ABSTRACT
Psychoanalysis was born, circa 1895, with the publication of the Studies on Hysteria. The central case history in that book is that of Joseph Breuer’s famous patient Fräulein Anna O. At that time, the common form of treatment for hysterical patients like her was hypnotherapy; but, in Anna O’s case, and on her own request, Breuer replaced hypnosis with what later became known as the method of free associations. As Anna O’s traumatic memories started to emerge, such recollections had the effect of making her hysterical symptoms disappear. She wittily described this cathartic process as ‘chimney-sweeping’ and as a ‘talking cure’ – a quite accurate definition that has remained attached to our profession ever since.
