The scent of the other

While there are many exchanges that take place during our early development, some have a more profound impact on our developmental trajectory than others. In the milieu of a disturbed mother-child dyad, what becomes of self and other object representations? How do the derivatives of trauma, neglect, and overstimulation become expressed and used during important life transitions? In this paper, convergent themes in the analysis of an eleven-year-old boy and a forty-year-old man illustrate how the evocative nature of smell was used as a means of holding on to early object ties and fantasies of a blissful union. I am proposing that by conceptualizing encopresis and the use of body odors as an expression of the individual's early trauma and object representations, we can advance our understanding of the tenacity of these symptoms and further develop appropriate and effective technical approaches. A select review of the literature is used to establish the relationship between earlier developmental phases and an internalization of early object relations relevant to this paper.