ABSTRACT
The initial work as therapists is to bring about a shift in the patient's thinking, to assist them begin the process of gaining an understanding of their own inner psychic functioning. Whilst projection as a defence mechanism occurs throughout therapy from time to time for any patient, some will use excessive projective identification and as a result lose themselves in the identity of others. When patients first seek psychoanalytic psychotherapy they bring their own phantasies about what they might expect from the therapist. Due to the experience of loss as a result of withdrawal by the original object, the patients never experienced a gradual separation process. They then sought this early attachment in their adult relationships. Whilst these examples of withdrawal are more extreme, there are aspects which can be identified in many patients where dependency is an issue.
