[Lrad123]

What’s the definition of “disorganized” from a psych perspective? The only thing I can find when I look online is “disorganized attachment” and I’m not sure that’s what I’m looking for. I’m a fully functional productive member of society and the term “disorganized attachment” just doesn’t seem to fit when I read about it at least with respect to most people in my life. My T frequently mentions how I feel “disorganized” between sessions with things that come up in our therapy. I have to admit my relationship with him has been quite different than I’ve had with pretty much anyone else in my life. I have felt a little out of control emotionally and dramatic and angry with him in ways that I don’t with pretty much anyone else in my life. I think this is what he refers to as “disorganized.” Does that make sense? He doesn’t tend to use a lot of technical terms so it may be his own lingo for emotionally overwhelmed or something like that. Do most people experience this in therapy? Maybe I’m overthinking it.

[goatee]

Lrad, I’m not going to be much help but just want you to know I can be the exact same way with my T and am, like you, completely the opposite in my real life. I find it very embarrassing sometimes.

[LonesomeTonight]

Could it be that he thinks you aren't linear in what you're working on? Just that your thoughts are disorganized? I can certainly be like this as well, we end a session saying, basically, "Topic to be continued," then I don't come back to it for weeks (I've gotten better with it though).

[Lrad123]

Ok thanks goatee and LT. I’m probably overthinking this and he probably means just what many of us experience between sessions when new emotional stuff is brought up. For some reason aI just don’t like his choice of words!

I think it refers to fragmentation and how your psyche is organized around your self/object representations.

That you go through the process of beginning to fragment followed by recovering with the help from your T and his unwavering consistency builds your ego strength so that you internalize him as an object and your ego is able to hold yourself together on your own.

Self Psychology and Fragmentation

Columbia University - Structural Theory

I experienced this for a long time in therapy but no longer fragment.