ABSTRACT
An American living in France sought a consultation in connection with anxiety attacks and minor sexual disturbances. He was 15 years old when the camp was liberated by American troops, for whom he became the mascot. The analysis took place on a three-times weekly basis and seemed to progress normally. At the end of the session, he began screaming and hitting the walls with his fists. This is the account given by Sidney Stewart of this psychoanalysis in Memoire de l'inhumain. The analyst noticed the inadequacy of a strategy that had led him – perhaps too quickly – to destroy the rampart that the young Czech had built in order to protect himself from this intolerable experience. Encouraging elaboration when faced with a massive trauma often amounts to pushing the survivor into the “eye of the cyclone”. In the text that served as a basis for reflection, Stewart questions the validity of his choices.
