ABSTRACT
Erotic transference and countertransference can be particularly fraught because of the intensity of emergent bodily sensations in the adolescent and because of her or his normal developmental immaturity. Adolescents need help to name and integrate their newfound bodily experiences. A patient's erotic feelings toward an analyst can sometimes be intensely driven and even psychotic in the Kleinian sense of losing touch with reality. Atkinson and Gabbard describe an erotic transference of a male patient with a female therapist and note that the therapist in such a pairing may be tempted to overemphasize maternal feelings. Samuels' concept of erotic playback is not simplistic. Erotic playback encourages the individual "to think of himself or herself in a diversified way, to come alive and hold together in the mind all aspects of the self – body areas, mental areas". As parents or analysts we do not often consciously set out to provide our children or patients 'erotic playback'.
