Citation

Glickauf-Hughes C, Mehlman E. Br. J. Psychother. 1998; 14(3): 294-302.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1998, John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1111/j.1752-0118.1998.tb00383.x

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

The psychological development of non-borderline adult patients raised presumably by mothers with borderline characteristics is examined. Despite childhoods that were subjected to a preponderance of pathological interactions with a primary caretaker, the adults described exhibit common patterns of adaptation that have enabled them to achieve higher levels of integration and differentiation than their mothers. Characteristics of adaptation include self-understanding, sublimation, the ability to form positive relationships with other caretakers, and the constructive use of fantasy. In treatment, these patients present a number of issues such as fluctuating self-esteem, anxious attachment, a ?borderline transference?, and a conflicted identification with the mother.