It is important that the supervisory analyst stimulate the self-analysis of the analyst. One must avoid the self-deception of assuming that absolute resistance to countertransference can ever be achieved; to some extent the analyst always reacts as though the patient were an important figure in the analyst's own past life. The maintenance of benevolent neutrality depends on one's alertness to the swings of countertransference. The analyst's anxieties disturb his empathy; new facets in the patient's personality may touch off unknown boundaries and anxiety in the analyst's ego. It is very helpful to recognize that the analyst will become anxious at times, and progress is made when the analyst becomes conscious of a formerly unconscious countertransference.