Narcissistic Dynamics & Internal Tyranny

About the Instructor

Jeffrey Stickney, Psy.D., Psy.D. is a graduate and current member of the Psychoanalytic Center of California. He is a training and supervising analyst at NPI as well as a member of the faculty, and he is in private practice in Newport Beach providing treatment for individuals and couples.

Some Thoughts on Narcissistic Dynamics and Internal Tyranny

About this Course

Drawing primarily on the work of Bion and Winnecott, development of the mind through holding and containment will be discussed emphasizing how developmental trauma can lead to narcissistic dynamics and impaired ego functions especially in the capacity for thinking. These terms will be defined through an emphasis on Freud’s secondary versus primary process model and Bion’s theory of thinking. The central point of the presentation will be the emergence of over development of the superego reactive to developmental trauma and how this presents clinically with some treatment considerations, illustrated by case material.

Course Objectives

• Participants will be able to describe the basics of containment and holding.
• Participants will be able to describe thinking versus omniscience.
• Participants will be able to describe how hyper superego function differs from ego function.