The Origins of Single-Session Therapy

This book explores the single-session work done by Sigmund Freud and considers the implications of this work for the current theory and practice of single-session therapy (SST).

While contemporary interest in SST can be traced to Moshe Talmon’s (1990) book, its origins go back to Freud. There are three cases in the literature where Freud can be said to practise SST, and this is the first book that examines these cases in one place and without getting caught up in the intricacies of Freudian theory. Windy Dryden first explores the three cases in which Freud conducted single-session work with patients. Particular attention is paid to the third patient, Margarethe Lutz, who discussed the session in an interview. This work is important because it is the only client-based view of Freud conducting therapy that lasted a single session. The book closely examines the work of Freud in these sessions and tracks how it impacts the development of SST.

This book will be of interest to any single-session practitioners, as well as those scholars and followers of Freud.