Recognising Selfobject Dynamics in the Consulting Room
Selfobject dynamics are present in every therapeutic relationship, whether explicitly recognised or not. From a self psychological perspective, clients do not merely relate to the therapist; they experience the therapist as performing essential psychological...
Working Clinically with Eco-Anxiety and Climate Grief: Ethical and Therapeutic Considerations
As awareness of climate change deepens, I am increasingly encountering clients whose distress is explicitly linked to environmental collapse, political inaction, and fears about the future. Eco-anxiety and climate grief pose particular challenges for clinical...
A conversation with AI about The Ghost in the Machine
Introduction The phrase “ghost in the machine,” coined by Gilbert Ryle (1949), was intended as a critique of the idea that the mind is a separate, non-physical entity inhabiting the body. While this philosophical position might initially seem abstract, it has profound...
Selfobjects and Developmental Trauma: A Self Psychological Perspective
Developmental trauma is increasingly understood not only as the result of overwhelming events, but also as the consequence of chronic relational failures during early life. From a self psychological perspective, trauma arises when essential selfobject needs are...
Reading on Bisexuality for Mental Health Professionals
Reading on Bisexuality for Mental Health Professionals Despite increased LGBTQ+ visibility, bisexual people continue to experience distinct forms of marginalisation. Research consistently demonstrates elevated rates of anxiety, depression, and minority stress among...
How the Idea of Conscience in Human Beings is Reflected in the Structure of AI
I enjoy the use of analogies. For me they work not because of an exact correspondence, but the similarities and differences often help with an understanding of one or both sides of the analogy. In this, the result of a recent conversation with AI, I was able to learn...
Kohut’s Self Psychology and the Role of Selfobjects in Psychological Wellbeing
Heinz Kohut’s self psychology represents a significant shift within psychoanalytic thought, moving the focus from instinctual drives and conflict towards the development, cohesion, and maintenance of the self. This contrasts strongly with writers such as Jung and...
Eco-Anxiety and Climate Grief – How Psychotherapy Can Help in a Changing World
As the realities of climate change become increasingly difficult to ignore–increasing average global temperatures, increasing sea-level, more extreme weather–many people are experiencing profound emotional responses to environmental degradation, biodiversity loss, and...
A Relational, Humanistic Critique of the “Dopamine Hole”
A Relational, Humanistic Critique of the “Dopamine Hole” SEO meta description A concise relational, humanistic critique of the popular “dopamine hole” self-help video from Newel of Knowledge, exploring what it gets right, what it oversimplifies, and how people in...
Autonomy, Alignment, and the Psychotherapy of Systems
The emergence of artificial intelligence that can update itself, modify internal models, and act with partial autonomy raises a set of questions that sound surprisingly familiar to psychotherapists. Concerns about misalignment, harmful optimisation, or systems losing...Recent Posts
- Recognising Selfobject Dynamics in the Consulting Room
- Working Clinically with Eco-Anxiety and Climate Grief: Ethical and Therapeutic Considerations
- A conversation with AI about The Ghost in the Machine
- Selfobjects and Developmental Trauma: A Self Psychological Perspective
- Reading on Bisexuality for Mental Health Professionals
