The Beginning Series will cover:

Module 1:

Why Psychodynamic work is obsessed with Therapeutic frame and its importance in clinical practice 

• We begin by exploring the clinical frame—what it is, why it matters, and how it functions in relational work.

• The frame can sometimes feel rigid or confusing, and without clinical reasoning, we may either adapt it inconsistently or question its necessity. In this module, we will look at:

• How the frame provides structure while revealing insights into the relational world of the client and the therapist 

• Therapist’s own resistances to maintaining the frame and when flexibility is clinically useful

Module 2:

Theoretical Foundations: Object Relations to the Relational School

In this module, we slow down to unpack key theorists and concepts that often feel like jargon

• Different theoretical perspectives within the analytical tradition (Fairbairn, Ferenczi, Winnicott, Sullivan, Klein) 

• Terminology ( introjection, projection, enactments, )  that is most relevant for working with clients in relational psychoanalysis.

• How these concepts inform relational practice and clinical understanding

Module 3:

The Unformulated Experience, Analytic Third (also analytical fourth), and dissociation in trauma work 

Building on theoretical foundations, this module moves into the lived relational experience in therapy. Explore:

• The Unformulated Experience: how unspoken, unprocessed material emerges in sessions

• Analytic Third: co-created space between therapist and client, including social and systemic influences

• Understanding dissociation and how different aspects of the psyche appear in relational work

Module 4:

Mourning, Melancholia, and Freud from a Relational Perspective

•  We will explore classic Freudian ideas through a relational lens, particularly drawing on Ogden’s work

• Understand how mourning and melancholia appear in clients’ inner worlds

• Apply these insights to clinical work with clients struggling with shame, trauma, or loss

Module 5:

Hate, Hatred, and Difficult Feelings in the Therapy Room

In this module, we explore difficult feelings—hate, anger, and frustration—that arise in therapy, and how both therapist and client experience them. 

• Drawing on relational perspectives, we move beyond the classical psychoanalytic view of projecting “bad objects” to a relational understanding of these feelings as co-created, shared experiences in the therapeutic relationship.

• Work with these feelings in ways that strengthen therapeutic attunement, ethical practice, and reflective capacity

The Advanced Series will explore:

Module 6:

Therapist’s Relationship with Money and Martyrdom

Charging clients can evoke feelings of self-criticism or guilt in therapists, while clients may experience resentment, shame, or anger.

• Money can be a powerful indicator of a client’s and therapist's inner world, reflecting the complex psychological and social significance of financial issues in psychoanalytic practice. It is never merely a practical concern but is deeply intertwined with unconscious life, dependency, and human relatedness

• Recognizing patterns of martyrdom and self-sacrifice

Module 7:

Exploring Multiple Self-States

In this session, we move deeper into the concept of multiple self-states, moving away from classical notions of true vs. false selves. Participants will:

• Examine how different self-states emerge in relational contexts

• Understand these self states from a trauma lens.

• Integrating it with the concept of dissociation and standing in spaces

Module 8: 

Narcissistic Injury 

In this session, we move away from classical pathological views of narcissism and explore it through a trauma-informed, relational lens.

• Emerging from early attachment disruptions and relational trauma

• Part of a spectrum of vulnerabilities rather than a fixed pathology

• A relational signal that offers insight into clients’ unmet relational needs and defenses

Module 9:

Gender and Difference – Developmental Perspectives in the Therapy Room

• Examine developmental aspects of gender formation and expression

• Explore how gendered experiences shape relational dynamics

• Reflect on therapist assumptions, biases, and identities

Module 10:

Gender, Difference, and Clinical Practice

• Focus on observing, understanding, and working with gender and difference in therapy

• Explore inclusive, ethical, and reflective responses

• Integrate insights into clinical practice to foster relational sensitivity