Ambre Associates LLC

Why do teens resist our advice? Often, they’re not looking for solutions—they’re looking to feel heard. Jumping in to fix things can make them feel dismissed, even when we mean well. Click here to read the full article: loom.ly/D6bjZGQ

My working definition of psychoanalytic therapy:

“How often, in fact, the child's boredom is met by that most perplexing form of disapproval, the adult's wish to distract him—as though the adults have decided that the child's life must be, or be seen to be, endlessly interesting. It is one of the most oppressive demands of…”

There are reasons we relive what hurts us. 🆕 Full essay on my Substack (link below)

"Most fundamentally, psychoanalytic practitioners take seriously the evidence that the sources of most of our behaviors, feelings, and thoughts are not conscious." - Nancy McWilliams

Word of the day is ‘forwallowed’ (15th century): extremely weary from tossing and turning all night.

A deficit in mirroring (the experience of having one’s emotional needs recognised by another) in early life often leads to a lack of capacity to differentiate between primary and secondary narcissism: in the mind of such individuals,

What do dreams mean? 🧵 In psychoanalytic psychotherapy, dreams aren't read as fixed symbols. They’re communications from the unconscious - subjective, contextual, and meaningful to the dreamer. As Freud put it, dreams are “the royal road to the unconscious.”

Empathy is a relational skill, not a personality type and not a gift. There is no such thing as “an empath.” To call oneself “an empath” is often to avoid looking at the underlying structures that shape one’s compulsive over-attunement and sensitivity to others’ emotions.

Returning home from college can come with growing pains—for students and families alike. In this @NYTimes piece, I offer guidance on navigating curfews, independence, and shared space with care and clarity. Click here to read more: loom.ly/EiOm9PY

“The child needs to know that there is someone stronger than his rage who can hold him and his world together: he needs to have that experience.” lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v35/…

Six reasons people keep repeating painful experiences 🧵

Real psychotherapy isn’t about giving answers. It’s about surviving the not-knowing — together. This is another realm where AI fails. Therapy is the alchemy of two nervous systems in dialogue. No algorithm, however advanced, can replace the patient–therapist field.

It is our job to be asking ourselves ‘why is this patient telling me this (story); what does it say about them, what does it say about their relationships, what is happening between us in the here-and-now and what do they want me to know about them’. The content is generally the…