The Impact of Affect Phobia Therapy (APT) on Alcohol Use Disorders (AUD)—Evaluating Three Case Studies

Abstract

In this commentary on the important cases of "Carey," "Michelle," and "Mary" conducted by Dr. My Frankl (Frankl, Wennberg, Berggraf, & Philips, 2020), I begin with some general considerations on the importance of assessment and case formulation in Affect Phobia Therapy (APT) and how these considerations impact on the experiential interventions of APT. Next I specifically review Frankl’s three case studies, with a focus on: how Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD) is embedded in close family relationships; the connection between AUD and affect regulation; the role of feelings of shame in AUD; individualizing and adjusting APT treatment based on feedback from ongoing therapy; Frankl’s activation of transference feelings; the issue of sobriety before treatment; activating inhibitory affects and maladaptive defenses; Frankl’s missing some moments of connection; and an example of Frankl’s conducting the two-chair technique skillfully and successfully. I end with a proposal for enhancing Frankl’s narrative analysis with two methodologies from APT: the "Ten-Session Summary Form," and the micro-analytic coding approach of the "Achievement of Therapeutic Objectives Scales" (ATOS).