Anna Varghese

Module 5 (15%)
● Solution focused counselling 5.1
● Narrative counselling 5.2
● Crisis counselling 5.3
● Case discussion using current use of techniques in counselling
● Practice and application

Narrative counselling
What Is Narrative?
A narrative is a story. As humans, we have many stories about ourselves, others, our abilities,
self-esteem, and work, among many others.
Humans are meaning-making machines. The stories are determined by the way we link certain
events together in a sequence and the meaning we attribute to them. As more and more events
are selected and gathers into the dominant plot the story gains richness and importance, through
which an identity is formed and the interpretation of a narrative can influence thinking, feelings,
and behavior.
Some narratives are healthy and useful whereas some can be mentally distressing and this can
manifest mental health symptoms which may also be misinterpreted or misunderstood.
Founders - Michael white and David Epston
Other prominent practitioners and theorist in the field include Michael Durrant and Gerald
Monk
Origin
It was important to see people as separate from their problems. Developed in the 1980s, narrative
therapy seeks to have an empowering effect and offer counseling that is non-blaming and
non-pathological in nature.
Approach came into existence in 1990. This approach believes that people construct the meaning
of life in interpretative stories, which later on become truth for them. David Epston sees these
stories as both describing and shaping people’s perspectives on their lives, histories and futures.
These stories may be inspiring or oppressive.
White and Epston felt it was critically important for people to not label themselves or to see
themselves as "broken" or "the problem," or for them to feel powerless in their circumstances
and behavior patterns.
Human nature based on narrative therapy
● Narrative counselor emphasize “that meaning, or knowledge is constructed through social
interaction”.
● There is no absolute reality except as a social product.
● People are seen internalizing and judging themselves through creating stories of their
lives.
● Many of these theories highlight negative qualities about individuals or situation in their
lives and are troublesome or depressing.
● Through treatment clients can reauthor their lives and change their outlooks in positive
ways.

Concept
● The way people experience themselves and their situation is constructed through
culturally mediated social interactions which is called “social constructionism”. Narrative
approach is based on the principle of social constructionism and post modernism.
● The focus of narrative therapy is around stories that we develop within ourselves and
carry through our lives.
● We give meaning to our personal experiences and these meanings that we come up with,
or that have been placed on us by others, influence how we see ourselves and the world
around us.
● Narrative therapy is concerned with our stories, which are believed to influence our
thoughts and, in turn, our decision-making and behaviors.

Beliefs
1. Client is the expert
2. Problem is a separate entity from the individual
3. The client has the skills, experiences and mindset to help themselves reduce the
influence of problem in life.
4. The client plays the role of both protagonist and authorial role in the therapeutic
process
5. Aim of therapy - realize the forces influencing the life and focus on the positive’s
aspects.
6. Problems arise from social, political and cultural context through which meaning of
life is formed
7. Stories in a ‘narrative’ context are made up of events, linked by a theme, occurring
over time and according to a plot.
8. Certain privileged events are selected out of many events to form a story
9. What is ‘problem-saturated?
 When stories they have for themselves and their lives become completely dominated
by problems that work to oppress them it is called problem saturation,
Problem-saturated stories can also become identities (e.g. I’ve always been a
depressed person.) These kinds of stories can invite a powerful negative influence in
the way people see their lives and capabilities (e.g. “I’m hopeless”).( Like black and
white thinking ).

Therapist and client collaborate and step away from the problem saturated stories and
discover the “Untold” story that includes things like their intentions, hopes,
commitments, values, desires and dreams. The therapist also focus on aspects like
culture and religion.
10. What is ‘re-authoring’?
The focus is on how the client discover through conversations, the hopeful, preferred,
and previously unrecognized and hidden possibilities that contain the unseen
storylines. This is called as the ‘re-authoring’.

Assumptions’

1. Client and problem

Narrative therapy helps to separate the person from the problem.
The client is not defined by the problem that he presents in the therapy
setting.This does not happen only from the therapist, but also from the
client’s side. A person who is depressed starts considering his
personality as depressed. He needs to be made aware that depression
is a state and not a long-term change that has taken place in the life of
the client. People start identifying themselves with the problem. This
is discouraged by this approach.
2. Source of information
Client is the expert
The best informant about the client is client, the client knows better
about himself than anyone else. His information and his understanding
about self are considered as authentic and reliable by the therapist. In
fact, the client is the biggest expert of his own life, so to understand
him better the therapist takes his opinion into account. The
experiences of the client are counted more than what the
commonsense view says because clients spend the maximum time
with themselves. Clients do know their conflicts and dilemmas; they
 might not be able to deal with them effectively on their own but that
does not stop them from understanding things in their life.
3. Client’s Competencies, Client has he skills to help himself
The client is resourceful. He has many skills and competencies to deal
with the problems he is facing. So it is the task of the counselor to find
out what are the competencies that have worked in the life of the
client so far, so that the same can be used effectively to deal with
problem in various other later situations too. The counselor should be
able to find the strength the client has in his narratives, because that
will help the client to find new alternatives based on this exploration.
4. Client’s Acceptance
Change takes place when the client accepts it. Till the point of
intervention, it is difficult for the client to believe that they can change
their life story. When they accept that they can change the story, this
gives them a sense of the alternative that is available to them.

Principals
● Reality is socially constructed. The way we interact with others impacts how we
experience reality. These experiences with others become our known reality.
● Reality is influenced by (and communicated through) language. People interpret
experiences through language and people can have different interpretations of the same
event or interaction.
● Having a narrative can help us maintain and organize our reality. The development
of a narrative or story can help us to make sense of our experiences.
● There is no "objective reality." People can have different realities of the same
experience. What might be true for us may not be true for someone else.

Elements
As described in narrative therapy, stories involve the following four elements working together:
● Events
● Linked in a sequence
● Across time
● According to a plot
Factors
There can be many factors that contribute to our development of stories. These factors influence
how we interpret events or interactions, as well as the meanings we attach to them. Some of the
factors include:
● Age
● Socioeconomic status
● Race
● Ethnicity
● Gender
● Sexual identity

Technique’s
Externalizing the problem
Once the story is put together, the idea is that it allows the client to observe
themselves. The therapist encourages the client to create distance between the
individual and their problems, which is called externalization. The externalization
techniques lead clients towards viewing their problems or behaviors as external,
instead of an unchangeable part of themselves. The therapist may ask the client to
give a name to the problem, so it is seen as a separate entity, such as ‘anger’ or
‘worry’. The client will then be encouraged to use the given name of the problem
when talking about it, likewise the therapist will ask questions referring to the
problem by the given name. The distance given to the problem allows people to
focus on changing the unwanted behaviors. As people practice externalization, they
will see that they are capable of changing. The general idea being that it is easier to
change a behavior that they do, than to change a core personality characteristic.
They will come to realize that they themselves are not the problem, instead the
problem is the problem.
Reconstructing the Story / Deconstruction
Often, when a client has a problematic story, especially when it has been prevalent for a long time, the
problem can feel overwhelming, confusing, or unsolvable. Because of these feelings, people can use
overgeneralized statements which can make the problematic stories worse.The narrative therapist would
work with the individual to break down, or deconstruct their stories into smaller, more manageable parts
in order to clarify the problem. Deconstructing makes the problems more specific and reduces
overgeneralizing; it also clarifies what the core issue or issues may be. Through deconstructing, the whole
picture becomes easier to understand. The therapist and client may also seek to deconstruct identity and
have an awareness of larger societal issues e.g., sociocultural, and political effects which may be acting on
the client. They may find that the context of gender, class, race, culture, and sexual identity also play a
part in the interpretations and meanings that are given to events.
Unique outcomes
When someone’s problematic stories are well established, people can become stuck in them,
unable to view alternative versions of the story. A narrative therapist will help people to not only
challenge their stories but encourage them to consider alternative stories. Unique outcomes refer
to the exceptions to the dominant story. It may also be known as ‘re-authoring’ or ‘re-storying’,
as clients go through their experiences to find alterations to their story or make a whole new one.
There are hundreds of different stories since everyone interprets experiences differently and find
their own meaning from them. The therapist will help the client to build upon an alternative or
preferred story.
These unique outcomes provide contrast to a problem, reflect a person’s true nature, and allow
someone to rewrite their story.
Building upon stories from another perspective can help to overcome problems and build the
confidence the person needs to heal from them.
Questioning Technique
Narrative questioning has the intent of uncovering meaning and generating experience rather
than creating information, not to gather information but it is to enable the client to experience
some new perspective and to understand the direction in which the client is progressing.
Questions are not are not based on any assumptions.
They Provide the client with an opportunity to understand the different dimension of their
problems
It should not challenge the belief that the client has about his life story, at the same time the
therapist should be able to make him aware that there are other alternative ways of looking at the
problem.
The therapist does not give the client a quick fix solution to his problem, rather he encourages
the client to find some other alternative by asking him appropriate questions.
Alternative Stories and Re-authoring
The process of deconstruction of the stories automatically starts the new stories. The therapist
encourages the new stories that the client wants to come up with. The therapist tries to find out
clues that are opening to new stories and takes the client into that direction.
Documenting the Evidence
This approach believes that the story takes hold only when there is an audience that is
appreciating it. The therapist writes letters to the client regarding his understanding and the
changes that are taking place between the sessions and about the struggle the client is making to
make life more meaningful and to what extent the culture is responsible for it.
The letters written in this way reinforce the carrying the changes from the therapy room to
everyday life. To facilitate the above-mentioned process therapist uses two techniques:
i) poetry and
ii) journal writing
Poetry is a deeper form of the narrative therapy. This creates vivid expressions of the memory of
the client.
The second technique is journal writing. This is done with the intention to slow down the client’s
thought process. The basic belief behind this is, thought and feelings are connected through
words.
Benefits / Components / How effective the narrative therapy is?
● Empowers the individual
As this therapy stresses that people do not label themselves in negative ways (e.g., as the
problem), this can help them to feel less powerless in distressing situations.
They find that they have more control over the stories they have in their lives and how they
approach difficult events.
● Supportive
Narrative therapy treats individuals with respect and supports the bravery it has taken for them
to choose to work through their personal challenges.
● Non-confrontational
This is a non-judgemental approach to therapy, meaning that the clients are not blamed for
anything which is described in their stories. Likewise, the clients are encouraged not to blame
others or themselves. The focus is instead placed on noticing and changing unhelpful stories
about themselves and others.
Client is treated as an expert
Narrative therapy does not aim to change a person, rather it allows them to become an expert in
their own lives. The therapist holds that the clients know themselves well and work as a
collaborative partner with the client. This therapy allows people to not only find their voice but
to use this voice for good, enabling them to become experts and live in a way that reflects their
goals and values.
Context is considered
This therapy may also help the client to view their problems in different contexts. These can be
social, political, and cultural, among others. The clients come to recognize that these contexts
matter and can influence how they view themselves and their stories.
Applications
Narrative therapy may be helpful for treating the symptoms of a variety of conditions, including:
● Anxiety disorders
 ● Depressive disorders
● Eating disorders
● Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder
● Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
● As well as mental health conditions, narrative therapy may also be useful for the
following:
● Those who feel like they are overwhelmed by negative experiences, thoughts, or
emotions.
● Those with attachment issues.
● Those who are suffering with grief.
● Those who have issues with low self-esteem.
● Those who often feel powerless in many situations.
ROLE OF THERAPIS
The success of narrative approach is more dependent on therapist’s skill than on techniques.
• The therapist should be a good facilitator.
• He should be caring towards the client.
• He has to be interested in the client’s stories
• He should be respectfully curious.
• He should not disturb the privacy of the client.
• He should be open to all the stories that come from different clients.
• His qualities such as optimism and respect, or his curiosity and his persistence make a
great difference. It is said that this therapy is effective if the client’s knowledge is valued.
This therapy is a complete collaborative work between client and therapist.
• The therapist does have an authority in the sessions, however he treats the client as expert
of his life
GOALS and STEPS
1. The first goal is to invite people and make them aware about the stories of their life and
facilitate them to share the same with the therapist or the counselor
2. The second goal is to make the client aware of the impact that the culture has on people
living in it. Various aspects of the dominant culture are discussed during the counseling
process.
3. The third goal is to enlarge the perspective of life
4. The fourth goal is to find the alternative to the stories that the client have been holding so
far about their life
STEPS
1. Naming the problem
2. Discussion on the depth and intensity of the problem
The therapist tries to understand how this problem had been disrupting the client’s life,
and how it has been dominating the client’s life. A narrative approach advocates
 externalising the client’s problem by locating it outside the individual and within the
culture. When people are freed from self-blame and guilt, they are more likely to take
responsibility for the effects of the problem. That may lead to assume a position of
resistance and overcoming a problem.
3. To encourage the client to have an alternative way of looking at his story
4. Imaging changed life - think about the future
5. The client is encouraged to create an audience to support the new story
LIMITATIONS
One of the major limitations of narrative therapy is that the research into its effectiveness is still
lacking. Further research is also needed to determine what mental health conditions narrative
therapy might treat most effectively. A reason for a lack of research is that it is still a relatively
new approach to therapy. Another reason could be due to it being difficult to quantify. The view
that narrative therapists have is that knowledge is subjective and constructed by each person.
They accept there is no universal truth, so some narrative therapists make the argument that this
therapy should be studied qualitatively rather than quantitatively