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Dependence and the representations of passive submission which it reactivates, have an important place in the apprehension of specific problem-configurations among adolescents suffering from type-1diabetes mellitus. Behaviours of noncompliance concerning medical treatment are frequent. For these sick adolescents, it is necessary to understand the functions of such behaviors and their consequences upon sexual identification and access to adulthood. By studying the case histories of two adolescents, their personal theories about the illness and their projective test material, we will demonstrate the tight link which exists between their ideas about illness and their libidinal cathexis of the body.