the training and research institute for self psychology

TRISP 2001-2002
Friday Evening Workshops

Seven exciting presentations by members of the TRISP community demonstrate the therapeutic advantages of self psychology and the theory of intersubjectivity.

Friday Evenings from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at the Trinity School, 91st Street and Columbus Avenue, New York City.

$30 per presentation, $175 for all seven.
To register or for more information, call 212-828-1042 or e-mail: trispnyc@msn.com 

September 28, 2001.
The Fundamental Concepts of Self Psychology and the Theory of Intersubjectivity Peter B. Zimmermann, Ph.D.

In this workshop Dr. Zimmermann provides a comprehensive overview of the basics of self psychology and intersubjectivity theory. This seasoned clinician uses case examples to illustrate how these concepts translate into clinical practice. The workshop will highlight the difference that self psychology and intersubjectivity theory make in understanding patients.

2. October 19, 2001.
Self-Psychological Reflections on Ghosts, the Uncanny, and the Acceptance of Death Doris Brothers, Ph.D.

Although popular culture is saturated with images of murder and suicide, we are known as a death-denying society. Dr. Brothers attempts to understand our denial of and preoccupation with death from the perspective of "the intersubjective regulation of uncertainty." Using the movie, Ghost, to illustrate her ideas, she proposes an alternative to Freud’s theory of the uncanny. She also describes her work with a woman who had great difficulty accepting her mother’s death.

3. January 4, 2002.
Working with Bipolar Disorders in Psychotherapy
Jeffrey Deitz, M.D.

In this workshop Dr. Deitz identifies the needs of patients with bipolar disorders. He describes the optimal stance of therapists in working with these patients and suggests helpful interventions at various stages of psychotherapy. He describes psychotherapy approaches based on a number of different theoretical models of the mind. He also presents a hierarchy of the needs of bipolar patients as they negotiate different stages of self-awareness, mood regulation, and resolution of psychic conflict.

4. January 11, 2001.
Dream Work: Perspectives from Self and Interpersonal Psychologies
Patricia Simko, Ph.D., JD

Intriguing and mystifying, dreams have always been of particular interest to the psychoanalyst. Dream work remains one of the most important and reliable ways to contact the deeper realms of experience. Sadly, many clinicians undervalue dream analysis and fail to take advantage of this rewarding exercise, both in their personal and professional lives. Self psychology and interpersonal theory offer new and important theoretical perspectives on the dream. For instance, many dreams are thought to contain a reflection on the state of the self. Dr. Simko’s workshop is partly didactic and partly experiential. Participants are invited to present dreams for discussion.

5. April 5 , 2002.
Self Psychology and the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered Client
Arleen Bandler, C.S.W., N.C.PsyA. and Michele Schwartz, M.A.,C.S.W.

Societal oppression and internalized homophobia often lead to pernicious self-attacks and erosion of self-esteem among lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgendered clients. Ms. Bandler and Ms. Schwartz show how the clinical application of self-psychological concepts can help to repair such self disorders and bolster self-esteem. In this workshop, clinical material is used liberally, particularly a treatment case that involves the therapist’s self-disclosure and its effect on selfobject fantasies.

6. April 26, 2002. When Work Doesn’t Work: Dealing with Problems of
Ambition from a Self Psychological PerspectiveLetitia Chamberlain, Ph.D.

Work problems often permeate the therapeutic relationship. However, many clinicians tend to regard work-related issues as extra-analytic or as secondary to larger concerns, and therefore neglect this important realm of experience. Dr. Chamberlain suggests that self psychology provides a rich theoretical framework for investigating and understanding work problems, particularly those related to ambition, such as lack of ambition, closeted ambition, etc. She presents many illustrative vignettes.

7. May 10, 2002. A Self-Psychological Study of Experiences of
Near-Death and/or Dying: The Shattered FantasY Model of Traumatic Loss
Richard B. Ulman, Ph.D. and Maria T. Miliora, Ph.D., LICSW

Through the presentation of three representative clinical cases, Drs. Ulman and Miliora illustrate the main points of their self-psychological thesis regarding traumatic loss. They seek to demonstrate that the unconscious meaning of traumatic loss is determined by the shattering of archaic narcissistic fantasies. They assert that when the selfobject fantasies which organize a person’s subjective world shatter, the person may feel that life has lost its meaning. A reconstitution of a version of these shattered fantasies can restore life’s meaning.

Presenters

Arleen Bandler, C.S.W., N.C.PsyA. Faculty member, TRISP; certified psychoanalyst; former director and current supervisor, Identity House; private practice New York City and Nyack, New York.

Doris Brothers, Ph.D. Member, Board of Trustees, training and supervising analyst, senior faculty member, TRISP; author, Falling Backwards: An Exploration of Trust and Self Experience, Norton; private practice, New York City.

Jeffrey Deitz, M.D. Senior faculty member, TRISP. Publications and presentations focus on an integration of psychological and neurobiological concepts of mood and anxiety disorders; private practice, New York City.

Maria T. Miliora, Ph.D., L.I.C.S.W. Training and supervising analyst, senior faculty member, TRISP; faculty, Suffolk University, Boston; author, Narcissism. The Family, and Madness: A Self-Psychological Study of Eugene O’Neill and His Plays, Peter Lang; private practice, Boston, Massachusetts.

Michele Schwartz, M.A.,C.S.W. Faculty member, TRISP; co-chair, Curriculum Committee, TRISP Two-Year Program; supervisor, Institute for Human Identity; workshops and papers on Intersubjectivity and on self-in-relation theory (Stone Center); private practice, New York City.

Patricia Simko, Ph.D., JD. Senior faculty member, TRISP; core faculty member, The New School University; author, Webdreams, forthcoming; private practice, New York City.

Richard B. Ulman, Ph.D. Member, Board of Trustees, training and supervising analyst, senior faculty member, TRISP; principal co-author (with Harry Paul) A Self-Psychological Approach to Understanding and Treating Addiction: Narcissus in Wonderland, forthcoming, Brunner-Routledge; private practice, New York City and Croton-on-Hudson, New York.

Peter B. Zimmermann, Ph.D. Member, Board of Trustees, training and supervising analyst, TRISP; training and supervising analyst, senior faculty member, NPAP; author and co-author of presentations and publications on select topics in self psychology and intersubjectivity, including the self psychology of depression; private practice, New York City.

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