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The Covid experience has struck and the world is scared. It has challenged the mental health of people and their relationships, the therapeutic ones included. Interestingly enough, even if the therapist has been pushed by the pandemic circumstances to be less present, working with personal protective equipment (PPE) including hospital scrubs, gloves, protective visors, and masks, or being available only through the internet or by phone, they become more present in the reality of the patient than in the fantasy. This type of presence, even if performed by minimal acts like through eye contact or the “temperature” of words, has to be recognised as essential by the therapist. There is certainly a potential shift towards dependency, but one in which the bond can be a lifeline for the patient. It can reinforce a therapeutic alliance and help control the prevalence of primitive mental states and defences. Furthermore, it can facilitate the development of a new and different intimacy between the therapist and the patient.
In March 1990, over thirty years ago, returning from the USA where I had worked as a postdoctorate researcher in psycho-immunology, I was drafted by the Italian Army. At that time in Italy, conscription for national service was obligatory. After only a couple of weeks, astonished, I found myself in uniform at the Military School. Immediately, I was made a Lieutenant, as Medical Officer, in a Military Hospital. It was not easy to experience military life after having tasted the personal freedom of life and work in America. To make matters worse, President Bush Sr decided to invade Iraq. During this First Gulf War, there was widespread general alarm. Saddam Hussein was scare-mongering the countries of the West with his threats, which seemed at the time to be very real. In Italy, people quickly emptied the shops in order to put aside basic necessities. We were expecting military retaliations of unknown nature. We were allied forces and therefore immediately p