We propose to revisit the concept of infantile psychosis through the story of Youssef. When the therapeutic situation is confronted with particularly massive transference movements, an encounter can be co-constructed around the phenomenon of confusion. According to this principle, it is a matter of accepting this temporary state in order to start towards a process of transformation and differentiation. The relational body can, in this regard, appear as an original anchor point.
The authors explore the role and the place of silence in clinical work with young adolescents for whom the reflecting function could not be structured in a stable enough way. In order for these patients to be able to latch onto the analyst’s silence as a space-time allowing them to dive into themselves and listen to themselves speaking, preliminary work is required. In these difficult treatments, it will be essential to listen to body language and to the language of acts, as well as to the transference onto the setting.
Adolescence, 2025, 43, 1, 35-48.
Revue semestrielle de psychanalyse, psychopathologie et sciences humaines, indexée AERES au listing PsycINFO publiée avec le concours du Centre National du Livre et de l’Université de Paris Diderot Paris 7