ABSTRACT
This chapter emphasizes that the patient's longings for the analyst are not easily resolved, and persist after termination. It describes the problem of patients who cannot give up analysis. The chapter discusses the cases that still beset with difficulty after many years, which neither patient nor analyst feels able to end. However, it is the difficulty of these cases, not the length of time, which accounts for their sometimes being thought of as interminable. The chapter summarizes some of the common features and differences in lengthy cases. The difficulty of analysis is that the dependent bond is transferred to the analyst, and the patient fears a further introjection if it is terminated. The degree of resolution which can be achieved depends on the ability of the analysis to bring together the libidinal and aggressive components of the relationship. This is itself greatly affected by the degree to which the patient's ego is invaded by primary process thinking.
