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by Dr.Meghna varma
The Power of Story: Narrative Therapy
“What is your story?”
Has anybody ever asked you this question? What would your answer be? In the narrative of your life story, how do you see yourself - as a victim or as a hero?
Have you realised that how you tell your story changes depending on your current mood, who is asking and whether you see yourself as being in the beginning, middle or end of the most important aspect or story of your life?
The crux of narrative therapy lies in nding meaning & understanding ourselves better to uncover opportunities of hope & growth.
In narrative therapy, it's not about thoughts & changing thought patterns like in CBT or positive thinking. It's about engaging with people about what they nd meaningful & what they value in their lives..
Developed in 1980s by Micheal White & David Epston, it is still a less common method of leading patients towards healing & personal development. The basic premise behind this theory is that problems are problems, people are not problems. This therapy views people as whole & functional individuals who seek to bring about a change in their thought patterns & behaviour
Conditions Narrative Therapy can help with:
Narrative therapy is an excellent option for anyone who feels overwhelmed by negative thoughts, emotions or experiences. It allows you to nd your voice, to explore & understand yourselves better & live in a way that reects your goals & values.
It can help you effectively deal with the following mental health issues:
- Anxiety
- Attachment issues
- Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
- Depression
- Eating disorders
- Grief
- Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
Common Techniques of Narrative Therapy
Creating a Narrative:
Narrative therapy is based on the philosophy that we make meaning & nd purpose through storytelling. Allowing the individual to put together a narrative or story helps them discover meaning, end healing & create an identity.
Externalization:
This technique allows the individual to view his or her problems as external rather than an unchangeable part of himself or herself. The idea behind this technique is that it is much easier to change a certain behaviour than to change a core personality trait.
Deconstruction:
This involves breaking down the problems into more specic components so as to gain better clarity of the core issues that are troubling the individual. Deconstruction helps understand the root cause of the problem making it easier to resolve it.
Unique Outcomes:
Like a book that swaps viewpoints from one character to another, our life has multiple threads of narratives with different perspectives, points of interest & areas of focus. This technique focuses on storylines different from the one holding the source of the problems. It is simply a technique of reimagining the problem.
