Even from a Broken Web: Brief, Respectful Solution-Oriented Therapy for Sexual Abuse and Trauma - Hardcover

O'Hanlon, William Hudson; Bertolino, Bob

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0471194034 ISBN 13: 9780471194033

Publisher: John Wiley & Sons Inc, 1998

Synopsis

"Anger and tenderness—my selves. And now I can believe they breathe in me as angels and not as polarities. Anger and tenderness—the spider’s genius. To spin and weave in one moment anywhere. Even from a broken web." —Adrienne Rich Survivors of sexual abuse often feel at war with certain aspects of themselves or their feelings—anger, fear, sexuality, memory, even physical sensations—the web of self is broken. In solution-oriented therapy for sexual abuse and trauma, the therapist’s task is to help people learn to "spin and weave" at once—to reclaim parts of themselves that they have dissociated, disowned, or devalued as a result of their trauma. Even from a Broken Web gives therapists the tools to help clients spin these disparate fibers into a single resilient thread and weave a new fabric of self in which every aspect of one’s personality is recognized, valued, and cherished. Acclaim for Even from A Broken Web "Bill O’Hanlon and Bob Bertolino have done an excellent job in writing Even from a Broken Web. It is a remarkably lucid, poignant, insightful, and helpful guide for all those, therapists and clients alike, struggling to come to terms with sexual abuse and its sequelae. The authors convey so much—encouragement, excellent information, solutions, tenderness, even humor. I highly recommend this well-written book!" —Stephen Gilligan, author of The Courage to Love

About this title

From the Publisher:

This book outlines a brief, solution-focused approach to treating sexual abuse survivors, providing a clear, accessible guide to using problem-focused/solution-oriented psychotherapy with sexual abuse patients. Most professional books on the treatment of sexual abuse propose long-term models focusing on retrieving and processing memories of abuse. Instead, this book offers a brief, solution-oriented approach to treatment which stresses the present and future. Using stories, analogies, case examples, this accessible manual shows therapists how to apply the powerful and practical solution-oriented approach to the "3-D after-effects of sexual abuse": Dissociation, Disowning, and Devaluing.

From the Inside Flap:

The terrible emotional aftereffects suffered by victims of sexual abuse are well established and, according to conventional therapeutic wisdom, can only be treated through years of traditional therapy using regression and catharsis. Even from a Broken Web offers an effective alternative for clinicians working with these clients—a solution-oriented approach that is respectful, collaborative, flexible, and, in most cases, mercifully brief. Rather than continually revisiting the past and focusing on the problem, Even from a Broken Web proposes a way for sexual abuse victims to move into the present and the future, escaping repetitive patterns of thinking, perception, feeling, action, and interaction. First outlining the "3-D" aftereffects of sexual abuse: Dissociation, Disowning, and Devaluing, Bill O’Hanlon and Bob Bertolino explain three pathways out of these emotional ruts. First, solution-oriented inner work helps clients rediscover aspects of daily experience they have devalued. By imagining themselves thinking, feeling, and doing things in different ways, clients next create a compelling vision of themselves in the future. The final pathway includes identifying and changing existing patterns of thought and behavior. Each of these pathways enables clients to use and develop strengths, skills, and resources they already possess. Once the client discovers these pathways, the journey to solution can be remarkably swift. The process of discovering these abilities requires therapists to work with clients, as opposed to directing them. The authors provide numerous examples of how to practice solution-oriented therapy with individuals, couples, and groups, and they demonstrate how to apply solution-oriented techniques in a variety of situations.

About this edition

• Publisher: John Wiley & Sons Inc
• Publication date: 1998
• ISBN 10: 0471194034
• ISBN 13: 9780471194033
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 191