Addictive States of Mind (Tavistock Clinic)

'Perversion is taken to mean different things within psychoanalytic discourse. In this book the authors view perversions, not in terms of specific behaviours, but as a type of blueprint for object relations. While perversions may involve a quest for excitement through sex, drugs or gambling, for example, the focus here is on the underlying incapacity - or indeed at times refusal - to relate to the other as separate from the self and not as a narcissistic appendage. It is the anxieties aroused by intimacy and relatedness that drive the pursuit of ecstasy and excitement. Psychoanalytic thinking can help multidisciplinary teams to stand back and respond to the addictive state of mind in humane and containing ways that are not collusive. This book thus provides rich food for thought not only for the individual practitioner but also for those responsible for shaping services for addicted individuals.' - Alessandra Lemma, from the Preface.