Formulations to the patient: explicit and implicit

Many of our formulations to the patient are conveyed through the day-to-day unremarkable actions, verbal and nonverbal, occurring between analyst and patient as the analyst attempts to understand his patient within the analytic setting. The analyst's confidence, even intensity, concerning the value of analysis is significant in enabling him to communicate successfully with his patient. Unlike what may have been the case in the past, this analytic fervour is not in the service of a single theory or an attempt to prove an analytic proposition, but is aimed at deepening introspective curiosity and opening avenues of communication. Within our characterologic and procedural limits, we use ourselves in a large variety of ways in an attempt to further the analytic process. This use of ourselves, conveyed to the patient in innumerable interactions, becomes a central analytic fact that fosters the patient's participation in his analysis. Clinical vignettes are provided to illustrate these propositions.