Clare
To answer your final point, professionals will all have developed their own
way of working, this will be based on a mix of their own personal history
and therapy, their training and theoretical orientation and their own
professional experience and supervision. To a certain extent there is also a
point where we throw all we've ever been taught in classes out the window
and take a risk with a client which comes from some awareness of the process
of therapy that just happens from experience, I'd use the words deep
empathy, maybe also something happening at the transpersonal level.
I'd be very surprised if we didn't, in general, have agreement with the
principles you set out, some of us may also have disagreements with some of
your ideas. We would all approach the child differently and put greater
stress on some aspects more than others. I doubt that any two of us would
have a session with the client which would look substantively the same on
video, part of the process of a session is a dance between the two people in
the room and also all the people/experiences they bring with them. I
generally find the best work happens when I get as much of myself out of the
session as possible, particularly the ideas I bring with me about how I
"ought" to be managing the case from supervision or from theory. The map is
not the picture. So in a sense your request is a bit of a nonsense because
the way that you propose to work with the client is the "right" way for you,
it wouldn't be the "right" way for me, the dynamic between therapist and
client is always about those two people, doing what I do would be unhelpful
for you and vice versa, you could learn the techniques I would use but they
might well not be right for you in your work. Hope that makes sense for you.
I think it's vitally important that I work within the basis of a theoretical
perspective and a set of skills but that I am also free of them and able to
fully enter the clients world and stand beside them in it and hear their
story.
I haven't read your case study, I share concerns about confidentiality, but
would like to comment on the basis of your email.
1 Who is your client? the child, the mother, the child-mother dyad or the
family? Or indeed the social norms that suggest the child will be more
stable for seeing the father more regularly or that a child shouldn't have
tantrums? Maybe the answer to that would be clearer to me if I read the case
study but from the words you write I feel unsure.
2 From the answer to that what exactly is the problem? Is it tantrums or the
reaction of the adults? If tantrums then the child centred work you suggest
could be focussed at helping the child learn different ways of expressing
the feelings that the tantrum expresses. However that behaviour change may
happen anyway if the adults deal with it in a different way. It may not be
about Mum intervening once it starts, it may be about Mum learning what the
pattern that leads to the tantrum is and changing something she does along
the way. It may be about empowering Mum, not disempowering the child, see
below.
3 Is the tantrum something to do with being the only control the child has
over their world? Is the child really anxious or just very angry? Is the
problem behaviour an expression of the child's feelings or are they acting
out the mothers feelings?. Is there an issue about dealing with separation
and change, if so is it with the child, the mother or both? Are the adults
attributing anxiety to the child because they are anxious about the
tantrums?
As I said those questions come to me from your email rather than from the
case study. How would I work with the case? I'd hope to have a first session
where I encouraged the child to draw a picture with a path, a house, a tree
and themselves in it (ref Barbara R. Findeisens Windows to our children),
I'd hope that Mum would draw a similar picture, I'd hope that both would
talk about the pictures, note I'm making several assumptions to get to this
point and I'm planning to work with the child-mother dyad. That of course
might not happen. I'd hope that it would and that I'd be able to hear two
voices and that they would be able to hear each other. I'd hope I could
maybe introduce the other tools from the book I've mentioned and that we
could work toward a place where mother and child were feeling empowered and
heard and could express difficult feelings. That's about as far as I can go
in answering the question "what would a professional do?" hope it's a help.
Regards
Mark
-----Original Message-----
From: Discussion on theoretical and research issues in counselling
psychology [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Claire Frances
Harper
Sent: 04 June 2004 17:04
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: case study
i would suggest that the child needs to see the father on more of a regular
basis for stability and that the mother is given support in helping to
understand and to know how to intervene and cope when the child is having a
tantrum.
perhaps the child would benefit from some kind of therapy, art, play,
child-centred to enable her to work through anxieties surrounding her father
and seperation anxiety, new sibling, new house and change of schools.
it has also been suggested that there is a fund called the childrens fund
which helps children during transistional periods-this could perhaps fund
the therapy?
i would also suggest that she needs alot of reasurance from her mother
during this uncertain time for her and that if communication is constantly
happening it will help to reduce the childs insecurity. but i need a
professional to say well yes that is perhaps what we might suggest aswell.
we have written theory on the case study and now need to bring it up to date
by including what a professional would do -which noone seems to want to tell
us!!!
1 to 1 Counselling Service wrote:
>Claire
>
>One day you hope to be a professional. What intervention procedures
would
>you use if you were?
>
>Sue
>
>
>
>From: "Claire Frances Harper" <[log in to unmask]>
>To: <[log in to unmask]>
>Sent: Friday, June 04, 2004 4:19 PM
>Subject: Re: case study
>
>
>> I wonder if some one could possibly just give me an incling as to
>> what the intevention procedure a professional would take please!
>>
>>
>> G.F. Phillips wrote:
>>
>>
>> >Hello Sue et al
>> >
>> >I wonder if having a seperate closed list would help. The students
>> >obviously are under great pressure and come to us who have knowledge
and
>> >experience. I'n sure we could deal with confidentiality matters in
>> this
>> >way.
>> >Kindest
>> >Gerald
>> >-----Original Message-----
>> >From: 1 to 1 Counselling Service <[log in to unmask]>
>> >To: [log in to unmask] <[log in to unmask]>
>> >Date: 04 June 2004 12:12
>> >Subject: Re: case study
>> >
>> >
>> >>Dear Claire
>> >>
>> >>Again, I find myself in a similar position to that I held in
>> >>relation to the content of Rosie's recent message.
>> >>
>> >>You have not said what steps you have taken to anonymise this
>> >>client. I feel uncomfortable that so much is known about her by
>> >>so many people who have no right to know it.
>> >>
>> >>I hope that you get the help you need with your case study, but I
>> >>really do feel that you should seek it from your fellow students or
>> >>your tutors rather than have to go into such great detail on this
>> >>list.
>> >>
>> >>Good luck,
>> >>
>> >>Sue
>> >>
>> >>Sue Vogel, BA., MSc., C.Couns.Psychol., C.Health Psychol.,
>> >>Chartered Psychologist
>> >>1 to 1 Counselling Service
>> >>BEDFORD
>> >>________________________________
>> >>
>> >>DISCLAIMER: This communication may contain confidential and/or
>> >>privileged information. It is for the exclusive use of the
>> >>intended recipient(s). If you are not the intended recipient(s)
>> >>you are notified that any form of distribution, copying or use of
>> >>this communication or the information in any attached files is
>> >>strictly prohibited and may be unlawful. If you have received this
>> >>message in error, please notify the 1 to 1 Counselling Service,
>> >>delete the email and destroy any copies of it.
>> >>
>> >>1 to 1 Counselling Service is not responsible for any changes made
>> >>to this message after it was sent, nor for any loss or damage
>> >>arising from its receipt or use. You are responsible for virus
checking
>> >>of any attachments.
>> >>__________________________________________________
>> >>----- Original Message -----
>> >>From: "Claire Frances Harper" <[log in to unmask]>
>> >>To: <[log in to unmask]>
>> >>Sent: Friday, June 04, 2004 11:47 AM
>> >>Subject: case study
>> >>
>> >>
>> >>> attached is a case study could you please suggest some
interventions
>> >>> for this child?
>> >>>
>> >>
>> >>
>> >
>>
>
|