Afterword to the issue “Developments in practices in perinatal psychoanalytic family therapy”

Afterword to the issue “Developments in practices in perinatal psychoanalytic family therapy”

Christiane Joubert^*

Since O. Rank (1924) described birth as the first founding trauma of the subject’s psychic life, psychoanalysts have prioritised the early years of life. Family psychoanalysts currently focus on the cradle, showing that birth creates a ‘normal generalised family crisis’ and also brings about transgenerational issues with their accompanying traumas. This leads to dysfunction and suffering for the whole family group. Thus, the “Clinic of the phantom” (Tisseron et al., 1995) is at work for psychoanalysts. This issue is devoted to perinatality in all its forms, grappling with Eros and Thanatos, which are sometimes intertwined. A very rich conceptualisation, in constant evolution, accompanied by thriving clinical work with group psychoanalytic and highly creative care set-ups, mark the rise of contemporary psychoanalysis. Here we encounter the family’s psychological cradle (Aubertel, 2023) from which we originate and which paves the way for each individual’s uniqueness.

To conclude: Once upon a time…

Once upon a time, “His Majesty Baby” landed in the world in his psychic cradle, with good fairies predicting a future of happiness, growth and joie de vivre, and wicked fairies sending him the evils and traumas of his two lineages and all the misfortunes of the world. How to ward off evil spells from the cradle? That was the question. Thanatos lurked in the shadows.

How could the baby and the family be protected?

The good fairies around the child chased away the ghosts. They whispered sweet words in his ear and sang lullabies to calm his cries of distress. His parents took him in their arms and gave him all the love in their hearts. When a wicked fairy approached, the good fairies would rush to drive her away and sometimes ask their nearby companions for help.

Many people gathered around the cradle and surrounded the parents.

The cradle was safe, and a sparkling veil embroidered by the good fairies protected it from evil himself. The family flourished, more serene than ever.

Bibliography

Aubertel, F. (2023). Retisser le berceau psychique familial. Le Divan familial, 50, 133-148.

Tisseron S. et al. (1995). Le psychisme à l’épreuve des générations. Clinique du fantôme. Malakoff: Dunod.

* President of the French Society for Psychoanalytic Family Therapy, member of the International Association for Couple and Family Psychoanalysis, member of the French Society for Psychoanalytic Group Psychotherapy, Emeritus Professor of Clinical Psychoanalytic Psychology. christianejoubert@netcourrier.com