'I took a life because I needed one': psychotherapeutic possibilities with the schizophrenic offender-patient.
This paper's fulcrum is a schizophrenic's explanation as to why he had taken a life: 'I took a life because I needed one.' It attempts to describe the exploration of therapeutic possibilities with the schizophrenic offender-patient. Particular attention is paid to the Associative Mode. This is a way of safely engaging with the patient in the depth of his experience without shattering his precarious defences. The discussion illustrates the close inter-dependence between the dynamic content of individual and group psychotherapy, the life of the hospital as a whole and the significance of therapeutic space being contained within a secure perimeter.
D003134:Commitment of Persons with Psychiatric Disorders; D006708:Homicide; D006801:Humans; D011369:Professional-Patient Relations; D011613:Psychotherapy / Q000379:methods*; D011615:Psychotherapy, Group; D011908:Rationalization; D012559:Schizophrenia / Q000628:therapy*; D012565:Schizophrenic Psychology