ABSTRACT
I was motivated to write this book because I wanted to share with those who have the same love of the profession the specific way that I find it is best to interact with the client. We all want the client, by the time he leaves therapy, to have lost his dysfunctional patterns of relating, and to no longer be in the grip of his major pathology or pathologies. When we are noviate therapists, we talk about “cure” for the client; as we become mature therapists, we realise that, perhaps, in the vast majority of cases, the best that we can hope for is that our work together will lead to a diminution of his pathologies, so that his life is no longer ruled by them. However, it is very likely that some residue of his pathological way of living will remain in evidence, especially at times of stress or ill-health.
