This presentation will stimulate a cross-disciplinary discussion of the psychoanalytic treatment of those patients who remain on an active continuum of alcohol and substance use and misuse. Given that classical psychoanalytic approaches and “high threshold” abstinence-based drug treatment are not always sensitive enough to effectively treat the complexities involved in clinical work with this particular population, Jones will argue for an approach that brings us closer to the experience of the substance user. He will draw from the principles of complexity theory that are most salient to substance use with the hope of expanding the clinicians ability to work with this population in a more attuned and inclusive way. Jones will also provide an introduction to principles found in harm reduction psychotherapy, as it exemplifies an important clinical sensibility that, in rapport with complexity theory, can expand psychoanalytic thinking into realms that pave the way for clinicians to be more effective allies in helping patients to determine their own goals and guidelines for self care.

Thursday, January 22, 2015, 8-9:30pm
Location: NIP Conference Room, 250 West 57th Street, Suite 501, NYC