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This edited volume contains chapters by 16 analysts who offer an attempt to understand the beginning of analysis from a developmental and diagnostic perspective. Chapters are devoted to the modification of the standard technique, initiating treatment with adolescents, young adults, the elderly, borderlines, psychosomatics and eating disorders. Other chapters consider the distinctive problems of working with patients who are taking medication, have a history of trauma, and those with difficult resistances. Discussion on beginning a reanalysis and treating candidates are also included. The chapters are well written and nicely illustrated with clinical material. The beginning therapist may find this volume quite educative and a very usable reference and research tool. More experienced analysts may find this survey style a bit too choppy. Depth is sacrificed for breadth and several chapters shift into a didactic mode. In lieu of a detailed consideration of the initial session(s), which I expected from the title, most authors focused on the more general topic of the “opening phase.” Though the book proposes to help analysts expand their ability to work with a broader base of patients in the changing face of analysis, many viewpoints are homogenous regarding the standard technique. The volume fails to cite the extensive history of analysts from different schools of thought who have attempted to initiate treatment through technical modifications with a broader range of patients.
To their credit, many authors underscored the importance of individual variation in the beginning of analysis. The danger lies in