Counter-Transference

Counter-Transference

Introduction

Freud identified the theory of transference in some patients. He explained how human beings tend to think, feel, or act in ways that were developed by our childhood experiences, they tend to influence or dominate our experience of this. Therefore, they confuse or distort the judgment of the reality of the here and now, determining conflicts in our relationships with the people they have intimate links with the existing relations of the past. Thus, the analysis seeks an understanding of the patient's inner world with his past relationships, and work to close the unfinished business of the past. This paper will present the examples that I experienced while working as a social worker and relate to the concept of counter-transference.

Overview of Counter-Transference

Counter-transference is the emotional reaction of the clinician to the patient. This is present strongly in the therapeutic relationship; however, it is often not given much importance. This concept was also brought in by Sigmund Freud. This concept is in accordance with his one-person psychology and includes the analyst. He also attempted to introduce the international rules for the implications that can be established. Counter-transference is the intervention that does not let the therapist to succeed in helping him to treat the patient effectively. This means that the therapist will not be able to treat the patient in a manner that will help him to be cured. The performance of the therapist will depend on the intensity in which he is being negatively influenced by his own emotions towards the patient. The therapist will then be biased and will not be able to treat the patient accurately. This is the reason that it is said that the therapist should be free from all biases whenever he is treating a patient.

There is no doubt that the feelings or the emotions that are evoked in the therapist is natural, but it is the duty of the therapist to make sure that he gets rid of them and does not get carried away by them. Sometimes it happens that the patient resembles the therapists' close relative due to which the therapist is carried away by the emotions. Being a human, it is difficult for the therapist to work in such a situation, but keeping in mind his duty, he should be able to work strongly and shrug the emotions that have been evoked. I have worked as a social worker and have experienced the same feelings, which will be discussed in the following part of the paper.

Discussion

An example would be the verbalization of a patient: "I mentioned that I said much my mother / father." This is a simple transfer of the patient, who is reflecting the figure of his mother or father in the psychotherapist.

According to Moore (1972), analysis is carried out to perform:

Understand what patients talk and the relevance of the current situation

Understand if it comes from some of its archaic conflicts of past relationships (mother, father, brothers or figures represented a strong image in their lives)

Detect what happens ...