Attention deficit disorder or object detachment disorder: a brief psychoanalytic case study

This paper follows the psychoanalytic treatment of one patient over the course of eight sessions. This patient had been diagnosed by two prior therapists as having adult attention deficit disorder (ADD). The patient had tried ADD medications and ADD behavioral treatments recommended by the therapists. Unsatisfied with the results, this individual sought out additional help. She entered analytic treatment with the mind-set of knowing what was wrong with her and what type of treatment she should receive. Nevertheless, the analyst attempted to remain open to finding out the nature of her psychological world and what might be occurring on an unconscious level to possibly cause her symptoms. In other words, the analyst held the belief that the patient's problems might be more rooted in object relational conflicts and at least wanted to offer other alternatives to the patient if there were any to be found. Ultimately, the patient was not able or willing to consider this possibility. However, in the short duration of the treatment, there were various psychological issues that were discovered that may have been at the core of this patient's struggles. The paper offers a different view of attention deficit disorder, now a very popular diagnosis. The author posits that at least some adult attention deficit disorder patients are actually suffering from an object detachment process in which they are overwhelmed with a variety of unconscious relational conflicts, which create internal and external dynamics that in turn create symptoms of inattention, difficulty in focusing, disorganization, and scattered thinking.