Lost in Impatience: The Relevance of Kierkegaard for the Patient Psychotherapist in an Immediate World

Abstract

This paper draws upon a close textual reading of Kierkegaard’s Upbuilding Discourses and parts of The Sickness Unto Death. It argues that his characterization of the ‘immediate person’ is a fitting description for impatient patients, in an impatient service, in an impatient world. His thoughts on patience provide a clear and grounding message for trainees cutting their teeth in an environment that screams the opposite.