Most patients do not come to us asking, “What is wrong with me?” — they come with stories about someone else: a partner who doesn’t understand, a relationship that has fallen apart once again, or a love that gradually turns into a struggle.
But what truly lies behind this pain?
Love and Aggression are two interdependent forces we try to separate, though in reality they are inseparable. When these forces are split—and one of them is projected or denied—the other takes over the space within the relationship. Care then acquires the qualities of control, passion turns into tension, and closeness begins to be experienced as a threat.
Here, the therapist faces the greatest challenge: not to get lost in the story, not to lose sight of the deeper level where the real drama unfolds — between the need to love and the fear of being destroyed by love.
Understanding this interplay forms the foundation of all profound psychotherapy. Only where love and aggression can coexist does the genuine capacity for intimacy emerge.
We invite you to join Module II of the program:
Love and Aggression: From Normality to Pathology
Trainer — Dr. Otto Kernberg, M.D.
In this module, we will continue exploring the deep world of love and aggression, the complexity of human relationships, and ways to perceive situations more broadly — so we can help our patients, even those convinced that the problem lies outside themselves.
Registration for Module I of the program is still open. The video recording of the first workshop will be provided.
A brief overview of the program:
Schedule:
First Module:
15 November, 2025 - Biological determinants of aggressive and erotic behaviour - This workshop is offered in a recorded format
20 December, 2025 - Traditional psychoanalytic theory and contemporary object theory
17 January, 2026 - Contemporary psychoanalytic object relations theory and pathology of aggression
Second Module
February 21, 2026 - Clinical manifestations of aggression and their treatment
March 21, 2026 - Aggression in love and couple’s conflicts
April 18, 2026 - Aggression in groups, organizations, and the political realm
Third Module
May 16, 2026 - Component and development of sexual love
June 20, 2026 - Adolescence, love relations through life, marital conflict and couples’ treatment
July 18, 2026 - Oedipal conflicts, sexual morality, social and political control
Fourth Module
September 26, 2026 - Pathology of sexual functioning, homosexuality, narcissism, perversion
October 24, 2026 - Severe sexual inhibition in men and women, sexual promiscuity
November 21, 2026 - Therapeutic challenges in the treatment of love and aggression
Who is this program for?
This program is designed for psychologists, psychotherapists, and psychiatrists.
How is the program structured?
13 months — 12 workshops (with a break in August 2026). Each workshop offers an in‑depth exploration of a single topic — from the neurobiology of aggression to couple therapy, from the pathology of sexuality to perversions and moral conflict.
Each one-day workshop consists of 6 hours, which include:
- The in-depth and detailed lectures accompanied by examples from Dr. Kernberg's clinical practice
- A live clinical supervision session, in which Dr. Kernberg will demonstrate the approaches to clinical challenges involving love and aggression.
- A one-hour Q&A session where you can raise your questions and refine your clinical perspective.
What will you gain upon completion of the program?
Upon completion, you will receive:
- A map of aggression — from neurobiology and core affective systems to perversions, hatred, envy, and malignant narcissism in societies.
- A map of love — from infantile perverse tendencies and relationships with primary objects to mature sexual love.
- A key to understanding how all of this affects the therapeutic situation and therapy as a whole.
The program will encompass the full spectrum of sexuality, together with its contemporary conflicts and contradictions: homosexuality and bisexuality, transgender identity, and perversion.
Who Is the Program Trainer?
The author and trainer of the entire program is Otto F. Kernberg, M.D., one of the most influential and renowned psychoanalysts and psychiatrists.
Otto Kernberg’s entire professional life has been devoted to the exploration of aggression and love.
He has treated patients for whom destruction was a way of being.
He has worked with individuals whose expressions of aggression were among the most destructive.
He has treated patients with the most powerful defenses against love and against the possibility of deep human connection.
He founded and developed Transference-Focused Psychotherapy (TFP), which today is recognized internationally as one of the few evidence-based approaches effective in treating severe personality disorders.
Who is the organizer of the program?
The program is organized by TFP-Group Ukraine and the Ukrainian Institute for Personality Disorder Studies.
The Institute has already conducted more than 227 hours of training events and has more than 1853 participants who have completed certification training.
The Institute collaborate with leading experts: Otto Kernberg, Frank Yeomans, Monica Carsky, Tennyson Lee, Katarzyna Gwóźdź, Veronica Steiner, Nel Draijer, Jos van Mosel, Julia Sowislo.
Time:
from 1:40-8:00 PM (London time)
from 8:40AM-3:00PM (New York time)
FORMAT & LANGUAGE
Online education in English
With simultaneous translation into Ukrainian
What does the training participant package include?
Participants of each module receive:
- Online Zoom seminar participation
- Handouts for Clinical Case Analysis
- 12-month access to the webinar recordings
- A personalized electronic certificate of participation for each module, and, upon completion of all four modules, a comprehensive program completion certificate.
We encourage you to register for a training that will enhance the effectiveness of psychotherapy in your clinical work.
Details and registration: https://pd.borderline.institute
Ukrainian Institute for Personality Disorders Studies