“I Am Beside Myself”

I hear patients use the words that comprise the title of this chapter frequently, and it is generally in a pejorative context. Yet, to me, the image of being “beside” oneself can be a touching one, not necessarily (or only) a troubling one. Here is an excerpt from a session with Joaquim, whose wife, Enriquetta, was struggling through cancer treatment without there being a likely positive outcome in sight.