Elements And Dimensions Of An Ericksonian Approach by Lankton Stephen R

Author:Lankton, Stephen R.
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781317772903
Publisher: Taylor & Francis (CAM)

Integration of Components: A Case Example

A variety of ideas, attitudes, orientations, and techniques have been presented and discussed. Integrating these components by means of a case illustration can, perhaps, clarify their interconnectedness. The strategic and systems orientation form the basis for interventions that utilize the client's behavior with hypnotherapy, metaphor, and ambiguous function assignment. More specifically, treatment for this client can be overviewed in terms of the elements of an Ericksonian approach presented here.

1. Positive and individualistic: Though the client presented herself in an extremely self-effacing manner and primarily in terms of a specific symptom (colitis), she was viewed as having far more resources than she recognized and she was carefully observed and questioned to understand how she had uniquely developed her particular symptom and attitudinal orientation.

2. Strategic: Following the assessment (conducted over a period of months in both written and face-to-face communication), I listed several goals for the therapy and designed interventions that I expected would facilitate the client's accomplishing those goals.

3. Systems-oriented: Though this client was seen individually, careful attention was directed to assessing and utilizing her stage of development within her family of origin and her current family relationships. Interventions were designed in accordance with what she needed to learn or retrieve in order to grow and develop normally within that system.

4. Hypnotic: Hypnosis was used as the primary context for delivering the indirect treatment interventions of metaphor and indirect suggestion. Conscious/unconscious dissociation allowed and encouraged the client to listen and learn in two modes simultaneously.

5. Action-vs. insight-oriented: This client demonstrated considerable insight as to how her problems had developed, but seemed unable to alter her activities and patterns of symptomatic behavior. Therefore, no attempt was made to further insight, but instead indirect methods (metaphor, indirect suggestion, and an ambiguous function assignment) were used to retrieve needed resources (attitudes, abilities, feelings, etc.) that could be directed toward creating new adjustments to current life demands.

6. Utilization: Though I held a positive belief about this client that differed significantly from her own personal evaluation, I planned to first utilize her opinions and typical interpersonal orientation (submissive, passively rebellious, self-effacing) to meet her at her familiar model of the world. I paradoxically instructed her to go into trance doubting and criticizing herself and rebelling against my suggestions, so as to validate the genuineness of her experience. This “paradoxical personality orientation prescription” utilized the client's presenting behaviors. The ambiguous function assignment at the end of the therapy utilized her behaviors of continually looking to the therapist for approval and the “right” answers to her problems. Between these two extremes, verbal and minute ideomotor behaviors were incorporated and utilized in refining diagnostic assessment and fine-tuning selected interventions to “speak to the client's condition.”

7. Indirection: Finally, as already summarized here, formal categories of indirect suggestion and binds were used in conjunction with metaphor to induce trance and address therapeutic goals. These interventions were followed by the ambiguous function assignment as an indirect stimulus to further crystalize her own interpretations and solutions.

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