Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #14091 in Books
• Published on: 1985-04-18
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 256 pages

Review
"An excellent book which conveys expressively what may happen in a vivid psychoanalytic encounter. It will presumably establish a firm place for itself in psychoanalytic training." - Ludwig Haesler, Bulletin of the European Federation of Psychoanalysts

From the Back Cover
On Learning from the Patient is concerned with the potential for psychoanalytic thinking to become self-perpetuating. Patrick Casement explores afresh the dynamics of the helping relationship - learning to recognize how patients offer cues to the therapeutic experience that they are unconsciously in search of. Using many telling clinical examples, he illustrates how, through trial identification, he has learned to monitor the implications of his own contributions to a session from the viewpoint of the patient. He thus shows how, with the aid of this internal supervision, many initial failures to respond appropriately can be remedied and even used to the benefit of the therapeutic work. By learning to distinguish better what helps the therapeutic process from what hinders it, ways are discovered whereby the circularity of pre-conception can more effectively be avoided by those who aim to understand the unconscious of others. From this lively examination of key clinical issues, the author comes to see psychoanalytic therapy as a process of re-discovering theory - and developing a technique that is more specifically related to the individual patient.
The dynamics illustrated here, particularly the processes of interactive communication and containment, occur in any helping relationship and are applicable throughout the caring professions. Patrick Casement's unusually frank presentation of his own work, aided by his lucid and non-technical language, allows wide scope for readers to form their own ideas about the approach to technique he describes. This book, together with its sequel Further Learning from the Patient, will be invaluable to trainee and practising analysts or therapists, and those teaching in related professions.

Customer Reviews

My 100-word book review
Patrick Casement's honesty in writing this book is an inspiration to those of us aiming to be counsellors. Not many therapists would reveal and discuss their own mistakes and oversights so openly, with a view to helping others learn from them. Casement promotes active listening skills and use of the "internal supervisor" to gain awareness both of the client’s and one’s own internal processes. Also key to his approach is a willingness to embrace uncertainty and not to make snap judgements, in effect to make use of what the poet John Keats called "negative capability." I highly recommend this book.

refreshing and exciting
Very enjoyable. Very frank discussion of case studies, mostly about learning from his mistakes. Written from within the psychoanalytical discipline of intensive work, quotes Winnicott and Bion frequently. Nevertheless there is little or no jargon, he is an ex-social worker and says he is also writing for those with less arcane training. Shows great sensitivity to the patient and great emphasis on the importance of the patient's view of the analysis, is not far away from a Rogerian approach where the patient leads the therapy.

Learn about yourself!!
Oh what a relief to read of the real dilemmas and confusion that is part of being a therapist, as well as the appreciation of what is being given by the patient. The bravery shown in the disclosing and exploration by the author of his own internal processes can help facilitate the reader in exploring their own.