Working through multiple crises: the experience of psychotherapists and psychoanalysts in Lebanon (preprint)

Background This research explores the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on psychotherapists' practices and their ability to maintain a framework despite a shared reality with their patients. The specific focus in this article is on the Lebanese context, which is characterized by a series of crises including economic collapse, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the Beirut blast. The objective of this study was to examine how the destabilization of the meta-frame due to crises necessitates adaptations in theoretical knowledge, practice, and setting.Methods We conducted a qualitative study among a population consisting of mental health professionals, which were recruited in multiple countries through associations and societies of psychologists, psychotherapists, and psychoanalysts. Data was collected using semi-structured individual interviews. The interviews were analyzed using interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA), which allowed for a dynamic exploration of the participants' experiences. A total of 44 participants were interviewed, with 15 interviews specifically focusing on Lebanese psychoanalysts and psychotherapists.Results Our study revealed four superordinate themes: (1) the strained frontiers; (2) the cumulative traumatic reality and its impact; (3) A challenged professional identity; (4) The creativity stemming from collective trauma.Conclusions Our results highlight the insecurity caused by external reality infiltrating the therapeutic setting. Online therapy allowed for continued work, but uncertainty about the online environment's impact on therapeutic relationships was observed. The study underscores the importance of adaptability, containment, and support for therapists navigating crises, particularly in the online setting.

Pregnancy experience among West-African migrant women during covid-19 pandemic in France (preprint)

Background The health crisis led to numerus questions regarding health care measures, psychological experience of lockdown, and health care access inequities according to migration status during pregnancy. This qualitative study explores the subjective experience and cultural representations around pregnancy and mother-child bond among migrant mothers of first and second generation during the Covid-19 pandemic in France.Method We conducted semi-structured interviews to collect the experience of migrant mothers from West Africa who had given birth between October 2021 and may 2022 (in between covid’s 4th and 6th wave) in two maternity hospitals in France. We used interpretative phenomenological analysis to explore the data.Results Nine mothers, first and second generation of migrants from West African countries were included. Three different themes emerged: increased holding capacities from health-workers and family concerning pregnancy issues in the pandemic context; mothers’ wisdom in their description of the pandemic; and increased awareness induced by pandemic context on cultural representations and mental shuffle regarding motherhood.Conclusion More generally, our research is an invitation to reflect on health care inequalities and how to deal with cultural differences during perinatal period, regardless of the sanitary or political context.