Family-Focused Trauma Intervention: Using Metaphor and Play with Victims of Abuse and Neglect »

Family-Focused Trauma Intervention: Using Metaphor and Play with Victims of Abuse and Neglect translates issues central to abuse and neglect recovery into metaphorical stories and family-based interventions, focusing specifically on parent-child interaction and trauma. The stories and interventions reduce troubling symptoms, address family risk and relapse potential, treat cross-generational patterns, and remediate attachment deficits. It is a book for a variety of practitioners, including psychologists, social workers, counselors, and expressive therapists.

Acknowledgments xi

Introduction 1

1 Impact of Trauma and Overview of Treatment 7

FTSD 9

Story: A Bear of a Different Color 11

Treatment Interventions 15

Bear Drawing Activity 15

Bear Body-Tracing Activity 15

Bear Trauma Narrative 15

Alternate Trauma Narrative: A Night at the Movies 16

Changing the Story 17

Handout: Use Your Common Senses 18

Handout: Magic Remote 20

Take-It-Home Discussion Questions 21

Symptoms of PTSD 22

Story: Lucky the Junkyard Dog 23

Treatment Interventions 26

Family Activity: Match Game 26

Parent Group Discussion 26

PTSD Guided Imagery 26

Take-It-Home Discussion Questions 27

Handout: The Lucky Family Match Game 28

Sibling Abuse 29

Story: Stick Together 30

Treatment Interventions 33

Desert and Oasis Activity 33

Take-It-Home Discussion Questions 33

Residual Effects of Trauma 33

Story: Thyme to Heal 35

Treatment Interventions 38

Family Drawing 38

Take-It-Home Discussion Questions 38

2 Eastablishing Appropriate Roles and Boundaries in Families 39

Age-Appropriate Expectations 41

Story: Velma Crowe's Sticky Situation 42

Treatment Interventions 47

Stick, Babies, Stick! 47

Role Reverse (Parenting Group) 47

Bird School for Velma 48

Take-It-Home Discussion Questions 48

3 The Fight of Fight or Flight: Self-Control and Modulation of Affect 49

Self-Control 51

Story: Keep Your Lion on a Leash! 53

Treatment Interventions 56

Lion Drawing Activity 56

Leashing Activity 56

Cool Down the Volcano! 56

Take-It-Home Discussion Questions 58

Power and Control 58

Story: The Nearsighted Tyrant 59

Treatment Interventions 63

Focusing Activity 63

Take-It-Home Discussion Questions 64

4 Reducing Hyperactivity arid Agitation 65

Treatment Interventions 66

The Turtle Technique 66

Up, Up, and Away: Guided Imagery for Stress Reduction 68

Darcie's Dots 69

5 Flight: Avoidance, Withdrawal, and Dissociation 71

Dissociation 72

Story: The Mouse Who Became Invisible 73

Treatment Interventions 76

Speak (Squeak) Up! 76

Take-It-Home Discussion Questions 77

Avoidance and Denial 77

Story: The Hidey Hole 78

Treatment Interventions 80

Buried Secrets 80

Family Mural: Heads in the Holes 80

Take-It-Home Discussion Questions 80

Depersonalization 81

Story: Time for a Thaw 82

Treatment Interventions 84

The Family Berg 84

Take-It-Home Discussion Questions 84

6 Reducing Worry, Fear, and Anxiety 85

Letting Go 86

Story: The Burden Bag 87

Treatment Interventions 90

No Fishing! 90

Take-It-Home Discussion Questions 90

Anxiety Reduction and Containment 91

Story: Wrap It Up! 92

Treatment Interventions 94

Wrap It Up like a Spider 94

The Smooth Stone 94

Handout: Web Worksheet 95

Take-It-Home Discussion Questions 96

7 Disrupted Attachment: Coping with Loss and Renewing Trust 97

Attachment and Trust 99

Story: Run Away Ralph 100

Treatment Interventions 102

Attachment Hide and Seek 102

Very Special Delivery 102

The Power of Attraction 103

Parent Promises 104

Take-It-Home Discussion Questions 105

Building Positive Attachment 105

Treatment Intervention 105

Stick with It! 105

8 Changing Depressed Mood 107

Mood Management 108

Story: The Black Cloud 109

Treatment Interventions 113

Lighten Your Cloud 113

Handout: Cloud Worksheet 114

Take-It-Home Discussion Questions 115

9 Empathy: Caring for Yourself and Others 117

Heartbreak 118

Story: The Girl with the Plastic Heart 119

Treatment Interventions 122

Heart to Heart 122

Walking in Each Other's Shoes 122

Make It Better 123

The Blessing 123

Take-It-Home Discussion Questions 124

10 Responsibility and Accountability 125

Externalizing Blame 127

Treatment Interventions 127

Get Ready to Get Mad! 127

The Mad List 127

Handout: Your Mad List 128

Your Day in Court 129

Handout: Your Day in Court 130

Taking Responsibility 132

Story: No More Blame Game 133

Treatment Interventions 136

Give Up the Game 136

Take-It-Home Discussion Questions 137

Blaming the Victim 137

Story: First Things First 138

Treatment Interventions 140

A Helping Hand 140

Healing a Broken Heart 140

Hamburger Hurter 140

Telling the Child's Story: The Child's Point of View 141

The Transformer 144

Take-It-Home Discussion Questions 145

Handout: What Want Wrong in Our Casserole? 146

11 Safety and Protection 147

Knowing Who to Trust 148

Story: The Hungry Alligator and the Mean Snake 149

Treatment Interventions 152

Safe and Sound 152

Who's Who? 153

Red Light, Green Light 153

DOs and DON'Ts: Family Rules 154

A Day Away from the Zoo 154

Warning! Warning! 155

Take-It-Home Discussion Questions 155

Handout: Family Risk List 157

12 The Family Journey: Pathways to Change 159

Moving in a New Direction 160

Story: Gold in the Desert 161

Treatment Interventions 163

Alphabet Journey 163

Water Out of a Rock 163

The Family Journey Mural 164

Family Match Game 164

Take-It-Home Discussion Questions 165

Handout: Family Match Game 166

13 Coming to Terms with Out-of-Home Care 169

Out-of-Home Placement 170

Story: The Good Enough Elf 172

Treatment Interventions 176

The Send Off 176

Take-It-Home Discussion Questions 176

Impact of Neglect 176

Story: The Bruised Orchid 177

Treatment Interventions 179

Orchid Activity 179

Take-It-Home Discussion Questions 179

14 Self-Acceptance and Hope 181

Lowering Defenses 182

Story: Polly's Plight 183

Treatment Interventions 187

Peeling Your Onion Feelings 187

Peeling Away Memories 187

The Family Cake 187

Handout: The “Onion” Worksheet 188

Handout: Feelings Words 189

A Tough Nut to Crack 190

Take-It-Home Discussion Questions 190

Appendix: Squiggles Stories 191

References 193

Index 197

About the Author 199