The impact of the Demjaniuk trial on the psychotherapeutic process in Israel.
The Demjaniuk trial was a national experience and people showed great interest in it, more than the organizers of the trial had expected. Many therapists expressed interest in the trial. They stressed the importance of the trial and their identification with it. In some questionnaires, therapists reported dramatic reactions and revival of survivors syndrome. Therapists who were sensitive and perceptive to the subject of the Holocaust reported definite reactions in their patients. On the other hand, therapists who were inclined to isolation, denial and avoidance of this subject, reported that their patients did not react or that their reactions were only superficial. Therapists reported that second generation patients tended to stronger identification with their parents following the trial. The trial served as a catalyst for the treatment and also made them more interested in knowing more about their parents. It broke down a barrier between survivors and those who did not experience the Holocaust, according to one of the therapists. In our opinion, it also broke down a barrier between first and second generation. Many therapists reported strong identification with their patients, especially when both therapist and patient were of the same generation in relation to the Holocaust. Some patients reacted strongly to the trial and needed more frequent treatment sessions, more drugs and sometimes even hospitalization, but in many cases the trial had a positive influence on the therapeutic process and important content emerged in treatment. The trial enabled many patients to work through the mourning process, which previously they did not allow themselves to experience.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Dasberg
H
H
Talbich Mental Health Centre, Jerusalem, Israel.
Robinson
S
S
D001290:Attitude; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D003416:Criminal Law; D007557:Israel; D007585:Jews / Q000523:psychology; D010820:Physicians / Q000523:psychology; D011056:Political Systems; D011613:Psychotherapy; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000523:psychology* / Q000628:therapy; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires