Power, Anne, Forced Endings in Psychotherapy and Psychoanalysis. Attachment and loss in retirement

In spring 2016, we psychoanalysts and psychotherapists welcomed a new and very much needed book by Anne Power on retirement in psychotherapeutic and psychoanalytic clinical practice. The statistical age distribution among psychoanalysts and psychotherapists shows very clearly how relevant Anne Power’s book is at the moment (Klockars and Hooke 2010). The book fills a huge gap around the topic of retirement, because there is still very little written about the issue. There are more and more therapists and psychoanalysts who are planning to retire but do it very alone, because there is hardly any practical or theoretical information about how to do this. We also know that in the societies there is not much discussion retirement. The topic has been almost like a taboo (Klockars and Hooke 2010). Yet, we know that whenever two ageing clinicians meet they always discuss their professional future.

It is well known that psychoanalysts and psychotherapists in private practice do not retire until quite late, years after officially regulated retirement age. In private psychoanalytic or psychotherapy practice, we very seldom do have statutory retirement age. It is up to us professionals when we want to retire. It is indeed difficult to regulate appropriate retirement age while ageing itself is such an individual process. Some of the practisers realize one day that they are ready to do the decision on their own wish and will, but some of them are forced to do this because they are becoming too old or handicapped in their work. Like other people when getting older, psychoanalysts and psychotherapists will lose their capacity to work sufficiently well enough. They do have increased risk of dying suddenly or of becoming too ill for working. But unlike most of the other professions we are committed to very long treatment processes and that is why the planning of retirement is so very important. It takes a long time after our decision until we really can retire. Our patients need time