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Fear of Death and Psychoanalysis

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Where is the line between the normal fear of death and thanatophobia? Please share your thoughts and insights with me.

Resistance and transference are intertwined according to psychoanalytic perspective, a person attempts to resist past negative thoughts and memories because of their transference of previous behavior and actions. In essence, the person does not want to remember the past in therapy, but in life, the person may transfer the past negative emotions into new situations and this could negatively impact new relationships.

How does the issue of counter-transference fit into this whole equation?

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Solution Summary

This solution describes the difference between normal fear of death and thanatophobia. It also describes the role of counter-transference in working with a phobic client.

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Hello,

Most people have a fear of death to some degree. It is one of the most, if not THE most, unpleasant parts of life and can be a very difficult topic to discuss. Particularly the terminally ill, elderly population, and those with anxiety disorders tend to dwell on the process of death and dying and become fearful as they become more aware of their own mortality. When you begin to speak of a phobia, you are focusing on more extreme cases. Though it can be normal to fear death, those with thanatophobia have a very serious clinical condition. Any phobia is different from normal worry and anxiety as it typically results in debilitating ...

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