Changes in reactive depression and sense of self in a time-limited psychodynamic therapy

Abstract

Attention to the self can take place even within the context of a brief or time-limited psychodynamically oriented therapy. The case presented here demonstrates how one can, and why one should, treat the whole person and not solely the symptoms of depression following a significant loss. The aspect of the client's sense of self that was most prominent was her need to depend excessively on her boyfriend rather than being more autonomous within a mature give-and-take relationship. She was treated in a 12-session time-limited therapy developed by James Mann that deals with the human inevitability of experiencing significant interpersonal separations and losses. In line with this model, the therapy focused on the client's chronically endured emotional pain, employing an empathic, exploratory, and interpretive style. The termination stage of therapy allowed the client to reexperience feelings of loss and separation with the opportunity to come to terms with them in a new, more constructive way. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.