Click Here to Read: “Thou Shalt Not” The Couch as Confessional by Deborah J. Green, Ph.D.
Summary of “Thou Shalt Not” The Couch as Confessional by Deborah J. Green, Ph.D.:
This paper presents the analysis of an Irish-Catholic woman in her 40s who was scorned by her family, the church and community following a teenage pregnancy and giving the child up for adoption. Unconscious guilt and shame lead to her sexually acting out and rivalry with her two sisters. Despite her denial around her religious thoughts, there were strong religious threads woven throughout the analysis. Through overcoming this denial, the analysis uncovered painful feelings of shame, fantasies of purgatory, and dreams and transference which took on a religious meaning, with the couch metaphorically serving as a confessional. Analysis freed her to confront her guilt feelings, reduce the severity of her superego, and gain a capacity to forgive. She actively sought to locate her son, which lead to a positive reunion with him and frequent contacts thereafter, whereupon the analysis was concluded.