THE PSYCHOTHERAPEUTIC PROCESS OF TERMINATION AND THE REGRESSION
AND RESISTANCES DISPLAYED BY THE PATIENT
Psychotherapists have long been concerned with patient responses and reactions to the termination of therapy (Peterson & Nisenholtz, 1994). This paper describes and discusses two of the most common patient reactions to therapy termination, namely regression and resistance.
In the body of the paper, behavior characteristics of regression and resistance responses are delineated and the populations that are most vulnerable to such problems are listed and discussed. Many of the psychodynamic features underling the emergence of such behavior (e.g., separation anxiety, issues of loss and dependency, unconscious guilt, etc.) are noted. The discussion also includes strategies therapists can use to work through these responses.
Regression and Resistance: Patient Responses to Therapy
Although termination of therapy is a significant stage of the psychotherapeutic process, Ward (1984) has reported that little attention has been paid to it in the literature. According to Ward, if the termination stage is handled successfully, therapeutic outcomes will be maximized and new patient learnings and behaviors will be maintained. However, handling this stage successfully often means working through patient regression and/or resistance behaviors that arise as the result of discussion of termination (Ward, 1984).
In the generic, regression may be defined as a retreat to an earlier developmental or behavioral stage that demands less mature responses and aspirations (Freud, 1949). It can be and often is a response to stress (e.g., the stress engendered by therapy termination) in which the individual attempts to remove himself from a threatening situation by regressing to stage in which dependency, helplessness, and or irresponsibility were allowed (Freud, 1949).
Resistance on the other hand, is a common and expected b...