ABSTRACT
Adolescents are especially prone to act impulsively: most adolescents live in the moment. The psychic system of the adolescent is placed under great strain, not only from the biological forces of puberty, but also from the social, cultural, and technological changes that are endemic in present-day life. When the young person reaches adolescence, the author wonders if he or she has had enough observe, think, talk (OTT) experiences. When seeing an adolescent individually, one must be mindful that the analytic model—providing an 'open space' for the adolescent's dynamics to evolve—can be especially threatening. The lack of structure in these meetings can be excruciating for the adolescent. In ongoing work with adolescents, the clinical difficulties can be categorised into two groups, outside world problems, and difficulties in the room. One of the difficulties of maintaining a 'playful' engagement with adolescents is when something urgently erupts in their outside functioning.
