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One of the tasks analysts must undertake is bearing witness to their own experience. The construction of a testimonial narrative on clinical practice entails an act of generosity that facilitates dialogue. By fostering debate, which results in comments and various possible readings, such testimonials contribute to the enrichment of analysts' institutional work. In the narrative I am commenting here, Ingrid Geerken also shows a special talent for vividly and beautifully conveying the problems she must consider and solve in order to orient the setting in motion of her analysand's2 cure. I focus my discussion on some aspects of this rich and extensive picture of Beatrice's initial six months of analysis.
The details that illustrate how Beatrice settles into the analytic device — her father's call, the presence of the mother in the office and her attempts to get involved in conversations with the analyst, as well as the urging and pressure to “start” therapy — give us a clear sense of the reason for consultation. They allude to the events that have led this teenager to start analysis. Having been home-schooled, she has failed to follow the course set by the family ideal, which her sister seems to have ‘successfully’ completed — college, a boyfriend, and a degree in business. Her failure causes her to feel stuck, barred from continuing her journey on the path she should allegedly take.
The meaning of the term home-schooled and the fact that it is seen as an apparently natural phenomenon posed an initial question for me regarding cultural customs and their diversity. In my country and in the cultural milieu where I work, a young woman's inability to become part of and perform in public or private educational institutions is seen as an indication of serious and complex circumstances — intense phobias or insurmountable geographical obstacles, among others. Faced with a situation of this sort, we would believe that the socializing process was suffering