About the Book
In this uniquely intimate and clinical book, Mark Kinet explores the vital role of psychodynamic psychotherapy in psychiatric work.
Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy in Psychiatric Practice: Premises and Clinical Portraits includes over 70 case studies of patients receiving psychiatric care in various settings, from (semi-)residential treatment to outpatient support. Kinet draws on his extensive experience of conducting group and individual psychotherapy sessions, psychoanalysis in a traditional setting, and his integration of play therapy techniques. He introduces and explores seven foundational premises essential to the success of psychodynamic psychotherapy with these patients: the integration of intrapsychic and interpersonal forces and perspectives, the key impact of unconscious content and processes, the vital importance of the therapeutic relationship, the mobilisation of mentalising capacities, the interpretation of hidden motives, the emancipation resulting from enlightenment, and the importance of approaching this work with realism rather than an idealised perspective. The case studies highlight common mental issues such as anxiety, low mood and clinical depression, PTSD, and personality disorders, equipping the reader with the tools to understand and help a wide range of patients.
Written in accessible language, this volume will be of great interest to psychiatrists, psychoanalysts, and psychotherapists, as well as anyone interested in gaining insight into real-life psychiatric practice.
Table of Contents:
1. Prelude 2. Introduction 3. Premises: Integration Trumps 4. Clinical Portraits: Between Radiography and Biography 5. Modus Operandi
About the Author :
Mark Kinet is a psychiatrist, psychotherapist, and psychoanalyst based in Belgium. He is the author of The Spirit of the Drive in Neuropsychoanalysis (2023) and Psychoanalytic Principles in Psychiatric Practice. A Remedy by Truth (2024).
Review :
"With over thirty years of impressive experience in full-time clinical work, the author is a trusted figure in the field. He is an integrative and independent psychiatrist and psychoanalyst, taking an autonomous stance towards the various psychoanalytic schools. His unique perspective is abundantly illustrated in 77 portraits or case studies. This book is a relevant and valuable resource for all those involved in mental health care: patients, therapists, counsellors, medical doctors, nurses ... You must read this book!"
Marc Hebbrecht, M.D., psychiatrist, IPA psychoanalyst, current president of the Belgian Society of Psychoanalysis and the former editor-in-chief of Tijdschrift voor Psychoanalyse (Dutch Journal of Psychoanalysis)
"Although structured differently, this is a kind of ‘companion book’ to Kinet’s Psychoanalytic Principles in Psychiatric Practice. A brief outline of seven premises is followed by 77 concise case histories presented in straightforward terms. These mainly deal with severe psychiatric problems, which are, or instead appear to be, workable on a psychoanalytic basis. That this turns out to be possible in our time of ‘disorder-centred treatment modules’, is surprising and hopeful – for current psychiatry and for current psychoanalysis. So this is how it can be done! The clinical data are captivatingly described and get to the heart of the matter quickly, inviting the reader’s thinking."
Antoine Mooij, M.D., PhD, psychiatrist, psychoanalyst, philosopher, an emeritus professor at the University of Utrecht (NL), Netherlands
"In this highly readable book, psychoanalytic therapist and clinical psychiatrist Mark Kinet reflects on the power and practice of contemporary psychotherapy. Uniquely, he opens up the lives of 77 former patients, allowing the reader to see the challenges patients and therapists face. As a series, these case studies clarify what abstract psychodynamic concepts like transference, mentalisation, or interpretation imply – or might imply – in clinical practice."
Stijn Vanheule, PhD, clinical psychologist, professor of psychoanalysis and clinical psychology at the University of Gent (B), Belgium
"This book gives us a direct and thoughtful insight into what psychoanalytic practice in its diverse forms implies. It consistently builds further on the earlier volume of Mark Kinet’s trilogy on psychoanalysis in all its clinical and psychiatric applications. Indeed, we are far from the illusion of a monolithic and dogmatic doctrine under the direction of primal father Sigmund Freud (and/or Jacques Lacan). The many, sharply written, short case studies demonstrate the multifaceted nature of the psychoanalytical approach. The common thread is the ethics of psychoanalysis: the fundamental respect for every human person – their history, choices, preferences, inclinations, etc. – and the dialogical effort to promote the liberation of the person from what hinders their personal development and prevents growth."
Jozef Corveleyn, clinical psychologist, psychoanalyst and an emeritus professor at KULeuven (B), Belgium
"Over thirty years of clinical experience in psychoanalytic psychotherapy leaps off the pages. The author speaks as a psychiatrist who genuinely enjoys his profession, skilfully applying psychoanalytic thinking in both clinical and (semi)residential settings. With its accessible language, the text allows readers unfamiliar with the field to empathise with the client and their journey, while colleagues will appreciate the refreshingly unorthodox approach."
Frans Schalkwijk, psychoanalyst in private practice, former editor-in-chief of Tijdschrift voor Psychoanalyse (Dutch Journal of Psychoanalysis), and emeritus professor at the University of Amsterdam (NL), Netherlands
