“Becoming Poliana”: the mother’s helplessness concerning her Down syndrome baby

Abstract

The article presents a research application of the Bick infant observation method to the psychoanalytic investigation of the relationship of a mother and her Down syndrome baby. We discuss the process through which the mother became Pollyanna, as well as the observer, in an empathic way, under the effect of transference. This experience showed the transference aspects which enabled the understanding of the mother’s psychic dynamic. Studies which focus on the relationship of the mother with her Down syndrome baby have both scientific and social relevance, because their results may not only contribute to theoretical advances in Psychoanalysis and Developmental Psychology, but also to clinical practice.