ABSTRACT
The author considers the repetition compulsion from a neuroscientific perspective and discusses why it is so resistant to analytic intervention. She argues that the evolved, emotionally charged talking that occurs in the psychoanalytic process can reach the level in the brain where the repetition compulsion resides. It can alter the chemistry and structure of the brain in a way that helps patients give up their repetitions and take charge of their lives. Modern analysts favor emotional communication over didactic interpretations precisely in order to reach those deeper, more primitive parts of the brain. Repetition compulsions are almost impossible to relinquish because of their defensive purposes. The author offers ideas of exactly how an emotionally charged communication from the analyst can be helpful in the resolution of repetitions. These communications won’t work unless they are expertly timed and offered after many years of analytic neutrality.
