La coppia come organismo vivo : un'esperienza di contatto

In questo articolo, gli autori presentano riflessioni teoriche e applicative sulla coppia e un intervento di psicoterapia a orientamento gestaltico sull'organismo noi. Partendo dall'importanza dello sfondo biologico, famigliare, culturale e sociale che sostiene la figura coppia, la riflessione degli autori si concentra sul profondo mutamento che la coppia sta attraversando, sulla difficoltà e sul desiderio che le persone incontrano nel tentare di ridefinire se stesse come individui e come parte di un noi, alla ricerca di nuove forme di legame che vivono di una continua sperimentazione tra l'appartenere e il differenziarsi. Infine, gli autori propongono una traccia di lavoro che sostiene la ricerca del contatto e dell'intimità tra gli individui presenti nella stanza, come parte di un processo di apertura, scambio, ed espressione autentica e creativa. [Testo dell'editore].

Individuals and couples are facing a profound metamorphosis: the strength of ancient tradition and codified social norms, so deeply rooted in our inner lives, and the simple happening of new emerging forms of bonding are crashing into each other, shattering the way of being together we've known since the dawn of time. In this article, the authors present theoretical as well as clinical observations on couples, and a gestalt psychotherapeutic model of work on the couple as a living organism. The authors focus on the deep social, psychological and affective transformation couples are dealing with, trying to redefine themselves as individuals as well as a part of a us, looking for new forms of relationships in a persistent experimentation between the strong needs of belonging and differentiation.

The authors analyze the importance of the biological, familial, cultural and social ground on which the couple stands as a frame to better understand how a couple can develop, grow and organize its form and meaning through the flow of time. Functioning of the couple organism is then considered under the light of its id, ego and personality functions, and of the contactinterruption and withdrawal mechanisms. The authors suggest a model of gestalt clinical intervention on couples, aiming at and supporting the search for intimacy among the individuals in the room, as part of a broader process of openness, change, and authentic creative expression: the authors' intentionality is to encourage forms of contact, in the real trust of the beauty of the us, and in the real trust of a couple organism able to selfregulate, change and grow through time in deep knowledge of each other, respect and appreciation for the vital growth of the IThou relationship. [Publisher's text].