Our intervention, from the Problem Solving Brief Therapy actually starts with the first phone call. Like in many cases involving ‘offspring’, the person making the phone call is a preocuppied adult, usually mother and so we try to start in the first session with that person in our office. The person we call a client.
This is founded in the rationale of systemic thinking. We aim to activate a positive cycle, through a point of inflection in the system. Once we find the motivated person or bring about motivation, we work to redirect a problematic cycle into a positive cycle, through the client.
To do this, we want to look at the problem in interactional terms and see what the communication loop has been, that is maintaining the problem. When we do this, we also need to be respectful of the client, aware of their context and utilize their resources to establish a strong aliance and promote sustainable change t.
Once we see the pattern of interactions that maintain the problematic loop, we lay tracks for doing something different.
The stages of treatment are
1) defining the problem,
2) determining what we will do differently and
3) implementing it.
Keep in mind this type of thinking is based on cyclic causality and will
likely invite you to use a different approach and part of your mind than you might be used to.
Enjoy!
