ABSTRACT
Connecting the symptomatic behaviour to a developmental phase and to part of the boy's personality had the effect of removing the question of blame; the possible significance attached to the behaviour helped to defuse tension and provided clarity. The nesting doll arrangement also helped Diederik to understand his behaviour better. With this new insight, he could be encouraged to ask for his father's help. In line with the nesting doll arrangement depicted, which shows the father, Peter, standing behind and to one side of seventeen-year-old Diederik, we agreed on the therapeutic framework. Peter and Diederik would together take care of that small boy who had fallen asleep and whose natural impulses had almost been extinguished. This framework gave seventeen-year-old Diederik a better understanding of his behaviour, and with his father's help he set about learning how to control it.
