In this article, I explore the psychological and social consequences of Puerto Rico's colonial status through the lens of psychoanalysis and those of liberation theology, such as Gustavo Gutierrez and James Cone. Drawing...In this article, I explore the psychological and social consequences of Puerto Rico's colonial status through the lens of psychoanalysis and those of liberation theology, such as Gustavo Gutierrez and James Cone. Drawing on the foundational work of Sigmund Freud and then others such as Frantz Fanon, Homi Bhabha, Ranjana Khanna, and Ignacio Martín-Baró, I examine how racial stratification, colonial violence, and national repression manifest in the unconscious defenses of Puerto Rican subjectivity. I give special attention to the 1950 Jayuya Uprising and the U.S. bombing of the town, which serve as emblematic events of colonial trauma and historical erasure. I conclude with recommendations for decolonial psychological practices and educational reforms to heal () collective trauma in Puerto Rico and other postcolonial societies. Furthermore, I document how I plan to bring psychoanalytic ideas to help people on the island of Puerto Rico and the motivation for this enterprise.
In this homage to Anne Dufourmantelle, French philosopher and psychoanalyst, the author traces uncanny resonances between her tragic death and case examples in her writing. He terms them the and addresses the role of th...In this homage to Anne Dufourmantelle, French philosopher and psychoanalyst, the author traces uncanny resonances between her tragic death and case examples in her writing. He terms them the and addresses the role of the witness to the traumatic uncanny as being a witness to the resonance between another's life and death that puts one in the role of witnessing in place of the absent other. To witness trauma can have a redemptive value; to be the witness of the traumatic uncanny brings no obvious redemption. Instead, it brings the witness to question whether it would be better not to speak of it. It is argued that to proceed to speak of it is consistent with the spirit of psychoanalytic writing.
In this evocative response to a recent article published in the authors revisit the theme of wandering among the homeless. Attentive to the myths and syndromes named after them, to the psychoanalytic tradition and to th...In this evocative response to a recent article published in the authors revisit the theme of wandering among the homeless. Attentive to the myths and syndromes named after them, to the psychoanalytic tradition and to the field of neuropsychiatry, they focus on the nameless psychotic patients living and dying homeless in the fourth world, and on the approach termed marontology, utilized by António Bento.
This contribution, dedicated to the podcast sheds light on the rise of media presence in psychoanalytic discourse in the first decades of the 21st century. Through a personal narrative its founder reflects on the place...This contribution, dedicated to the podcast sheds light on the rise of media presence in psychoanalytic discourse in the first decades of the 21st century. Through a personal narrative its founder reflects on the place of the project in her own formation as a psychoanalyst and on the challenges, joys, and limits of psychoanalytic dialogue embodied in the intimacy of the interview genre.
This contribution, aided by clinical material, highlights the impact of early trauma on the structuring of the mental organization that patients bring to the therapeutic situation. Its focus is on how trauma organizes th...This contribution, aided by clinical material, highlights the impact of early trauma on the structuring of the mental organization that patients bring to the therapeutic situation. Its focus is on how trauma organizes the mind/brain in childhood. Understanding the centrality of this process, often referred to as or requires an appreciation of how early psychological development systematizes and organizes patients' patterns of relating to self and others. Changing how we think about the nature of complex developmental trauma enables both patients and therapists to better work through its enduring psychological imprint, a framework that creates significant challenges to growth and change.
Secrecy is a foundational yet underexamined dimension of psychic life. Reflecting on sexual secrecy, the existential closet, and the embodied life of the unsaid, this contribution explores how hidden truths and private e...Secrecy is a foundational yet underexamined dimension of psychic life. Reflecting on sexual secrecy, the existential closet, and the embodied life of the unsaid, this contribution explores how hidden truths and private experiences shape subjectivity, interpersonal fields, and bodily symptomatology. Drawing on psychoanalytic theory, clinical vignettes, and continental philosophy, secrecy is reframed as a paradox: both a protective sanctuary and a source of isolation. Psychoanalytic treatment becomes a space where secrets may be reverently witnessed rather than prematurely revealed. By attending to the the psychoanalyst honors what remains hidden while fostering the possibility of relational contact and psychic transformation.
This contribution advocates for the clarity and accessibility of psychoanalytic writing and public communications. Reflecting on her own experience as a clinician and a reader, the author argues that the excessive use of...This contribution advocates for the clarity and accessibility of psychoanalytic writing and public communications. Reflecting on her own experience as a clinician and a reader, the author argues that the excessive use of jargon contributes to a musty air of impenetrability and partly accounts for the marginalization of psychoanalysis within the current mental health landscape.
This contribution investigates the delusional structure of love as theorized by Sigmund Freud and Jacques Lacan, with particular emphasis on Lacan's axiom, Tracing love's trajectory from narcissistic identification in t...This contribution investigates the delusional structure of love as theorized by Sigmund Freud and Jacques Lacan, with particular emphasis on Lacan's axiom, Tracing love's trajectory from narcissistic identification in the mirror stage to its later formulation as semblance and structural void, it argues that love functions both as an act of creation and as a delusional response to the absence of sexual rapport. Through close readings of Lacan's seminars and Freud's writings on narcissism, the author introduces the notion of everyday delusion as a clinical and ethical framework for the practice and transmission of psychoanalysis today.
This contribution addresses the agoraphobic syndrome in several important ways. Tracing the different formulations of agoraphobia reveals shifts in psychoanalytic theorizing. The etiology and maintenance of agoraphobia i...This contribution addresses the agoraphobic syndrome in several important ways. Tracing the different formulations of agoraphobia reveals shifts in psychoanalytic theorizing. The etiology and maintenance of agoraphobia includes the role of genetic factors, intra- and interpersonal dynamics, and the influence of social conditions. As such, an understanding and treatment of agoraphobia requires a multimodal and interdisciplinary approach.
In order to study the relation between hallucination and persecutory delusion, this article takes André Green's as its theoretical framework. The authors argue that the attention to the negative hallucination of the dea...In order to study the relation between hallucination and persecutory delusion, this article takes André Green's as its theoretical framework. The authors argue that the attention to the negative hallucination of the dead mother, preceding the emergence of delusion, allows for a better grasp of the distribution of primary identifications in the clinic of paranoia. They examine the entanglement of maternal and paternal identifications in the context of disharmonious infantile development, triggered by the infant's libidinal disinvestment from the primary object caused by maternal depression and bereavement. This analytic approach enables clinicians to address more fully in the patient's psyche, to which the treatment must give new life.
Outlining the history of transformations of narcissism and through the clinical material, this contribution puts in dialogue Heinz Kohut's understanding of adult-infant relationality with that of Jean Laplanche. In an ef...Outlining the history of transformations of narcissism and through the clinical material, this contribution puts in dialogue Heinz Kohut's understanding of adult-infant relationality with that of Jean Laplanche. In an effort to evaluate the merits of Kohut's developmental model in meta-psychological terms, the author is guided by two aims: to explore the clinical implications of different views on adult-infant relationality, especially as they manifest in the "mirror-hungry personality," and to formulate a psychoanalytic conceptualization of self-love that can effectively challenge the narrow-minded mantras so popular today.
Paul Ferdinand Schilder, an early 20th century neurologist, psychoanalyst, and psychiatrist, made significant contributions to the areas of psychoanalysis, psychiatry, neuropathology, and cognitive neuropsychology. The e...Paul Ferdinand Schilder, an early 20th century neurologist, psychoanalyst, and psychiatrist, made significant contributions to the areas of psychoanalysis, psychiatry, neuropathology, and cognitive neuropsychology. The extent of his contributions to assessment and psychotherapy is likely unknown to the majority of practicing clinicians trained in the past several decades. This article provides an overview of Schilder's eclectic and integrative contributions to clinical practice, focusing on his books published in English.
This article analyzes and contextualizes findings of an online survey documenting transformations in psychoanalytic practice. The findings indicate that a number of contemporary practitioners challenge the premise that p...This article analyzes and contextualizes findings of an online survey documenting transformations in psychoanalytic practice. The findings indicate that a number of contemporary practitioners challenge the premise that psychoanalysis is only available to a higher-income group, also associated with mainstream gender and sexualities, and racial and ethnic ideals of whiteness. The first step of a multistage exploratory research study gathered a sample of 243 respondents, a majority of whom practice in the United States. Almost all of the respondents (99.17%) reported engagement in clinical work with populations historically considered underserved. This suggests possibilities for the emergence of a new psychoanalysis and initiates the project of mapping the inclusive practice of psychoanalysis today.
Traditional Freudian psychoanalysis has always considered interpretation to be the most effective tool for altering deeply ingrained unconscious thought patterns and perspectives. Through detailed vignettes, this case st...Traditional Freudian psychoanalysis has always considered interpretation to be the most effective tool for altering deeply ingrained unconscious thought patterns and perspectives. Through detailed vignettes, this case study describes how a persistently concrete response to interpretation is ultimately analyzed and worked through. The work of Alan Bass is used as a technical guide toward facilitating this process. His understanding of concrete resistances is an elaboration of Freud's interest in fetishism and disavowal (the predominant defense against differentiation) and Eros (the integrating but potentially traumatizing force within the psyche).