March 2024: "The body/mind as an internal group: Voices from Bion’s 'The Dawn of Oblivion' " presented by Nancy C. Winters, MD, FIPA

March 2024: "The body/mind as an internal group: Voices from Bion’s 'The Dawn of Oblivion' " presented by Nancy C. Winters, MD, FIPA The body and mind in relation (body/mind) is regarded in this presentation as an internal group. This provides the basis for a new perspective on somatopsychic phenomena. While previously the internal group was limited to psychical representations, the body here becomes a significant participant in the internal group. Building on René Käes’ (2016) related concept of psychical groupality, Dr. Winters formulates the idea of body/mind groupality. To clarify these ideas, she discusses Bion’s famous dialogue in “The Dawn of Oblivion” (1979), in which various body/mind states speak together as an internal group; and presents a case of an evolving pain syndrome, illustrating the transformative functions of body/mind groupality. This will open us to reflect on those difficult situations theoretically and clinically of body/mind dissociation and deepen our analytic understanding of perplexing psychosomatic conditions. Learning Objectives 1. Participants will be able to discuss how the body/mind functions as an internal group. 2. Participants will be able to describe the concept of body/mind groupality. 3. Participants will be able to show how Bion’s “The Dawn of Oblivion” can be read as an internal group dialogue. 4.Participants will be able to reflect on the role of body/mind groupality in transforming psychosomatic phenomena.