Ending a psychoanalytic treatment occurs in various ways: by mutual agreement when the patient and analyst agree on a more or less satisfactory result; or unilaterally, because of external factors (money, either analyst or patient moving to another location, retirement, illness), and/or because of a stalemate or impasse, negative therapeutic reaction, the death of the patient or analyst, or some other condition.

 Ending a psychoanalytic treatment in the context of a residential setting is complex because of the expanded frame which holds multiple, and often dispersed, transferences and attachments. Short term psychoanalytic treatment also poses challenges and requires an understanding of the goals of short-term treatment which are likely to be different from open-ended analytic treatment.

This seminar will examine contemporary psychoanalytic ideas about termination including writing by clinicians from ego psychology, object relations, and relational perspectives. We will consider both theoretical and technical issues associated with the process of termination. In addition, we will examine termination from the patient’s point of view and from the analyst’s point of view. Fellows are asked to bring their own clinical examples and questions about termination in both short-term and long-term work with Riggs patients.