Promoting object constancy. Writing as a nursing intervention.

Abstract

1. Object constancy is an important developmental milestone that many psychiatric patients have not achieved. 2. Asking patients to write down thoughts and feelings will assist the nurse in reinforcing a continuous experience of self as a necessary antecedent to self and object constancy. 3. Object constancy allows the patient to be more autonomous in relationships. Writing will help the patient become more independent in managing thoughts and feelings. 4. Using an object relations framework for this commonly prescribed nursing intervention will assist nurses in providing a focus and goal for the use of writing.