Borderline patients often engender feelings ranging from apathy to rage
in therapists. The author views the borderline patient's rage as defensive
against fear of total negation resulting from projective identification
with hostile part objects. The therapist's withdrawal or anger parallels
the patient's projection of affect. Countertransference offers the
potential for understanding a patient's terror, but therapists may become
fixed in identifications that distort their understanding. Clarity often
comes slowly as the therapist directs attention to his/her own affective
state in order to understand the patient's vulnerability.Abstract Teaser