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In the last analysis: archetypal themes in the analysis of an elderly patient with early disintegrative trauma
Author(s) -
Wharton Barbara
Publication year - 1996
Publication title -
journal of analytical psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.285
H-Index - 23
eISSN - 1468-5922
pISSN - 0021-8774
DOI - 10.1111/j.1465-5922.1996.00019.x
Subject(s) - countertransference , psychology , psychoanalysis , vitality , individuation , anxiety , theme (computing) , psychotherapist , meaning (existential) , personality , developmental psychology , psychiatry , philosophy , theology , computer science , operating system
Aspects of the analysis of an elderly patient with early disintegrative experiences are described: separation anxiety, an internalized attack upon vitality, and the fear of dependency were prominent features of the transference/countertransference relationship, while the search for meaning as death drew nearer continued to be the central theme. The patient's many dreams reveal a wealth of images whose complex interlinkings provided evidence of a heightened and energized individuation process aiming at the integrity of personality.