DIAGNOSIS AND THE INDIVIDUAL

As analysts we assess our patients provisionally and over time, recognizing that words and behaviors are signposts to fluid internal states. As clinicians, however, we are often required to make thumbnail diagnoses, based on categories created by the study of large numbers of subjects. This course will consider the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual-5. One class will be devoted to the history of the DSM and the thinking about current changes in the manual. Throughout, candidates will consider the fit between diagnosis and the individual patient, using examples from our practices or from literature. How can we use diagnosis creatively to inform our thinking, without limiting the potential of the patient to surprise us? Students are encouraged to apply critical thinking and clinical intuition to their use of diagnostic labels.