Being “Held in Mind”:

Mentalizing and Psychotherapy

Jon Hunter & Michael CordCollaborative Mental Health Care

Network February, 2010

“Mentalization enables children to ‘read’ people’s minds.”

“Other people, machines of independent mystery”

The Sally Anne Test(theory of mind)

Frith & FrithScience Vol. 286

26 nov. 1999

Attachment security at 12 months

Success at theory of mind test (5 years)

Secure with Mother

Insecure with Mother

82%

46%

Secure with Father

Insecure with Father

77%

46%

Secure with Both

Insecure with Both

87%

50%

Development – secure parent

Parent:

1. Appreciates type and intensity of emotional signal from the child

2. Conveys explanatory model for internal state

3. Conveys sense of (adult) containment or mastery about state

(think about psychotherapeutic comments)

Development – secure parent

Mature (parental) mentalization:

Reflecting, containing, alleviating

“You’re tired, aren’t you after such a long day, you need to nap, then you’ll feel better”

Development - insecure parent

“The mother unconsciously forces the child into the adaptive strategy which she finds most reassuring” (Fonagy)

“Infant’s pattern of relating reflects parent’s habitual pattern of dealing with the infant’s unpleasurable states”

Parent works to decrease the distress signal, rather then its cause

Frequent maternal interactional errors with disorganized children

(Vondra, Barnett)

Laughs when infant distressed

Uses friendly tone with threatening posture

Handles infant as if inanimate

Uses ‘haunted’ or frightened voice

Mocks or teases infant

Withholds or removes toy

Directs infant to do something, and then not to do it…

“Frightening or frightened” parents

Clinical clues to good mentalizing capacity-

Represents self and others as thinking and feeling

“I assume she must’ve felt angry because…”

Illustration 1:

Patient is reflecting on the way she feels when her boyfriend is preoccupied, distant and dismissive:

“…I just want to be held in mind”

Clinical clues to good mentalizing capacity-

Sensitive to characteristics of mental states

an appreciation of developmental phases, limited power of wishes…

Illustration 2:

Patient’s sister married to alcoholic abusive man

Turns to 18 year-old son for comfort and support

Patient is furious and tells sister:

“you have to give him a stone to stand on”

Clinical clues to good mentalization capacity-

Sensitive to diversity of mental states amongst people

appreciating how much needs to be told, what it’s emotional impact will be

Illustration 3:

Patient is able to work at 3 jobs, and is recognized as very helpful, reliable and capable.

When she needs help people rarely respond, and she ‘writes them off’

She states:

“They’re just supposed to know that when I ask I need it right away”

Clinical clues to good mentalization capacity-

Links mental states to observed behaviours

’teases out’ reasons for behaviour

Illustration 4:

35 y.o. woman, long difficult history of BPD, AN&BN, cocaine abuse, depression.

Therapy x >10 years

Stopped at U.S. border and required to have form filled in by MD.

Long discussion in therapy…form not completed by therapist

Results in being barred from entry to U.S.

“you asshole, you wanted me to suffer”

Clinical clues to good mentalization capacity-

Appreciates possibility of change in mental states, and its relevance for change in behaviour

“I feel this way now, but if that happens, who knows?”

Acknowledges difference between observed behaviour and internal state:

“He acted unconcerned, but must’ve been nervous”

Illustration 5:

Young father recently widowed

4 year old son refers to his 7 year old brother by their private ‘sibling’ name

Father uses that name in same conversation, despite ‘rule’ against it… because he knows that is the best reference in the young brother’s mind

Explains all, with humour, to elder son

Mentalization, Definitions:

“We mentalize when we treat others as people rather then objects”

(Allan, pg.93)

“Knowing ourselves from the outside, and others from the inside”

(Jeremy Holmes)

Using mentalization to guide intervention

Just as secure attachment is a necessary

precondition for mentalization, so a secure

‘therapeutic’ base is required for the

‘exploration’ of psychotherapy

…Help them find their mind, via your mind

Goals

“Making sense”

Promote mentalizing, not discovering a secret, or elucidating a symptom

Increase coherence: “A continuous me’ or “Autobiographical competence”

(Holmes)

Techniques(think developmentally)

Promote safety

Focus on the here-and-now

Create an expectation about:

1) Observing…

2) Labelling…

3) Communicating …

… internal states - affect, wishes, vulnerabilities

Techniques

“Mark” internal states –pay attention to your patient !

‘Wonder’ about intentions

“Small” interpretations, delivered at moments when mentalization is present-

(vs. overarching comments about conflict, past events…)

Techniques

Increase clarity of representation of internal states

Vary object of mentalization: self, other, relationships

Increase coherence of narrative

Strengthen impulse control and self-regulation

Avoid ‘canned’ expressions of concern

“learn to recognize what they say to themselves, the choices they make, in terms of ignoring or approaching others”

Techniques-the 2 things:

Useful for understanding countertransference:

Who does this patient see me as ?

or

Who does this patient think I see them as?

Formulation

Procedural Memory Automatic Behaviour

THREAT

Mentalizing

Case presentations ?

“I was thinking about what a friend had said, I was hoping it

was a lie”