Using Metaphors In Psychotherapy

Published in the year 1982, Using Metaphors in Psychotherapy is a valuable contribution to the field of Psychotherapy.

First published in 1995. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

"Approachable and user-friendly." —The Professional Counselor The use of metaphor is central to the implementation of acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) and dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), and is a powerful tool for all practicing psychotherapists. In Metaphor in Practice, psychotherapist Niklas Törneke presents the first practical book to combine the behavioral and linguistic sciences of metaphor, and illustrates how and when to apply metaphors in practice for better treatment outcomes. The use of metaphors and experiential exercises can help clients gain a deeper understanding of the problems that cause their disorders. Metaphors help clients connect with their values, and often spark the inspiration and motivation needed to make a commitment to change. And while metaphor is central to relational frame theory (RFT), acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), and dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), research now shows its usefulness has an even broader reach. In this book, you’ll find a scientific analysis of metaphor based on over thirty years of research, as well as trends in research over the last ten years. The book includes an overview of RFT, how metaphor has influenced the community of behavior analysis, as well as available clinical research on metaphor use. You’ll also discover how to create metaphors for functional analysis, distance of observation, and things that matter to your client. Most importantly, you’ll find practical examples of metaphors and clinical exercises you can use in-session. There are many books on metaphor and psychotherapy, but this is the first book to make the connection between the science of metaphor and the detailed clinical process of using that knowledge. If you are a mental health professional—or simply interested in the science of metaphor—this book will provide everything you need to understand and apply this approach.

This book represents a bold attempt to address contemporary issues in both metaphor and psychotherapy research. On one hand, metaphor research is increasingly concerned not just with describing metaphors in discourse, but how they could be used more adroitly in purposive ‘real world’ contexts such as psychotherapy. On the other hand, while a growing number of mental health professionals believe that metaphors contribute in some way to the psychotherapy process, their ability and willingness to use metaphors might be compromised by a relative unfamiliarity with the various nuanced aspects of metaphor theory. The present analysis of metaphors in authentic psychotherapeutic talk brings these theoretical aspects to the forefront, and suggests how they can be applied to enhance the use of communication of metaphors in psychotherapy. It should be of interest to metaphor researchers, mental health professionals, and discourse analysts in general.

When therapists hear patients talk of feeling "imprisoned," "burning with rage," "trapped," or "unequipped," they are witnessing manifestations of the symbolic attitude, the hallmark of all depth psychology. Most clinicians naturally respond to and use metaphors, but they often fail to understand the full potential of metaphoric images. This volume, in addressing the transforming power of metaphor, demonstrates how clinicians can deepen the therapeutic encounter.

"Oxford Guide to Metaphors in CBT, Building Cognitive Bridges is a remarkable, memorable, and continually fascinating book, one that will be on my repeated reference list for years to come." Robert Leahy, Clinical Professor of Pscyhology in Psychiatry at Well-Comell University Medical College --

Metaphors and exercises play an incredibly important part in the successful delivery of acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT). These powerful tools go far in helping clients connect with their values and give them the motivation needed to make a real, conscious commitment to change. Unfortunately, many of the metaphors that clinicians use have become stale and ineffective. That’s why you need fresh, new resources for your professional library. In this breakthrough book, two ACT researchers provide an essential A-Z resource guide that includes tons of new metaphors and experiential exercises to help promote client acceptance, defusion from troubling thoughts, and values-based action. The book also includes scripts tailored to different client populations, and special metaphors and exercises that address unique problems that may sometimes arise in your therapy sessions. Several ACT texts and workbooks have been published for the treatment of a variety of psychological problems. However, no one resource exists where you can find an exhaustive list of metaphors and experiential exercises geared toward the six core elements of ACT. Whether you are treating a client with anxiety, depression, trauma, or an eating disorder, this book will provide you with the skills needed to improve lives, one exercise at a time. With a special foreword by ACT cofounder Steven C. Hayes, PhD, this book is a must-have for any ACT Practitioner.

An invitation to observe and learn the therapeutic art of storytelling Healing with Stories brings together a stellar collection of some of the world's most prominent practitioners, taking you inside their thinking and processes for working with metaphors. They represent the panorama of metaphor practice in psychotherapy today with considered, humorous, and compassionate case examples that step you through the intricacies for replicating their work in your own. This is a book for family therapists who work with children, adults, and families, as well as for hypnotherapists, cognitive behavioral therapists, narrative therapists, dynamic therapists, solution-focused therapists, and child therapists. In fact, all therapists who wish to communicate their therapeutic messages with the greatest effectiveness will find this book to be an essential and useful clinical tool. Contributors include: * Richard Kopp * Julie H. Linden * Mikaela J. Hildebrandt * Lindsay B. Fletcher * Steven C. Hayes * Michael D. Yapko * Valerie E. Lewis * Gregory Smit * Joy Nel * Christine Perry * Joyce C. Mills * Rubin Battino * Carol A Hicks-Lankton * Wendel A. Ray * Jana P. Sutton * Robert McNeilly * Roxanna Erickson-Klein * Angela Ebert * Hasham Al Musawi * Teresa Garcia-Sanchez * George W. Burns Praise for Healing with Stories "George Burns has done an expert job of compiling a definitive work that demystifies the ever-versatile metaphor. Whether you are a novice or an expert clinician, you will find a treasury of story interventions along with the 'inside scoop' on how each was created and applied to bring success in nineteen unforgettable case chapters. Better yet, you'll be able to create your own healing metaphors thanks to the expert guidance of a wide range of talented storytellers. Don't miss out on this one!" --Maggie Phillips, PhD, author of Finding the Energy to Heal and coauthor of Healing the Divided Self "If you want to be inspired, entertained, and enlightened, Healing with Stories is the book to read. George Burns, a master storyteller, has assembled a creative, diverse group of clinicians to share their ideas about how metaphor can be used with a variety of problems and clients. The result is a fascinating array of insights into metaphor's role in the healing process." --Richard G. Whiteside, MSW, author of Becoming Dragon