This book clarifies the issues borderline patients face in their daily lives and the attendant treatment dilemmas therapists confront. The authors offer a clear and concise stance for engaging this troubled and troublesome population, focusing in particular on the first stage of therapy, the time during which a constant attachment must be formed between the borderline patient and the therapist. This first phase of treatment is neither quick nor easy to resolve; a guide to its management can make the difference between a successful treatment and one that flounders.