eiseEducation

Primitive mental states refer to early forms of psychological functioning that emerge when the development of symbolisation, affect regulation, and a cohesive sense of self is disrupted. Rather than being defined by what is present, these states are marked by what is absent—the capacity to think, feel, represent, and relate in integrated ways. Experience is instead lived at a bodily and sensory level, often expressed through action, somatic symptoms, or dissociation, reflecting unprocessed and unmentalised emotional states rooted in early developmental failure.

This two-part webinar examines the developmental origins of these states and their persistence into adult functioning, drawing on psychoanalytic and relational perspectives. It explores how early caregiving environments shape the emergence of the mind, the impact of trauma and failures in containment, and how such experiences become embedded in the body rather than symbolised. The webinar then turns to clinical practice, considering how therapists can engage with these states in treatment, working within the therapeutic relationship to support the gradual emergence of meaning, integration, and psychological growth.