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Freud wrote: 'We suppose that it (the id) is somewhere in direct contact with somatic processes and takes over from them instinctual needs and gives them mental expression.' Therese Benedik has attempted, probably for the first time, to obtain simultaneous information in human beings about the three interconnected biological processes mentioned above. The results of this effort prove extremely rewarding.
The fluctuations in the somatic processes were assessed by the use of the vaginal smear technique. As is well known, changes take place in the vaginal mucosa during the menstrual cycle, which can be correlated with levels of gonadotrophic and ovarian hormones. A special method of recording patients' drives and phantasies during psycho-analytic sessions was adopted in order that a comparison could be made between changes in vaginal cytology and psycho-analytical observations. The two sets of observations were made completely independently and it was found that predictions could be made with a high degree of accuracy. The results obtained have confirmed many psycho-analytical concepts and opened the road of investigation to new problems. As the author puts it: 'It is almost surprising how "natural" many of the earlier psycho-analytical concepts become when investigated in the light of hormonal regulation.' The book is too rich in all sorts of original contributions for survey in a short review. So only one point will be stressed here. It is that such work, if it can be repeated and developed further, must mark a very important date in the development of psycho-analysis. It means much more than the study of psychological factors in somatic illnesses. It means the possibility of studying essential fundamental biological processes in their relation to symbolical activity and behaviour, and vice versa. Studies attempting to correlate somatic processes with behaviour leaving out the mental expression of drives can never get anywhere near the complex truth. O