Citation

de Kernier N. Psychoanal. Rev. 2015; 102(4): 531-550.

Affiliation

Laboratoire de Psychopathologie, Psychanalytique et des Atteintes Somatiques et Identitaires (LASI EA4430), UFR des Sciences, Psychologiques et des Sciences de l'Education, Université Paris Ouest Nanterre La Défense, 200, avenue de la République, F-92000 Nanterre, France. E-mail: nathalie.dekernier@u-paris10.fr.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2015, Guilford Publications)

DOI

10.1521/prev.2015.102.4.531

PMID

26290946

Abstract

When an adolescent faces serious organic illness, two traumatic events coincide and reinforce each other. The Oedipus fantasy and its murderous component are exacerbated. Starting psychotherapy in these circumstances is a challenge. Teens suffering from serious organic illness rarely request psychological help. They accumulate aggressive impulses that remain unspoken but are self-directed. We will use excerpts from cases to comment upon the problems and psychical processes experienced by such teens. We will show how expressing murder fantasies can be a motor in psychotherapy. Such expression not only supports therapy but also relieves the patient and contributes to a new psychosomatic equilibrium.

Language: en