The psychodrama without the active use of the physical body: Psychoanalytical challenges at the time of COVID-19

Abstract

The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has forced the implementation of online psychotherapy (OP) practice. A literature search has revealed the paucity of studies on the psychoanalytic approach to OP and the lack of clinical experiences of analytic psychodrama (AP) via the Internet. The present work aims to discuss the difficulties encountered and the resources offered by a brief account of group psychotherapy through the technique of AP realized via videoconference. With some adjustments, the online roleplaying game was feasible through the two-dimensional space of the screen and allowed the patient to change his/her point of view, even if the AP technique struggled in the absence of the physical body in action. Performing psychodrama without the active use of the physical body, from an adaptation initially forced by the emergency situation, has proven to be an interesting psychoanalytical challenge worthy of deeper investigation and pursuit in the future.