What is a transference in psychiatry?

Have you ever found yourself experiencing emotions like anger, frustration, or even affection towards your therapist? On the surface, it may seem like a surprising thing to happen. After all, you don't know much about their personal life, and there's no obvious reason for having such feelings.

Fear not though; this happens more frequently than you might think; it’s actually pretty common. When you go to see a therapist, you're not a blank slate – you bring along your emotional baggage and it's not unusual to project those emotions onto the person across from you, who’s serving as a mediator. This is known as transference.

Why does it happen? Can the reverse ever happen, with a therapist having feelings toward a patient? In under 3 minutes, we answer your questions!

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A podcast written and realised by Joseph Chance.

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