On the Other Side of the Therapy-Room Door: Parents’ Experiences of Their Children's Journey through Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy

This dissertation explores the lived experiences of parents whose children with Autism Spectrum Condition (ASC) received psychoanalytic psychotherapy within CAMHS. Structured as a three-article thesis, the project provides a layered and in-depth analysis of parental perspectives, combining theoretical review and qualitative inquiry. The first article critically reviews existing literature on psychoanalytic work with autistic children, the role of parents in therapeutic contexts, and the broader mental health landscape. It establishes the conceptual and empirical groundwork for the empirical studies that follow. The second article investigates the processual aspects of parenting a child through psychotherapy. Drawing on semi-structured interviews with four parents and analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA), it traces a longitudinal journey through initial uncertainty, emotional disruption, and gradual transformation. The third article examines parents’ reflections on the therapy itself, focusing on perceived benefits, challenges, and the parent–therapist relationship. Although based on the same interviews, it explores a different layer of meaning, highlighting how parents make sense of psychoanalytic treatment. The three-article structure was chosen to allow focused engagement with different facets of the parental experience while maintaining coherence and depth. Findings point to the complexity and emotional labour involved in supporting a child through long-term therapy and underscore the importance of acknowledging parents as active participants in the therapeutic process. This research aims to inform both clinical practice and policy, while also amplifying the often-overlooked voices of parents navigating child mental health services.