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On April 26, 2009 the NYIPT/New Hope Graduate Society sponsored a workshop by NYIPT faculty member, Kim Kleinman, entitled, "Self Harming Behaviors: How To Shift An Adolescent Towards ‘Making It Better,’" She described the dynamics of grandiose and magical thinking that underlie self-harming behavior, and underscored the need for the therapist to pay extra attention to the therapeutic alliance.

Ms. Kleinman spoke about how self destructive behaviors are a sadomasochistic response to inner conflict. She addressed the difference between an “open and closed system” of self-regulation, an idea put forth by the Novicks. Understanding how to promote an open system, as well as how sadomasochism develops are important concepts for therapists who work with teens who harm themselves.

Kleinman discussed how self-destructive behavior is triggered when an adolescent fails to establish peer relationships. This is particularly dangerous for adolescents who have been abused, because they need to have friends while they are coping with the feeling of loss that the work of adolescent development engenders.

Everyone who attended this workshop came away from it with a better understanding of how to work with very troubled adolescents (and their parents), both in a clinic setting as well as in private practice