ABSTRACT
This chapter presents some closing thoughts on the concepts discussed in the preceding chapters of this book. Two key ideas about becoming a psychoanalyst rise to the surface in the stories in this book. The first is that becoming an analyst is a lifelong endeavor. The second idea has to do with the central role of the analyst's personality, character, and ethics in the practice of psychoanalysis. In addressing the developmental challenges facing the beginning analyst during the first years after training, Rosenbloom (1992) points out that in the midst of the loss of her analyst and training community, the graduate has the developmental task of building a professional identity or what Rosenbloom labels a "work ego". One technique that seems promising as a way to bring our own proclivities to light and help US to enrich our own voices is the writing of personal narratives.
