Reconstruction of an early seduction and its aftereffects

This clinical presentation deals with the aftereffects, in a male patient, of a severely disturbed rapprochement phase, marked by many separations and a molestation before the age of three. The patient dreamed repeatedly of violence, often directed against himself, but the actual molestation was sealed off by formidable repression. A first analysis, with a male analyst, produced no relief from the patient's depression, crippling insomnia, and inability to form an intimate relationship. The second analysis progressed only when the repetitive dreams were understood to be repressed experiences of seduction and molestation.