ABSTRACT
This chapter considers interpreting infants' transferences, with vignettes illustrating moments of affective communication and shift, when intervening at the level of emotional connectedness with the infant. It outlines some ways when a therapist may respond and talk indirectly to the infant, in which the author wonder if this subtly makes the infant an object, and then discusses engaging with infants. The aim of engaging infants and their parents is not primarily about improving parent-infant interaction but to communicate with the infant to understand the meaning of the symptom so as to relieve distress. Communicative playful interaction can convey understanding of an infant transference that contributes to obstructing development and ease it. A therapist builds on body movement, and identifies through coun- tertransference with attuned play. This approach is effective, not only with infants who have eating or sleeping difficulties or are irritable.
