One of the reasons I do this is it’s enormously rewarding and I guess my feelings are, if I can leave the planet having eased the suffering of some people, I have done a good thing. I had one lady ask me, “Am I crazy?” I said, “Of course you’re crazy. You could not get […]
Archive | About Rafe
Why do psychoanalysts use a couch?
I think Freud initially came up with the idea of the couch because he got tired of being stared at. He had oral cancer and this was not a pleasant thing to be looked at, so I think that was part of it. He discovered that a different part of the brain is accessed when […]
What types of patients do you see in your practice?
In terms of people I work with, my practice right now is kids between 8 and my oldest patient right now is 83. I work with children, I work with adolescents, I work with adults, I work with geriatrics, and everything in between. I think it’s a technique that can be applied to anybody. People […]
Where do dreams come from?
I have patients come in and say they don’t believe in the unconscious. I ask, “Well, where do dreams come from?” There is a silence when I ask that question. Psychoanalysis originated with Freud interpreting his own dreams. People are fascinated with dream interpretation. I have patients come in, they tell me a dream and […]
When Should an Analyst Talk?
When I went in to see Dr. Spotnitz the first time he said, “Tell me your life story, minute by minute, moment by moment” and he didn’t say a word for two years. When I asked him a question he would say, “Keep talking.” Those were the most frustrating years of my life. I don’t […]
What Kind of Training Do You Have?
One interesting thing about psychoanalysis is that the training is enormously complicated and long. I went to ACAP: Academy of Clinical and Applied Psychoanalysis in Livingston, New Jersey. It’s almost like when you go to French, total immersion in French class or any language, the first class you take and you’re thinking “what are they […]
How Do You Resist Leading Patients?
Everyone has their own truth. You and I could witness something and you go in a room and explain what you saw, and I can go in a room and explain what I saw, and it may be two very different versions. This woman did a TED Talk and they showed a tape of somebody […]
What do your patients talk about?
Many patients want to think they’re not talking about the right thing. There is no right or wrong thing. If we start with the premise that all words and actions are unconsciously motivated, and I think they are, then there is no right. There are clues in everything that is said. I have one young […]
I bring a ‘healthy ignorance’ to every patient.
The way I work, and hopefully other modern psychoanalysts work, is that I bring a ‘healthy ignorance’ to every patient. Yes, I’m well-trained, I’ve been schooled, I’ve spent a lot of time studying, but, the person that walks in that door is different than the person that just walked out the door, or the next […]
How Do You Keep Current with Modern Psychoanalysis?
Look at my shelves. Those are all books on psychoanalysis. There’s so much to learn in terms of various concepts and ideas, but it’s fascinating and I’m always learning. I’m always reading. I’m always going to seminars. We analysts get together and talk. The one problem with the profession, it’s a little bit lonely. It’s […]