“Freud obviously is very brave and courageous to accept that the world is inadequate and that my desires will never be sufficiently fulfilled. My question – is this in fact the case? I think that everyone has had some kind of spiritual experience, some more than others and in many different contexts, not just religious…

“Psychoanalysis landed in Finland in the 50s; before the Second World War there was one or two persons familiar with psychoanalysis. In the 50s, psychoanalysis got a lot of interest in Finland but then there was no possibility of training in Finland. The pioneers went abroad, some to Sweden and some to Switzerland. They picked…

“My interest is to rather than continue with the psychoanalytic tilt which has tended to try to find the words – to find the areas of the analyst that has words to engage with these states and then help the patient transform these states into something thinkable and communicable. [In contrast] my interest has been…

 “The first line treatment for adolescents with anorexia now is family-based therapy which involves helping the parents facilitate the refeeding of the adolescent. I was working with patients in that way and found it to be helpful and useful but was consistently struck by the neglect of the patient’s inner life. Based on my experience…

“The ability to play means we can indulge in a kind of illusion, not delusion, and make a distinction. It always amazes me that when the patient arrives, they like the routine of an analysis; nobody breaks that, it’s an illusion; it is a piece of theater every time. We open the door to our…

“I was speaking to the tendency of the popular media to perceive narratives of Indian women’s sexuality via the lens of oppression. Now, of course, sexual violence against women is an important concern in India, as it is worldwide. But telling the story of violence against women misses the story of how women desire, which…

“The genetic asymmetry [with sperm donorship] will create issues and complications –  it puts a strain on the relationship, i.e. who is excluded; who has more rights to this product? In other words, if the sperm donor is from a stranger,  the father feels ‘am I really adequately or sufficiently related that I could claim…

“As I elaborate in the book, there was no physical contact or romantic engagement. The reason why I chose the ‘lover’ as the [psychoanalytic] analogy is, in the real world outside of psychoanalytic practice, where else do you have an interpersonal encounter that is so intensely engaging, attentive, respectful, and caring? That would be in…

“What’s the spiritual room? For me, it does tend to be a connection to something greater than just me; it is a contemplative space; it is getting to the core of who I am, allowing in some ways for the best of me to come to the fore; to have space for grace. I am…

“My analysis not only allowed me to grieve [my mother], with my analyst patiently pushing me in the direction of my feelings, but it radically transformed my life. I wouldn’t have had kids if I hadn’t had my analysis because I thought ‘I’m an ambitious person, I want a career, you can’t do everything’. I…