Clinical studies on parent–infant psychotherapy pre- and post-COVID-19 pandemic ‘Making the best of a bad job’ (1)

ABSTRACT In his last writing in 1979, Bion, aged 81, described how ‘when two personalities meet, an emotional storm is created’ and the way that psychotherapy can only ever aim to ‘make the best of a bad job’ by turning that storm between the two people in the room to good account. This paper, whose title refers to Bion’s famous statement, complements a publication by Micotti and Pozzi, on a literature review regarding this topic. The paper describes clinical vignettes from psychoanalytic psychotherapy with parents, infants and children underfive seen in person, then online, in a Specialist National Health Service. Some technical issues in the move from in-person to online work as well as its impact on families and therapists are highlighted here.