SPRING CONFERENCE: April 10, 2021, 9:00AM-12:30PM

This conference will be virtual, using Zoom. Please register for more information on how to attend.

3.0 Continuing Education Credits. Attendance will be verified through Zoom.

It is remarkable to note the pervasive desexualization of psychoanalysis, the once sex-infused theory of human development. Through the exploration of erotics in clinical process, this paper will address the many manifestations of erotic longing in psychoanalysis. Our theories have become desexualized to an extent that fails to prepare clinicians with the necessary armamentarium to cope with the level of desire and erotic material likely to emerge. This paper aims to address the deficiency in our literature and theories of technique and to encourage more open discussion about erotic transferences in all of their manifestations. Two cases will be presented that illustrate these concepts.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

Upon completion of this program, participants should be able to:

1. Identify and explore aspects of erotic transferences and countertransferences, especially as these relate to the multiple meanings underlying erotic transferences.

2. To explore the ways in which the analyst’s countertransference can aid in elaborating the meanings of erotic transferences through unconscious communications.

3. Acquire greater comfort in the identification and exploration of their own countertransference, especially as it includes erotic aspects.

Andrea Celenza, Ph.D. is Training and Supervising Analyst at the Boston Psychoanalytic Society and Institute and Assistant Clinical Professor at Harvard Medical School. Co-Director (with Martha Stark, MD) of a blended, online program in Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy. She has two online courses and is the recipient of several awards. She has authored two books, including Erotic Revelations: Clinical Applications and Perverse Scenarios. She is in private practice in Lexington, Massachusetts. 

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Bolognini, S. (1994). Transference: Erotised, erotic, loving, affectionate. International Journal of Psychoanalysis, 75, 73-86.

Celenza, A. (2014). Erotic Revelations: Clinical Applications and Perverse Scenarios. NY: Routledge.

Fonagy, P. (2008). A genuinely developmental theory of sexual enjoyment and its implications for psychoanalytic technique. Journal American Psychoanalytic Association, 56, 11-36.

Stein, R. (1998). The poignant, the excessive and the enigmatic in sexuality. International Journal Psychoanalysis, 79, 253-268.

Celenza, A. (1998). Precursors to therapist sexual misconduct. Psychoanalytic

Psychology, 15:3, 378-395.