GÜNTER AMMON, PIONEER OF DYNAMIC PSYCHIATRY
em: Dynamische Psychiatrie, 31. Jahrganag, 5./6. Heft 1998, Heft
172/173, p. 441-443.
SUMMARY
Honoring Günter Ammon
is a privilege we are assuming as a reward for ourselves. This outstanding
German psychiatrist, psychotherapist, psychoanalyst, and founder
of “Dynamic Psychiatry” - as we know it today - deserves a special session
in an international congress of Social Psychiatry.
It is just necessary to
point out his personal contributions to the work in Mental Health within
the framework of psycho-analysis, a psychoanalysis that follows his truly
creative outline.
Idealizer of the concepts
of “Social Energy” and the “Symbiotic Complex”, he allowed us to develop
many interesting ways to make Social Psychiatry a true clinical endeavor.
His writings on mental health, community psychiatry, milieu therapy, and
personality structure , make him a real pioneer of our present studies
on theoretical and practical applications in Social Psychiatry.
We owe Günter Ammon
recognition and gratitude for his work and for creating a real school of
Social Psychiatry, within his specialty, Dynamic Psychiatry.-
It certainly is a great privilege
to be present at a special session honoring Günter Ammon, one of the
outstanding psychiatric personalities of our time.
I personally assume this
task as a reward for me and for all the colleagues here participating in
this event because we do have a new opportunity to remind his contribution
not only to psychiatry, but basically to the whole field of mental health.
We are exchanging the freshness of the theoretical advances that
this man furnished us in order to think , practice and being a little
bit more creative- everyone of us - in our practice, and later on , in
our writings .Thus, we became also innovators in our daily practice
and also known as authors who , based in Ammon’s ideas, participate in
re-defining Dynamic Psychiatry as a true way to consider and treat our
fellow human beings in need of assistance because of disturbs that can
affect anyone in the course of life.
With these considerations
I am sure that this symposium will justify our agreement that Günter
Ammon deserves a special session in an International Congress of Social
Psychiatry like this one.
I shall not indulge in describing
or justifying his work as psychiatrist, a psychoanalyst and a true worker
in Mental Health, but I do consider necessary to point out some of his
ideas that did help building up a new concept of Psychiatry. A concept
that is more accurate, more human, and more practical for this part
of Medicine , so much neglected in medical practice , because its way of
isolating itself, lack of a true clear scientific position
in the now accepted concept of the human being as a bio-psycho-social
totality , permanently interacting with other human beings and our circumstances
, that makes life itself a fantastic endeavor and an everlasting adventure.
All of this becomes very
clear in Ammon’s publications. I can not avoid mentioning his original
book in “Dynamic Psychiatry” (Ammon,1980), his studies enlightening
psychosomatic medicine (Ammon, 1979) , and his very important article on
his concepts of “human structurology” (Ammon, 1993) .
No doubt that his ideas
stem from psychoanalysis . But he had the courage to disregard some
psychoanalytic statements and , in its place, put some personal ideas
that, as all clinicians do , later on are transformed in theoretical contributions
based on clinical experience. I mean that we do work with people, patients
or not , and we do not come out with feverish thoughts originated in our
mind and put together in our writing seclusion , ignoring what is a hospital,
a consulting place, and real people interacting with other real people
who assumed the task of helping also real people. We can certainly
say that Dynamic Psychiatry as Ammon presented to the scientific community
is based on psychoanalysis , but a psychoanalysis that follows his truly
creative outline.
I learned that the “group”
is the originator of “Social Energy” , and that such an energy is the true
motor of constructing well being, in the sense of health in general and
mental health in particular. Whenever we get together this energy appears,
and the way we handle a group situation will influence everybody’s “ego-
structures” and “ego-functions” .Now, whenever I treat a patient
or a group, and even when I teach or discuss with students and/or colleagues,
I remind those concepts and try to make whatever situation arises , a more
creative and friendly one.
In treatment I can not forget
now , the “Symbiotic Complex”, specially how this concept helps in the
treatment of drug addicts adolescents (Knobel, 1992) , and of course, in
many other psychopathologies.
Ammon was a creative contestant
and no wonder he had to join other creators in the history of science
, both in our elogies and in others attacks not only to his ideas but to
him directly as a person, a scientist, a practitioner and a leader of a
very creative group .
In my paper on Ammon’s
ideas on Psychoanalysis and Psychosomatic Medicine, I pointed out that
only the wealth of his commented bibliography in his book on “Psychoanalysis
and Psychosomatics” (Ammon, 1979), may provoke envy among poor sectarians
who seek refuge in their narrow little knowledge which they keep idealized
within their closed institutions. (Knobel, 1993).
Rudolf Ekstein , a great
psychoanalyst of our time , recognizing his struggle , wrote about Günter
Ammon: “He returned home with enthusiasm and passion, creating quite a
few waves. He must often have felt isolated from his colleagues, who found
him disturbing and difficult. Indeed, he was and is a disturbing person.
He did not make it easy for himself, neither with his followers who were
deeply dedicated to him, nor with the colleagues toward whom he must build
a bridge of communication. He found resistance - like many before
him - and stirred up ambivalences, although he would be the last to claim
he was without such ambivalences himself” (Ekstein, 1979).
Ammon did not follow Ekstein’s
suggestion, but I think that he bestowed upon us this task. We must try
to build the bridge between a true Dynamic Psychiatry and the day by day
, year by year, growing understanding of the human being within Psychiatry.
Mental health, community
psychiatry, milieu therapy , human personality structure, the outstanding
work of the Menterschwaige Mental Health Hospital , are the strong
foundations of a “Dynamic Psychiatry” that won, deservingly , a point
of reference in today’s Social Psychiatry.
That is why, among many
other features and deeds , that Günter Ammon deserves a special session
in this Congress of the World Association of Social Psychiatry.-
REFERENCES.
Ammon, G. ( 1979 ). “ Psychoanalysis and Psychosomatics “ . New York , Springer Ed.
Ammon, G. ( 1980 ). “ Dynamische Psychiatrie” . Múnchen, Kindler Ed.
Ammon,G. ( 1993 ).
Dynamic psychiatry and human structurology. - Dynam. Psych. (Múnchen
),
26 , (142/143 ) : 279 - 287.
Ekstein, R. ( 1979 ). “ Foreword”
, in : Ammon, G. “Psychoanalysis and Psychosomatics” , New
York
, Springer Ed.
Knobel, M. ( 1992 )
. Drug addiction as a psychotic entity in adolescence : its treatment.
Dynam.
Psych.
( Múnchen ) 25 , (132/133 ) : 23 - 31.
Knobel, M. ( 1993 )
. Dynamic psychiatry and psychosomatic medicine. A view of Günter
Ammon’s
contribution to psychosomatics . Dynam. Psych. ( Múnchen ) , 26
, ( 142/143 ) : 326 -
334 .
See photograph with Günter Ammon in the Photo Gallery (Picture 22)
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