The Rorschach As a Window Into Past Traumas During Therapeutic Assessment

Abstract

Abstract. In this article, the authors discuss how the Rorschach can be useful in certain Therapeutic Assessments (TAs) by creating an opening for clients to report and discuss past traumatic events that have not previously been resolved. Two case examples are presented. In the first, a 31-year-old woman sought psychological help to understand why she was so afraid all the time, why she did not know what was best for her, and why she was so influenced by others’ opinions. The client saw many disturbing percepts in the Rorschach and was very unsettled afterward. During an extended inquiry she revealed an extensive history of physical and sexual abuse that she had put out of her mind and never told anyone about previously. Talking about her trauma with the assessor helped her understand why she was struggling. In the second case, a 35-year-old woman experienced a flashback when presented with Card X to finding her father after his suicide when she was 8 years old. The client had not previously recalled the details of this event, which were verified by family members. Retrieving this memory helped the client understand her family better and resolve problems she had in her adult romantic relationships. We believe there are essential elements that permit such therapeutic events to occur: (1) the power of the Rorschach to access split-off affects and memories, (2) the secure relationship created in TA that allows for traumatic material to emerge safely, (3) the technique of scaffolding in TA that helps locate clients’ growing edge, and (4) how client–assessor collaboration creates an intersubjective field in which nonlinear healing events may occur.