Narrative in action

Day-to-day Work of Narrative Therapy

On their website, Jill Freedman and Gene Combs posted and excellent description of “In the day-to-day work of narrative therapy. In January 2007, a group of narrative teachers participated in a wonderful narrative gathering in Cuba, Encountering the Spirit of Community in Narrative Therapy and in Cuban Social Programs, further adapted this list.   In the day-to-day work of narrative therapy, we: Start by seeking to join people in their particular experiential worlds (not by [...]

2015-08-18T12:07:19-04:00August 17th, 2015|2 Comments

The Collab Salon Sign Up- Members Only!

This blog post is for Collab Members to sign up for the next Collab Salon. We meet on the third Sunday of the month @ 5pm, NYC time. Each month we will focus on a different theme. It’s free to Collab members! You just need to sign up each month so we will reserve you a spot.

2017-08-01T14:51:44-04:00May 18th, 2015|0 Comments

Pitfalls and challenges in work with men… who use violence against their partners by Rob Hall

It has become fashionable for people to present their work in ways that don’t claim expert status. I must admit that makes writing this much easier as I do not feel like an expert despite working in the field since 1980. There is also a school of thought that says it is very important to outline, make clear and transparent, how central themes of work are derived. Others can then critique these themes and make their [...]

2017-08-01T14:51:48-04:00December 1st, 2013|0 Comments

Challenging the effects of childhood sexual abuse

Charley Lang works with individuals, couples, and families at Narrative Counseling Center in Los Angeles, California (narrativecounselingcenter.com). A teacher of narrative practices, he is also an award-winning documentary filmmaker and Director of the BA Psychology Program at Antioch University. Charley wrote this article in response to requests from students and colleagues interested in seeing narrative practices at work while addressing issues related to trauma. The article documents his experiences consulting with a client in his private [...]

2017-08-01T14:51:48-04:00December 1st, 2013|0 Comments

Narrative practices in mental health settings

Gaye Stockell and Marilyn O'Neil founded the Sydney Narrative Family Centre in Sydney, Australia. They have been engaging with narrative ideas for more than twenty years within psychiatric settings. Raymond & the Black Dot Gaye and Marilyn's conversations  with Raymond in 1990 had profound effects on their work practices as mental health workers in a psychiatric rehabilitation center. Diagnosed as a schizophrenic, Raymond shared "A black dot" story that draws a link to  an experience [...]

2017-08-01T14:51:48-04:00November 29th, 2013|0 Comments

Peggy Sax: Finding common ground: parents speak out about family centered practices

After 7 years, I wrote up the findings from my dissertation project about experiences of “finding common ground” between human service seekers,  providers, and planners. I interviewed about 100 people (group and individual) from different designated roles (parents of young children with mental health concerns; therapists, early childhood care and education and other providers; and federal & state planners). The article Finding Common Ground : Parents Speak Out About Family-Centered Practices was published in The Journal of [...]

2017-08-01T14:51:48-04:00November 26th, 2013|0 Comments

Working with families with infants and toddlers

“Narrative therapy and family support: Strengthening the mother’s voice in working with families with infants and toddlers” (1997) was published in Narrative Therapies with Children and Adolescents by Craig Smith and David Nyland. This chapter is the first time I wrote something for publication about narrative therapy.  I remember the effort it took to rise to the occasion. I was grateful to Bill Lax for inviting me to write the chapter instead of the one he had [...]

2015-07-07T15:20:23-04:00November 26th, 2013|0 Comments