Dream a little dream of me: A case discussion

Abstract

A case of a gay therapist treating a gay patient raises several issues that include the patient's sexual identity, the therapist's sexual identity, and the potential interplay of those identities in a thera- peutic encounter. Although an understanding of a gay patient's sexual identity will certainly be an important issue across the course of his treatment, it will not be the only subject talked about in therapy. Con- versely, although a patient's gay identity is not necessarily the primary focus of treatment in many cases, its impact upon the course of treat- ment cannot be overlooked nor easily separated out from his other concerns. In this case, a young gay man enters treatment after a long, life-threatening illness. Having survived his illness, his dissociative defenses began to falter. The patient linked his illness in a critically judgmental way to his gay identity. The course of the patient's treat- ment, which included a greater acceptance of his gay identity, is illus- trated through a series of dreams. (Article copies available for a fee from The Haworth Document Delivery Service: 1-800-342-9678. E-mail address: getinfo@ haworthpressinc.com <http://www.haworthpressinc.com)