Lessons Learned as a Psychoanalyst in the Community: Self-Analysis as Relational-Attunement in Practice

This paper describes the evolution and application of a psychoanalytic informed “self-study” and reflective practice with the emergent realization that Self-Analysis work is Relational-Attunement work. This practice holds the potential to amplify the empowering, healing properties and transformative opportunities for adaptive social resonance and humanistic action, inherent in gaining deeper self-understanding and insight. Indeed, this emotional and relational developmental model encourages practice in learning how to stay and to be with self and others to work with and through complex interpersonal/relational challenges and to meet, from within the self and out to the social surround, the continuous demands of living with diverse communities, throughout one’s human journey. The paper provides the author’s core guiding self-analytic model with examples from crisis, trauma, and recovery, from power and systemic sociocultural enactments in leaders within their organizations, to organizational culture change and alignment initiatives, actualizing individual to institutional to community-based development. The model is tailored to set a frame for psychoanalysts and clinicians/candidates across multiple disciplines from global communities to do complex and diverse work.