Standing Where the Towers Fell: A Study of Psychic and Physical Collapse and Reconstruction

This talk examines the evolution of a research project in terms of the interplay between emerging clinical material, relevant literature, and the writing process. A profound terror of annihilation formed the nucleus of this case and over the span of treatment, the patient began to contextualize death and move toward life. It addresses the author’s experiences in conducting the analysis, with a focus on how the research itself became an effective tool in treating this primitive patient.Mark Buenzle, MFA, MS, LP, is a recent CMPS graduate. This paper is based on the his research project by the same title; it received the 2012 Gradiva Award for Best Student Paper and the Phyllis W. Meadow Research Award for Best Psychoanalytic Research Project.

Download flier