ABSTRACT
These chapters explore what may be understood as defence mechanisms, or, in Gestalt language, interruptions to contact. These are best seen as patterns that have value and contain meaning whilst also having consequences for the quality of our connection with ourselves, others, and the environment. They include desensitisation, introjection, projection, retroflection, deflection, and confluence. I will briefly describe each. What is important to note is that they each connect and interrelate in complex ways, and I will illustrate this through case referencing.
