Last time we discussed defenses we all employ to deal with unwanted feelings and parts of ourselves - like projection. This time we go further into the psyche and talk about projective identification - i.e. we project out those unwanted parts into others and how they handle it builds our sense of ourselves and of them. This happens in our closest relationships - mother/infant and intimate partners. Eric and Ashley use pieces of their relationship to explain the concept and to discuss how this process has helped them both grow as a couple and individually. Also discussed are ways in which this can go poorly in our earliest relationships and then set us up for problems down the road in our intimate relationships. This should highlight for everyone why it's so important to think deeply about the choice to have children and what you will bring into that relationship with your child. If you can start to understand this process, you can begin to more deeply understand the places you feel stuck in your life.