Fall Workshop: Oedipus in Most of Us: Wounded Parents and the Therapists They Raised

Oedipus in Most of Us: Wounded Parents and the Therapists They Raised

Allen Lambert, LCSW-S, CGP

Event Description

Freud identified and described the Oedipus Complex as being a universal impulse in all children in which they unconsciously desire to partner with their opposite gender parent and defeat or eliminate their same gender parent. According to Freud and others, it is both parents’ responsibility to defeat this impulse in their children. When they do, the child is allowed to develop secure attachments, and to mature gradually into adulthood. But what happens to the child that is not protected by both parents and allowed to assume adult roles prematurely? What are the consequences for the Oedipally Victorious child in adulthood?  The ethical implications for group psychotherapists, whom research suggests are quite often Oedipally Victorious, are significant. Oedipal Victory is no victory, but rather a tragedy that affects individuals and families across generations.

This workshop will define and explore the consequences of Oedipal Victory using clinical examples, research, and a demonstration group. We will explore resistances to being helped, being young, and surrendering some power and authority as a member in group. We will also consider the ethical implications of the group therapist’s subjective counter-transference, and also their counter-transference resistance to understanding how they might be unconsciously making their group clients Oedipally Victorious as well.

Workshop Objectives:

The participant will be able to:

1. Describe the ways in which children become Oedipally Victorious.

2. Name the two personality types of Oedipally Victorious adults, and describe the ways in which these adults relate to others' needs.

3. List and define the five most significant issues that affect Oedipally Victorious adults.

4. Identify ways in which group psychotherapists who are Oedipally Victorious may re-enact those dynamics with their group clients, and explore the ethical considerations of those dynamics.

3 Ethics CEUs available for Social Workers, LPCs, LMFTs, and Psychologists

About the presenter:

Allen Lambert, LCSW-S, CGP, is a therapist in private practice, working with individuals, groups, and couples. He has led groups for over 20 years in various settings, including federal, county, and university mental health settings as well as in non-profit counseling centers. He leads two Modern Analytic gay men’s groups solo, and co-leads three mixed gender Modern Analytic process groups, including a Modern Analytic training group for therapists.