationships o What happens with these relationships is more external and compelling than the internal relationships are An external Mom can change in many ways but it won’t matter that much bc the internal Mom can still be the same to the son/daughter Internal representations can dominate our outer view to the point that they can distort our present Internal object become part of the self o Don’t need external object anymore, object lives inside you “I want my mother to die, I can’t be who I want to be while she’s alive” and then guilt about the feeling o Doesn’t want actual mother to die, wants internalized mother to die New external relationships are partially determined by internalized objects o Wife says to husband – “you keep viewing me as your father” Self-object  the state in which the self and an object are one in the same o Baby & mother from baby’s perspective All good self-object bond o Fulfills all needs, seen as all good All bad self-object bond o Denies needs, seen negatively Separation & individuation from self-object occurs, prematurely causes pathology Therapist wants to confront patterns that come about and go about changing them Margaret Mahler – Developmental Model o Stage 1 – Autism Phase o Birth – 2 months o Can not integrate interactions o Attachment is only from parent to child o Everything is sensory but not integrated

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Often felt as a bodily state since it is occurred pre-verbally Stage 2 – Symbiosis 2 – 6 Months Begins sense of self-object (child and caregiver are same entity)  Childs needs are seen as controlling object Start to gain motor coordination Caretaker can not be perfect – a good enough mother will be attuned, etc most of the time Much of this stage is that the mother’s embrace relates symbolically to contain the child and all their fears/troubles Stage 3 - Separation Individuation 6 – 24 Months Hatching Phase (6-10 months)  Can sit up by themselves  Can control how they view world Alert, persistent & goal directed Actively explore Like to control distance (run away & check in, lean back from mother holding) Experience differentiation from mother/father from others Stranger anxiety comes during this time Have transitional objects during this time, not full sense of self  Object takes on self and parental object Separation – process child goes through to become a separate entity, away from the union w/ the mother Individuation – the process of experiencing oneself as a unique individual Practicing Phase (10 – 16 months)  Practices autonomous functions (crawling, playing), but want mother around Narcissism is at peak, feel indestructible Develops object permanence (peek-a-boo is big, know they will be there after hiding) Rapproachment Phase (16 – 24 months)  Motor skills development, start of talking, new freedom from Mom Start w/ saying “no” Practicing power and self of autonomy Cognitive development growth Becomes aware of sense of separation and sees the world as scary Can become clingy and then pushes off mom when she holds child Child treats mom in all good and all bad way Child longs for intimacy but also feels to smothered by it and pushes away Child realizes that parents & child are separate w/ separate wills & interests regardless of the wants of the parent  Not in control and releases idea of complete control

 Starts to identify with parents out of fear of the loss of love Superego develops out of the fear of separation – loss of love Stage 4 - Object Constancy 24 – 36 months Holds steady image of caring object, whether present or not Parent needs to be consistent, picking up from school, in allowances Issues in this time – can’t see therapist thinking about patient out of the session, doesn’t think of sessions/therapist outside session o Representation holds in face of absence & anger o Self can endure regardless if object is gratifying the child at the moment  Use of transitional objects helps get through stage o Increased ability to take care of own tasks (dressing…), knows Mom is there even when not present General o Introjects – what someone has taken in from others, how you carry other people with you  Can be helpful, harmful, critical, nurturing o Being able to be to together with people is needed to be able to be alone  for their use as interjects  Rocking & self talk are examples of interjects being played out o There is tension for the need for attachment & need for separateness o Goal is to be able to tolerate both the togetherness & also aloneness o Ideal for the child is someone who allows separateness but is constantly present for security Three levels of taking in interjects o Incorporation  Someone how wants to know everything about the other person  Wants to take them all in o Introjection  More selective in what they take in, but still take in what they bargain for • Take in high academic standards of parents but also their parents criticism of them o Mature Identification  Can look a whole person with discrimination & awareness  Take in only good things and leave the rest Defenses o Splitting  See world as all good & all bad  Used usually to deal with chaos or chaotic situations/upbringing o Projection  Expelling bad feelings by putting them on someone else  Paranoid PD projects a lot, attacking of themselves becomes persecution by others o o o o o o

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o Projective Identification  Projection of unwanted aspects of self onto someone else  Person that has been projected onto starts to feel those feelings as if they are their own  Identify this has happened by starting to realize you are playing a role that is not accurate to who you are as a therapist  Distances one from an unwanted part of themselves, while in fantasy keeping that part alive in the one it is projected onto  Mode of communication by making the projected on one feel what the projector feels  Goal: have projector own their own feeling o Idealization  Used to keep painful & unacceptable feelings out of consciousness  Harmful when used against envy  Robs people of their authentic feelings o Devaluation  Deals with neediness, insecurity, desire or envy  Opp. of idealization