Transfer And Counter-transfer

Transmission and countertransference  are two basic terms in psychoanalysis. They are fundamental in clinical practice, and although they are two different concepts, transference and countertransference are clearly inseparable.

The patient analyst’s interaction takes place  in a room where the unconscious is allowed to circulate as freely as possible. This is where the dynamics between the patient and the analyst can create transference and countertransference.

What is transfer?

The term transference is not exclusive to psychoanalysis. It refers to the idea of ​​moving something or substituting something for something else. You can see it in a relationship between doctor and patient or student and teacher.

When it comes to psychoanalysis, it is understood as  recreating childhood fantasies, which will help the analyst  diagnose potential problems. Transfer means that a person “writes over” something earlier with something that is relevant, with the goal of healing.

At first, Freud considered transmission to be a major obstacle to the therapeutic process. He saw it as the patient resisting access to his unconscious thoughts and feelings. But it did not take him long to realize that his role surpassed that resistance.

This is how Freud describes transference as a paradoxical phenomenon in his writings in 1912, called ” Dynamics of Transference” . Although it can be a source of resistance, it is fundamental to an analyst. He distinguishes the positive type of transmission – tenderness and love – from negative transmission, which is full of hostile and aggressive emotions.

Contributions from other psychoanalysts on the concept of transference

After Freud, many writings have been written on the subject of transmission. They have covered the whole subject, at the same time as they compared it with the original development of the phenomenon. They all agree that this is what happens in the  relationship between the analyst and the patient during treatment.

According to Melanie Klein, it is a reconstruction of the patient’s unconscious fantasies. During the analysis, the patient will evoke his  psychic reality.  He / she will use the analyst to relive unconscious fantasies.

According to Donald Woods Winnicott, the phenomenon of transference in analysis can be understood as a copy of the bond between mother and child. Hence the need to leave strict neutrality. The way patients use the analyst as a transition object  provides a different dimension to transmission and interpretation. This is described in his 1969 writings ” The use of an object “. Here he confirms that the patient needs the therapeutic link to confirm his existence.

Transfer link

As we said, the transfer has to do with the recreation of childhood fantasies using the figure of the analyst. For this to happen, they must establish a transferable link.

To create the link, the patient first accepts his / her wish to work with what is happening to him / her, then he / she meets an analyst who will know something about what is happening to him / her. Lacan  called the analysts ” Subject Supposed to Know “. This is how they reach the first level of trust in the relationship, which will pave the way for analysis.

Avoid traps

However, on this journey there may be issues the analyst should be aware of and respond to in a timely manner. The patient may show signs of  falling in love with the therapist. They can do regular checks on how attractive they are, and turn the analyst into their lover.

They may also fall into the trap of obeying the therapist without asking questions. Another thing to watch out for is  quick improvements without putting in any work. There are also more subtle signs, such as being late for appointments or talking about other professionals too much.

Of course, the problems are not always just on the patient’s side. There may also be counter-transmission manifestations. The analyst must also be aware of and analyze himself. If the analyst starts arguing with the patient or has impulses to ask for services, they should be very careful.

The analyst may begin to dream about the patient and take excessive interest in them. Not keeping a safe distance or having intense emotional reactions related to the patient are also signs of danger.

What is countertransference?

Freud introduced the concept of countertransference  in his writing in 1910, called ” The Future Prospects of Psycho-Analytic Therapy “. He describes it as the  analyst’s emotional response to stimuli coming from the patient. This emotional response is a result of influencing the analyst’s unconscious emotions.

The analyst must be aware of this because  they can become an obstacle to healing. Others, however, argue that everything that is felt in countertransference – the things that have nothing to do with the analyst – can be returned to the patient.

It may be that the feelings that the patient evokes in the analyst, after they have been returned to the patient, can generate greater awareness or understanding of what is happening in the therapeutic relationship. It may be something that the patient had not articulated until that moment.

For example, if the patient relives a childhood scene, the analyst may begin to feel sad. However, the patient may interpret it as rage. If the analyst then returns what he feels to the patient, the patient can connect to the  real feeling that is hidden behind their anger.

The relationship between transmission and countertransference

On the one hand, we can define the countertransference of its direction: the  analysts’ feelings towards the patient. On the other hand, we can define it as a balance that serves as proof that a person’s reaction is not independent of what they receive from the other person. In this way, countertransference is related to what happens in transmission, and both affect the other.

Therefore, countertransference can be an obstacle if the analyst acts on it. He / she can let his / her feelings towards the patient be torn by – love, hate, rejection, anger, etc. In this case, they would have broken the law of abstinence and neutrality that they should adhere to. Instead of helping, they would hurt.

The patient tries to communicate his experiences. The analyst should only respond to what the patient says, and  not let his / her own feelings influence what he / she says. The patient relives the fantasies and acts on them. However, they do not do it consciously, and therefore interpretation plays a fundamental role in healing.

The functions of transmission and counter-transmission

The analysis presupposes a transferable link from patient to analyst. This link between transference and countertransference is where emotions, unconscious desires, tolerances and intolerances will appear.

Based on this transfer ratio, the analyst will be able to take the necessary measures. These can be interpretations, accusations or to end the session. A transferable link is essential for thorough analysis.

In the analytical relationship, the analyst must remain very neutral. They must listen without letting their own feelings and life story affect things. The analyst must become a kind of blank sheet to which the patient can transfer his unconscious thoughts and feelings.