Holding and Psychoanalysis, 2nd edition: A Relational Perspective

Is there a baby in the relational consulting room? How and when can/should we try to hold our patients? What happens to the analyst''s subjectivity when she tries to hold?

In　Holding and Psychoanalysis: A Relational Perspective (second Edition),　Joyce Slochower　brings a contemporary relational framework to bear on Winnicott''s notion of the holding environment.　Revisiting the clinical impact and theoretical underpinnings of holding, Slochower explores its function in those moments when "ordinary" interpretive or interactive work　cannot be tolerated. 　Slochower expands the　holding construct beyond the needs of dependent patients　by examining　its therapeutic function across the clinical spectrum.　Emphasizing holding’s coconstructed nature, Slochower explores the contribution of both patient and analyst the holding moment.　

This second Edition　introduces　new theoretical and clinical material, including four additional chapters. Two of these address holding’s impact on the patient’s capacity to access, articulate and process affect states;　the third moves　outside　the consulting room to explore how holding functions in acts of memorial ritual across the lifespan. A final chapter presents　Slochower’s　latest ideas about holding’s clinical function in buffering shame states.

Integrating Winnicott''s seminal contributions with contemporary relational and feminist/psychoanalytic perspectives,　Joyce Slochower　addresses　the therapeutic limitations of both interpretive and interactive clinical work. There are times, she argues, when patients cannot tolerate　explicit　evidence of the analyst''s separate presence　and instead need a holding experience.　 Slochower　conceptualizes holding within a relational frame that includes both deliberate and enacted elements. 　In her view, the analyst does not hold alone; patient and analyst each participate in the establishment of a co-constructed holding space. 　Slochower　pays particular attention to the analyst''s experience during moments of holding, offering rich clinical vignettes that illustrate the complex struggle that holding entails. 　She　also addresses the therapeutic limits of holding and invites the reader to consider the analyst’s contribution to these failures. Slochower locates the holding process within a broader clinical framework that involves　the　transition toward collaboration—a move away　from　holding and into an explicitly intersubjective therapeutic frame.

Holding and Psychoanalysis　offers a　sophisticated　integration of Winnicottian and relational thought　that privileges the dynamic impact of holding moments on both patient and analyst.　　Thoroughly grounded in case examples, the book offers compelling clinical solutions to common therapeutic knots. 　Clearly written and carefully explicated, it will be an important addition to the libraries of psychoanalysts and psychoanalytic psychotherapists.