self expression

Sun Jul 29 20:02:16 CDT 2007

I'm remember, Rebecca, working with the adolescent
treatment team at the psych hospital in Colorado a
couple of years ago--I was given an afternoon a week
with the youth, and each one, as they were able to
relate to the other kids and staff without physical
attacks, had a "sun in the center of my universe" (I
like that!), experience.  They were dealing with
mind-stopping traumas, and I was humbled by their
ability to make use of the drama and relate then to
peers and the counselors from a clear and genuine
place.  Sometimes it was the turning point, and the
ability held through the next weeks for them,
sometimes it was only a few days.  Nonetheless, the
adolescent team, the kids, and I felt it was more than
worth the effort.  I liked working with that unit. 
Now...the Adult unit!  I'm enjoying this conversation,
and it is making me think about what it is we are
doing with open groups.  Georgia
--- HV Psychodrama <hvpi at hvc.rr.com> wrote:

> I am remembering a group in which a very disturbed
> man was the group chosen 
> protagonist. I did a simple social atom with him. He
> adored being the 'sun 
> in the center of by universe" and had the chance to
> be the center of 
> attention is a spontaneous and unpathological way.
> It shifted the way the 
> group saw him. I see that in the children with whom
> I work. I have also seem 
> people labeled sociopathic respond well to the
> gentle confrontation from 
> being appropriately doubled.
>   Sociometry plays a big part in this. There is a
> lot of healing as people 
> 'work through' their sociometric challenges.
> Pathological self expression 
> can shift into more spontaneous self expression. The
> big problem is with 
> such short treatment models there isn't time to
> discover and uncover a good 
> deal of the less obvious sociometric connections and
> fissures, let alone 
> intervene.
>       Last Wednesday was the first time in years
> where we had several girls 
> on the adolescent unit who had been there long
> enough to develop some trust 
> with me and with other.  They had been terribly
> destructive with one another 
> as only young adolescent girls can be, jockeying for
> who is in and who is 
> out, being brutally 'self expressive'. By the end of
> some sociodrama and 
> some sociometry ( who do you trust and why..who do
> you wish trusted you more 
> and why...) we ended up with some heart felt
> recognition of hurtful 
> behavior, apologies and a commitment to dealing
> differently (with more 
> spontaneity) than before. I will find out in a few
> days if it worked.
> 
> 
> 
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "georgia rigg" <georgiaarigg at yahoo.com>
> To: "HV Psychodrama" <hvpi at hvc.rr.com>; "Erica
> Hollander" 
> <ericahollander at comcast.net>;
> <list at grouptalkweb.org>
> Sent: Sunday, July 29, 2007 6:48 PM
> Subject: Re: self expression
> 
> 
> > Hi Rebecca, Erica, Adam, and all, I ask us to
> consider
> > the concept of empathy in this as well.  What is
> the
> > purpose of self-expression?  To be more of the
> group?
> > To be more separate from the group?  To be
> included
> > and appreciated in the group as a Self?  How many
> of
> > us have had the experience of (I like this term!),
> > pathological self epression--realizing that we
> felt
> > very low empathy for the person, as did the group,
> and
> > the person did not notice the lack of connection. 
> I
> > think a lot in terms of my blend of psychodrama
> and
> > psychomotor therapy, and contact with other humans
> is
> > a vital ingredient in anything I do.  Georgia
> > --- HV Psychodrama <hvpi at hvc.rr.com> wrote:
> >
> >> Dear Erica,
> >>     I think you are articulating this very well.
> I
> >> also deal with some very
> >> disturbed people whose 'self expression' has been
> >> extremely damaging to
> >> others. If we take into account the concept of
> >> spontaneity things get
> >> clearer. Spontaneity is something we
> >> psychodramatists value highly. So is
> >> self expression. But just as there can be
> >> pathological spontaneity, which I
> >> suspect likes a lot like impulsiveness, there can
> be
> >> pathological self
> >> expression.
> >> Rebecca
> >> ----- Original Message ----- 
> >> From: "Erica Hollander"
> <ericahollander at comcast.net>
> >> To: <list at grouptalkweb.org>
> >> Sent: Sunday, July 29, 2007 6:19 PM
> >> Subject: self expression
> >>
> >>
> >> > Adam and others,
> >> > As to what I had in mind when mentioning that
> some
> >> self expression
> >> > can be destructive, I was thinking of the
> horrible
> >> shooting at the
> >> > Governor's mansion in CO last week.  A young
> man
> >> walked in in a tux,
> >> > declared himself Emperor, and threatened the
> use
> >> of a gun several
> >> > times.  He was killed by security officers. 
> Just
> >> an example.
> >> > Adam, I do not disagree with anything you say,
> >> but do not find it
> >> > answers my query.  Do you agree that self
> >> expression is generally a
> >> > good thing in therapy?  I think most of us
> would.
> >> But I am not at
> >> > all sure that affirmation from others is all
> that
> >> that is about.
> >> > Clearly it is about that sometimes.  I don't
> know
> >> quite what I am
> >> > looking for by way of an answer, but something
> >> seems lacking still.
> >> > I guess you could also say that helping others
> is
> >> therapeutic or
> >> > behaving well is therapeutic or doing good is
> >> therapeutic, or that
> >> > prayer is therapeutic, or meditation, and maybe
> >> all those things are,
> >> > but isn't self expression the very basic idea
> that
> >> we work toward in
> >> > psychodrama all the time?  And it has its
> limits,
> >> in evil, in
> >> > maladaptive behaviors, as we are saying.  But
> is
> >> self expression not
> >> > what we are after when we say "stay a half step
> >> behind the
> >> > protagonist"?  We are looking to the process to
> >> free the person
> >> > inside the problem from the problem in a sense.
> >> So we have some
> >> > faith in the notion that the person within will
> be
> >> healthy if
> >> > expressed.  That isn't always the case, as
> Georgia
> >> points out.  Yet I
> >> > have found in my work with sex offenders that I
> >> have no more reason
> >> > to worry about their self expression in the
> group
> >> than in any other
> >> > groups I work with.    Perhaps I am not
> >> articulating this well.
> >> > Muddling through.  erica
> >> >
> >> >
> >> >
> >> >
> >> > Grouptalk mailing list
> >> > List at grouptalkweb.org
> >> >
> >>
> >
>
http://grouptalkweb.org/mailman/listinfo/list_grouptalkweb.org
> >> >
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >> Grouptalk mailing list
> >> List at grouptalkweb.org
> >>
> >
>
http://grouptalkweb.org/mailman/listinfo/list_grouptalkweb.org
> >>
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
>
____________________________________________________________________________________
> > Get the free Yahoo! toolbar and rest assured with
> the added security of 
> > spyware protection.
> >
>
http://new.toolbar.yahoo.com/toolbar/features/norton/index.php
> 
=== message truncated ===

____________________________________________________________________________________
Get the Yahoo! toolbar and be alerted to new email wherever you're surfing.
http://new.toolbar.yahoo.com/toolbar/features/mail/index.php