Description:

Despite all the earnest efforts of researchers, therapy remains at least as much an art as a science. Seasoned practitioners know that when the therapeutic process becomes too cautious and mechanical, drained of risk and creativity, clinical effectiveness suffers. But how do we avoid being paralyzed by our clients’ chronic difficulties and resistant clients? How can we step outside the box and bring more of our creative and playful selves to our work? This workshop will present several guidelines for developing a creative partnership with clients that taps both therapist and client inventiveness. Through the use of videotape examples and skill-building exercises, participants will discover their own signature strengths as therapists and how best to mobilize them in session. We will discover how to use humor, stories, drama and imaginative family play and art experiments to create a therapeutic climate ripe for change in your clinical practices.

Educational Objectives:

1. To describe an innovative framework for creative uses of self in therapy.
2. Given a case, give an example of one therapeutic surprise that taps the client’s inventiveness and expertise to create possibilities.

*Sessions may be edited for content and to preserve confidentiality*