A Therapeutic Relationship: Shifting Boundaries in the Service of Healing

Shorttitle: A THERAPEUTIC RELATIONSHIP This is a story of a therapeutic journey undertaken by a client/therapist dyad over eight years. The historical context includes biological, psychological, social and spiritual abuse associated with early childhood exposure to satanism and organized mind control and the traumatic effects suffered as a result. The relationship co-constructed by the two of us was central in contributing to healing. We discovered that as some boundaries shifted, others remained anchored to set times in my office over the eight years. The increased validity attributed to qualitative research made it possible to explore this therapeutic relationship and the effects of shifting boundaries on the therapy and journey towards healing. Many disruptions had their origin outside the therapeutic context and these required managing to exercise some control over the interferences so that the therapy and our daily lives could continue. The story concludes with some tentative hypotheses and reflective comments from us both as well as mentioning some changes in our perceptions, beliefs and behaviour that occurred over time