title: A crisis in the analyst's life: self-containment, symbolization, and the holding space.
abstract: Most analysts will experience some degree of crisis in the course of their working life. This paper explores the complex interplay between the analyst's affect during a crisis in her lifeü and the affective dynamics of the patient. The central question is "who or what holds the analyst"--especially in times of crisis. Symbolization of affect, facilitated by the analyst's self-created holding environment, is seen as a vital process in order for containment to take place. In the clinical case presented, the analyst's dog was an integral part of the analyst's self-righting through this difficult period; the dog functioned as an "analytic object" within the analysis.
authors.affiliation: Toronto Institute for Contemporary Psychoanalysis, USA. michelleflax@rogers.com
authors.forename: Flax
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Michelle
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000818:Animals; D004285:Dogs; D005260:Female; D006117:Grief; D006801:Humans; D016487:Parenting; D057805:Pets; D011369:Professional-Patient Relations; D011575:Psychoanalytic Therapy; D013811:Psychotherapeutic Processes