Disordered Thought and Development: Chaos to Organization in the Moment

There is a moment at every level of psychological development in which the mind comes face to face with a challenge. This moment can last for a literal moment in time or it can extend for years—becoming the leading edge of development. Disordered Thought and Development: Chaos to Organization in the Moment explores the processes around that moment. The exploration begins with a psychotic analysand in which these processes loudly reveal themselves. From there, the exploration extends to a young child with pervasive developmental disorder and then on to four other cases, each revealing the elements and dynamics necessary for development to proceed.One of the elements includes the vicissitudes of affect from its raw, unprocessed form that is initially experienced as chaotic bodily sensations without meaning to one that carries meaning, purpose, and direction. Another element is the organizational capacities that help to solve a problem that has never been solved before. The dynamics of the moment can be understood within the context of non-linear systems theory as the mind is conceptualized as a self-organizing system in the process of evolving. This book provides clinicians with a touchstone that can help guide development of all the individuals they are called on to assist whether they are anxious, obsessional, psychotic or neurotic, and whether they are children, adolescents, or adults.

“Fallon and Sherkow have crafted an important work that establishes the critical significance of understanding the law and function of dysphoria and disorganization in the human mind. They powerfully argue that thought disorder is a normative process within the development of the psyche--a 'moment' that may nonetheless last for a long time--which provides vital clues in helping the mind transition from a state of pain and chaos to a fresh, more comprehensive state of mind in which a new reality can be accommodated. What the authors do with great mastery is get inside that moment and illuminate its motive structure and impulse to reorganization, thus helping the therapist to better understand and work with it. The cases contained herein beautifully make the point. I highly recommend this work to professionals working within the psychoanalytic discipline.”

Fallon and Sherkow have crafted an important work that establishes the critical significance of understanding the law and function of dysphoria and disorganization in the human mind. They powerfully argue that thought disorder is a normative process within the development of the psyche––a ‘moment’ that may nonetheless last for a long time––which provides vital clues in helping the mind transition from a state of pain and chaos to a fresh, more comprehensive state of mind in which a new reality can be accommodated. What the authors do with great mastery is get inside that moment and illuminate its motive structure and impulse to reorganization, thus helping the therapist to better understand and work with it. The cases contained herein beautifully make the point. I highly recommend this work to professionals working within the psychoanalytic discipline. -- Danielle Knafo, Ph.D., Long Island University, author of Dancing with the Unconscious

Theodore Fallon, MD, has twenty-five years of experience as a child and adult psychiatrist and psychoanalyst. He is the director of the Child and Adolescent Psychoanalytic Training Program at the Psychoanalytic Center of Philadelphia.Susan P. Sherkow, MD, is a training and supervising analyst at the Berkshire Psychoanalytic Institute and Society and an instructor and supervising analyst at the New York Psychoanalytic Institute and Society. She is also an assistant clinical professor at the Mt. Sinai and Albert Einstein Colleges of Medicine.

There is a moment at every level of psychological development in which the mind comes face to face with a challenge. This moment can last for a literal moment in time or it can extend for years--becoming the leading edge of development. Disordered Thought and Development: Chaos to Organization in the Moment explores the processes around that moment. The exploration begins with a psychotic analysand in which these processes loudly reveal themselves. From there, the exploration extends to a young child with pervasive developmental disorder and then on to four other cases, each revealing the elements and dynamics necessary for development to proceed.One of the elements includes the vicissitudes of affect from its raw, unprocessed form that is initially experienced as chaotic bodily sensations without meaning to one that carries meaning, purpose, and direction. Another element is the organizational capacities that help to solve a problem that has never been solved before. The dynamics of the moment can be understood within the context of non-linear systems theory as the mind is conceptualized as a self-organizing system in the process of evolving. This book provides clinicians with a touchstone that can help guide development of all the individuals they are called on to assist whether they are anxious, obsessional, psychotic or neurotic, and whether they are children, adolescents, or adults.

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