Tag: psychic retreat

The Denied Body: Clinical and Countertransference Dynamics in Hikikomori Withdrawal

Fiorenzo Ranieri

The article “The Denied Body: Clinical and Countertransference Dynamics in Hikikomori Withdrawal” was published in the March 2026 issue of the Journal of Child Psychotherapy.

Abstract

Social withdrawal, known as hikikomori, represents a complex clinical condition in which the body is often silenced and withdrawn from relational exchange. This paper explores the role of the bodily dimension in psychoanalytic psychotherapy with adolescents and young adults, with particular attention to the therapist’s countertransference reactions. The concept of psychic retreat is used to understand how the body becomes the main vehicle for non-symbolisable communications. Starting from the premise that enactment is the language of the retreat, clinical vignettes illustrate how this process can become a transformative moment when recognised and worked through within the analytic field. The containing function allows the transformation of what has been evacuated into the body into shareable thoughts, thereby reopening a relational space. The paper emphasises the importance of keeping the patient’s body alive in the therapist’s mind, to give meaning to what cannot be said and to restore the possibility of connection with the Other.

Keywords:

Hikikomori; body and psychotherapy; psychic retreat; countertransference; enactment

Ranieri, F. (2026). The denied body: clinical and countertransference dynamics in hikikomori withdrawal. Journal of Child Psychotherapy, 1–16. https://doi.org/10.1080/0075417X.2026.2639574

Seeking the origins of psychic and social withdrawals

Fiorenzo Ranieri

The article “Seeking the origins of psychic and social withdrawals: warning signs in the observations of young children”, co-authored with Miriam Monticelli, has been published in Infant Observation – International Journal of Infant Observation and Its Applications.

Read the full article:

(https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/13698036.2023.2290290 ).

“The authors hypothesize that the child’s psychic withdrawal is a potential precursor to the social withdrawal called ‘hikikomori’, a phenomenon frequently observed among adolescents and young adults. They also hypothesize a continuum between psychic withdrawal, social withdrawal and the ‘psychic retreats’ by John Steiner. The authors investigate very early psychic withdrawal and its potential link to the development of social withdrawal. Two observations collected using the Infant Observation and Young Child Observation method provided essential support. Children with premonitory signs of psychic withdrawal observed when they were very young were contacted years later for new observations. The aim was to test the hypothesis that the mental and social functioning mechanisms observed were maintained over time, hindering the children’s lines of development. In both cases, it is shown that over the years, precursor signs of mental withdrawal can be traced in the non-spontaneous modes of interaction with peers, with an adaptation to the environment that, especially in a child, seems to rely on the family context and home to avoid contact with others. The article provides clues as to how psychic withdrawal fuels social withdrawal and can contribute to the construction of internal personality organizations that lead to self-reclusion called hikikomori”.

Keywords

Psychic withdrawal; social withdrawal; psychic retreat; hikikomori; Infant Observation; Young Child Observation

Contact the authors for further information