sessions | psychotherapy

HOW SESSIONS WORK

1:1 sessions are 50 minutes long.

Group sessions are 1,5 hours to 2 hours long.

My practice is based in London Bridge, Shoreditch and Wapping close to the City of London ('the square mile' - financial district).

The therapy is entirely ‘client-lead’ meaning the therapist is always following the clients needs at every moment. Clients are always given a free choice of whether to engage in specific ways of working.

The Creative Arts Therapist works with the clients through the art form using role-play, story enactment, Story Building (6 Part story Method), Forum Theatre, Playback Theatre and Laban Techniques.

Drawing and art making as well as movement and playing of instruments and talking as therapy, can all be included.

Every session has a beginning, middle and end which is clearly marked and the therapist will prepare clients to come back into everyday life before leaving the session.

As a state registered therapist and NHS contracted, I am registered with the HCPC and BADth; which means I am governed by these bodies respective codes of ethics and confidentiality and work within these standards.

Terminology and methods explained:

Story Enactment

Among the processes and techniques dramatherapy employs are improvisation, theatre games, storytelling, and enactment. Many dramatherapists use text, performance, or ritual to enhance the therapy.

The ancient Greeks used drama for catharsis. As anyone who has acted knows, theatre can tap into emotions, build self esteem, and reduce feelings of isolation; but drama therapy takes those emotional gains to another level. It uses drama and theatre processes intentionally to achieve therapeutic goals. These can include symptom relief, emotional and physical integration, improvement of interpersonal skills and relationships, and personal growth.

Story enactment with Dramatherapy has been used in a wide array of settings, including mental health facilities, schools, hospitals, substance abuse treatment centers, correctional facilities, adolescent group homes, nursing homes, housing projects, and theaters, among others.

Playback Theatre

An original form of improvisational theatre where an audience or members of a group tell stories of their lives and watch them enacted on the spot.

Playback Theatre has the power to enable dialogue, generate empathy, and build bridges of understanding between people; a powerful tool for affirming life experiences and building community. It is a vehicle for promoting the unheard voice, active participation and empathy. Playback Theatre allows a high degree of sensitivity to the needs of any specific group.

6 Part Story Method

Participant follows instructions to draw a story in 6 parts, then tell it aloud. Final questions follow to elaborate details

My assumption is that by telling a projected story based on the elements of fairytale or myth, I may be able to see the way the self projects itself in organised reality in order to meet the world.” (Lahad, 1992)

Forum Theatre

A technique pioneered by Brazilian radical Augusto Boal. A play or scene, usually indicating some kind of oppression, is shown twice. During the replay, any member of the audience (‘spect-actor’) is allowed to shout ‘Stop!’, step forward and take the place of one of the oppressed characters, showing how they could change the situation to enable a different outcome. Several alternatives may be explored by different spect-actors. The other actors remain in character, improvising their responses. A facilitator (Joker) is necessary to enable communication between the players and the audience.
The strategy breaks through the barrier between performers and audience, putting them on an equal footing. It enables participants to try out courses of action which could be applicable to their everyday lives.

Laban Technique

Laban Movement Analysis is based on the work of Rudolf von Laban (1879-1958). Rudolf von Laban was a man of many trades namely dance, visual art, theater and research. In general, he was grossly interested in the human body and human movement. Laban’s students created LMA from his life’s research and writings about these two topics. As Carol-Lynne Moore (2009b) states, “Laban Movement Analysis (LMA) is a tool that can be used to refine awareness of movement, to describe actions objectively, and to encourage conscious reflection on the meaning of this dynamic dimension of human behaviour.” (p. 35) Laban’s work has given us a taxonomy to use when talking about human movement. His work has solidified concepts about movement that may seem hard to talk about. Movement, after all, is something we ALL do, but we often do it without much thought.