Abstract
Surgical procedures convey the idea of aggression and passivity and cause unimaginable anguish. This qualitative, descriptive and exploratory study investigated the use of fantasy by children the day before surgery. Seven children, both sexes and aged five to twelve, who were admitted for surgery in 2014 were included in the study. The instruments used in this study were Play Time and Fables Test. Content analysis was used to explore the data. The participants considered themselves as defective, possessed feelings of fragility and helplessness, and had many fears and frightening elaborative fantasies. It was concluded that fantasies maintained a paradoxical role: even if constituting a regressive defense, they proved to be protective structures, helping to make sense of the surgical experience.
Keywords:
psychoanalysis; psychology; fantasies; pediatric surgery
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