Therapeutic Implications of Working with Multigenerational Memory

Multigenerational storytelling and mentalisation are built on each other and these in turn are part of a multigenerational self. In this chapter, I also consider the ways in which therapy already works with generational issues as well as looking at some of the ways in which it inhibits it. I look at how adopting a multigenerational perspective may alter the culture of therapy, how it is practised and how training occurs, especially in the area of assessments and in ways of thinking about the therapeutic relationship and supervision. I discuss cyclical patterns in memory and how these may act as a map or guide in therapeutic work. Finally, I explore the idea of developing a multigenerational sensibility to find a balance between working with multigenerational trauma and internal/developmental issues. I develop the connection between trance, working beyond words and more familiar psychodynamic concepts such as reverie and free association that can lead to holding and storytelling which are important aspects of multigenerational work.