Separation-Individuation

Abstract

When I first observed a child given the label of autism, I was struck by the strange and paradoxical sensation that I was seeing a child who at one and the same time appeared to be incredibly strong and incredibly fragile. He was strong in what looked like a resolute and determined disengagement from the external world, in spite of struggling with apparently powerful internal forces. He was fragile in seeming overwhelmed by any adaptive demand. To the observer, he appeared extremely vulnerable. I was reminded of the powerful impact that a young infant has on the surrounding environment. The presence of an infant can dominate a situation. The infant is capable of evoking strong affects in caretakers and at the same time communicates an aura of helplessness and vulnerability. As I came to know some of these children more intimately, I began to understand in a deeper way the nature and quality of their strengths and vulnerabilities. These children had relentlessly turned away from the contaminating and impinging forces of the external world and were exquisitely aware of even its most subtle expressions. They had moved deep inside of themselves to establish intense involvements with their own bodily processes. The children might appear vulnerable to the observer, but their experience was not one of vulnerability.