"Not knowing is the precondition for being able to imagine..." —Thomas Ogden

What on Earth do we do, let alone think, about diagnosis in psychoanalytic psychotherapy? Does diagnosing a patient become the royal rule—a sort of psychiatric branding—that identifies and locates our patient, never to be departed from in a treatment? Or, is diagnosing an archaic practice with suffocating, reductionistic, and maybe even cruel origins that we don't allow ourselves to consider as we sit sincerely with fluid, dynamic, and complicated human beings? After all, psychoanalytic training teaches us to rid ourselves of memory and desire prior to each session. Does this include a diagnosis?

Might we be able to imagine a fresh, humane, and helpful way of thinking about diagnosis that can locate and serve a specific patient’s treatment, without it becoming set in stone and an unhelpful shortcut for those that we are forever getting to know in a therapy? Can we instead describe a thoughtful diagnosis as constructing a room with particular kinds of furniture and features in it, so that we as clinicians might have some idea of where we are and how to move around as we work with integrity in the dark?

This eight class seminar will walk us the through the diagnostic process by using the psychoanalyst Nancy McWilliam's wonderful offering "Psychoanalytic Diagnosis." We will explore how powerful and useful diagnosis—once understood and held loosely in an analytically dynamic way—can be in setting up, organizing, and continuously holding a treatment that aims for longevity, surprising growth, and transformation.

Come join us in the tension of thinking diagnostically in a psychoanalytic way-or as I like to say, comfort in feeling around in the dark. 

Instructor: My name is D. Michael Louderback and I'm an eclectic psychoanalytic psychotherapist and supervisor in private practice. I'm a passionate believer that most of our personhood is unknown and, therefore, unconscious. I draw from various theories, approaches, and philosophies in psychotherapy, which helps to organize and strengthen my pursuit of getting to know oneself a little deeper and a little better. I’ve been a full time practicing psychotherapist here in Seattle for 13 years, offering individual and couples therapy, supervision, and consultation. I’ve also led teachings across a myriad of institutes on the topics of narcissism, fundamentals of being a psychotherapist, and considerations in treating the queer population. If you’d like to learn more, visit my website at www.dmlouderback.org.

Learning Objectives:  

Participants will be able to:

1) Students will understand and apply the nuisances of thinking psychoanalytically about diagnosis in their casework.

2) Students will better characterize the fundamental differences and useful technical applications of the eleven diagnoses that we will spend significant time getting to know.

3) Students will be able to apply the learnings of psychoanalytic diagnosis to their treatments in any and all stages of care.

Fee: $550 Alliance Members/$600 Alliance Non-Members (sliding scale available upon request, please contact the instructor directly)