Unconscious relational traumatic memory and its relevance to 'everyday' clinical psychiatry.

OBJECTIVE The aim of this paper is to demonstrate the relevance of the concept of unconscious relational traumatic memory to 'everyday' clinical psychiatry. METHOD One clinical vignette and concepts from the Conversational Model of Psychotherapy are used to consider the potential relevance of this type of memory. CONCLUSIONS The influence of modern classification systems and the dominance of the paradigm of 'biological psychiatry' over the last 30 years have together led to an emphasis on diagnosis and treatment by symptom cluster. This perspective may overlook both the patient's current psycho-social context and their personal history. An understanding of unconscious relational traumatic memory may assist in both the conceptualisation and the treatment of many patients, particularly those adults who have been abused in childhood, where the link between the early experiences and the late manifestations are frequently lost.