The Therapist’s Emotional Survival: Dealing with the Pain of Exploring Trauma PDF
Preview The Therapist’s Emotional Survival: Dealing with the Pain of Exploring Trauma
THE THERAPIST'S EMOTIONAL SUR-a THE THERAPIST'S EMOTIONAL SURVIVAL DEALING WITH THE PAIN EXPLORINTGR AUMA OF STUART D. PERLMAN, Ph.D. ROWMAN & LITTLEFIELD PUBLISHERS, INC. Lanham Boulder New York Toronto Plymoulh, UK A JASON ARONSON BOOK ROWMAN & LITTLEFIELD PUBLISHERS, INC. Published in the United States of America by Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc. A wholly owned subsidiary of The Rowrnan & Littlefield Publishing Group, Inc. 4501 Forbes Boulevard, Suite 200, Lanham, Maryland 20706 www.rowmanlittlefield.com Estover Road Plymouth PL6 7PY United Kingdom Copyright O 1999 by Jason Aronson Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Information Available Library of Congress Cataloging-in-PublicationD ata Perlman, Stuart D. The therapist's emotional survival : dealing with the pain of exploring trauma / Stuart D. Perlrnan. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN: 978-0-7657-0175-6 1. Post-traumatic stress disorder-Treatment. 2. Psychotherapists-Job stress. 3. Countertransference (Psychology) I. Title. [DNLM: 1. Countertransference (Psychology) 2. Physician-Patient Relations. 3. Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic-therapy. 4. Child Abuse, Sexual-psychology. WM 62 P45 lt 19991 RC552.P67P45 1999 616.89'14-DC21 DNLM/DLC for Library of Congress 98-23701 Printed in the United States of America emThpea per used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information Sciences-Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSIINISO 239.48-1992. To my wfe Denise and children David and Aaron, who are all never-ending sources of joy and support Contents Acknowledgments Introduction PART I: THE PATIENT-THERAPIST RELATIONSHIP 1 Pioneers 2 The Survivor's Shattered Existence 3 Bearing the Pain of Treatment 4 My Introduction to Treating Sexually Abused and Traumatized Patients 5 Therapist Rescue Fantasies 6 Therapy Openings CONTENTS PART 11: OPENINGS TO TRAUMA AND PAIN First Stage of Treatment: Establishing Safety and Connection 7 Will You Hurt, Ignore, or Help Me? Fear and Self-Protection 8 Can I Take Control Over My Own Physical and Emotional Needs? 9 Can You Hear Me? Second Stage of Treatment: Deep Experience 10 Can You Listen to the Trauma and Validate Me? 11 Am I Lovable? Feeling Deep Love and Bonding 12 Can You See Me? Discontinuous and Shattered Existence 13 Who Is Bad and Who Is the Abuser? 14 Is This My Body? Touch 15 Can You Believe in Ritual Abuse? PART 111: EMOTIONAL SURVIVAL 16 Reality, Countertransference, and the False Memory Controversy: Guidelines 17 Therapist Survival: Concluding Perspectives and Strategies References Index Acknowledgments I thank George Atwood, Ph.D., for his faith and enthusiasm, with- out which I could not have written this book. I thank my patients, who have taught me and who gave permission for me to use their material. I thank the seminar groups at the Institute of Contempo- rary Psychoanalysis and at the Southern California Psychoanalytic Institute for reading and discussing drafts of this book. Some of the many colleagues who read and commented on this book are Louis Breger, Ph.D., Victoria Hamilton, Ph.D., Jane Rubin, Psy.D., Veronica Abney, M.S.W ., Ann Isaacs, L.C.S.W ., Joel Isaacs, Ph.D., Peter Maduro, and Estelle Shane, Ph.D. I especially thank my wife, Denise Gerber, who edits almost every word I write. I thank Victoria Kuhl, Michael Moskowitz, Ph.D., Elaine Lindenblatt, and Kitty Moore for their editorial help as well, and David Markel, M.D., for his input on the treatment process.
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