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Two Approaches To Adlerian Brief Therapy - Buncombe County ...

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Therapist: Start at the worst possible place.<br />

<strong>Adlerian</strong> <strong>Brief</strong> <strong>Therapy</strong> 16<br />

Client: Well, I’m an old lady. I guess that’s as bad as you can get.<br />

I . . . [She starts with almost a depressing voice, in a monotone as if<br />

she is playing a tape. I want a shift in her awareness immediately,<br />

and I want to engage her, make contact, in a different manner.]<br />

Therapist: You know the problem is not that you are an old lady. The<br />

Client: Forty-five<br />

problem is that you are older than you want to be at this<br />

time. How old do you want to be?<br />

Therapist: Forty-five: one of my favorite years too. What was good<br />

about 45 for you?<br />

Client: Well, I don’t really know. I just said that. I guess I was kind<br />

of at peace with myself at that time when I think back on it.<br />

I was a school counselor and enjoying it. I loved the kids,<br />

and they loved me. I felt like I had a great life.<br />

Therapist: Okay, so regardless of what else might have been going on,<br />

there was contentment, and you knew what you were doing,<br />

so you had a sense of being capable. You had a sense of<br />

being useful and important and doing things of value and<br />

you knew how to do them. Comfort. Nice. So what is<br />

keeping that from happening now?

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