Taming the Negative Introject: Empowering Patients to Take Control of Their Mental Health

Description

In this book, Dr. Carol W. Berman describes how to help patients control the self-sabotaging element of their unconscious minds, often called the punitive superego, the negative introject, or the hurt child. The negative introject can provoke horrendous acts against the self, ranging from suicide and addiction to making hurtful comments to loved ones. The role of the psychotherapist is to make the unconscious conscious, allowing the sufferers to take back control of their actions. Dr. Berman uses case studies to personalize the theory and demonstrate how the negative introject can take hold and impact the lives of those suffering from a variety of illnesses and disorders, including depression, anxiety, eating disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and bipolar disorder. Each chapter concludes with a guide demonstrating how the negative introject was tamed in each case, showing the reader that the negative introject can be identified and then brought into some control. This book is essential reading for all kinds of psychotherapists, from psychiatrists to social workers and psychologists, as well as all those who wish to identify the negative introject, and help "tame" it. Dedication Contents Foreword • Phyllis F. Cohen 1 What is the Negative Introject? 2 Anxiety and the Negative Introject 3 Hypochondria, PTSD, OCD, and the Negative Introject 4 Major Depression, Bipolar Disorder, and the Negative Introject 5 Psychosis and the Negative Introject 6 Personality Disorders and the Negative Introject 7 Addictions and the Negative Introject 8 Denial of the Negative Introject 9 Negative Introject in the Group 10 Dreams and the Negative Introject 11 Happiness and the Negative Introject Index