Prevention, infant therapy, and the treatment of adults. 1. Toward understanding mutuality

This is the first in a series of papers about the relevance of infant therapy to the treatment of adults. A description of maternal and infantile movement patterns is used to substantiate our thesis that not only does the mother hold the child, but the child holds the mother. A good-enough holding environment is maintained when the mother's adult patterns of effort and shaping dovetail with the infant's inborn reflexes to make mutual holding possible. Mutual support enables mother and child attune in tension-flow rhythms (used for need satisfaction) and to adjust in shape-flow rhythms (used for intake and output). Attunement is the physical core of empathy, and adjustment is the cradle of trust. Empathy and trust between therapist and patient develop in a good-enough holding environment which is derived from mutual holding in early infancy. Not only does the therapist provide a holding environment for the patient, but the patient does his share to support the therapist in his aims.