ABSTRACT
When partners seem to be at an impasse, and cannot seem to benefit from the interventions of Coaching, Facilitating, Doubling (Alter-Ego), or Reflecting Team, all described in Chapter 7, the Dialogue Therapist should use Unblocking. In this procedure, the therapist sits across from the “blocked” partner (while the other partner sits behind the blocked partner), and conducts an exploration into the emotional experiences and meanings blocking the partner at this moment. This process resembles a mini-individual-therapy session, as it explores various associations, memories, feelings, historical roots of the current block in that partner. Blocking is usually the result of partners getting caught in a projective identification that has gone unrecognized; the therapists can help with this recognition process, and understand why it may be occurring at this particular moment in the couple’s dialogue. This chapter gives many examples of ways to recognize a block in the dialogue, ways of exploring and understanding blocks, and when and how to use the Unblocking procedure. It describes several couples’ projective identification blocks, and potential ways out of the blocks.
