Narrative Therapy

Narrative therapy is an evidence-based psychotherapy that empowers you to view yourself as distinct from your troubles and other self-destructive behaviors. It enables you to become the expert on your life and emphasizes the story you have to tell.

Originally developed in the 1980s by Michael White and David Epston, narrative therapy allows you to rewrite your story in a manner that fosters healing and growth. For instance, if a person sees themselves as being broken, this therapy allows them to rewrite their view to cultivate self-care and resilience. This is how it reshapes identity.

Some of the benefits of narrative therapy are:

You as the Expert:

Your therapist will create an environment where your agency as the expert and author of your own life is welcomed and celebrated.

Respect:

You feel respected and supported when handling personal problems.

Empowerment:

You develop a sense of control by realizing you are not defined by your troubles.

Contextual Awareness:

It puts your story in a context whereby you appreciate how the social, cultural, and political parameters impact your stories.

Non-Blaming:

You can change unhelpful narratives without judgment or blame.

Better Problem-Solving:

Enhances resilience and problem-solving skills by equipping you with new perspectives and insights.

Growth and Development:

Fosters personal growth by challenging unreasonable, growth-restrictive beliefs.

Elevating Mood:

Enhances your mood by re-framing unhelpful stories.

Increased Life Satisfaction:

Positively changes life stories in the journey toward meaning and fulfillment.

Narrative therapy uses several techniques to help the person reframe their experience and learn to live beyond problematic stories:

1. Putting Together Your Narrative:

The therapist collaborates with you to explore the events of your life and the meaning you have attached to those events. As you step back and observe these events from a third person’s perspective, you will find that there are dominant narratives holding you back.

2. Externalizing the Problem:

This technique separates you from the problem, enabling you to view yourself as a separate entity from your problems. For example, by naming anxiety as "Mr. Not Welcome," it helps you to understand that the problem is not you and it is not permanent. This is a powerful tool as you move toward change.

3. Deconstruction:

Your therapist will break down overwhelming stories or narratives into smaller and clearer components to highlight the root of the problems. This provides you with clarity by avoiding overgeneralizing challenges, making them easier to deal with. Deconstruction also considers sociocultural factors like gender, race, and culture that impact the context of your story.

4. Unique Outcomes:

Also known as "re-authoring," this approach will allow you to discover alternatives to your dominant stories. By considering these other stories, you will be able to rewrite your story in a manner that is more positive and indicative of who you really are.

Narrative therapy holds promise in treating mental health conditions and emotional challenges. It can be particularly useful in the following areas:

• Anxiety disorders
• Major depressive disorder
• Bipolar disorders
• Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)
• Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
• Eating disorders
• Grief and loss
• Insecure attachment

Beyond mental health, this kind of therapy can be useful if you are feeling overwhelmed by negative thoughts, emotions, or experiences. It can also help those struggling with low self-esteem or feelings of powerlessness to regain control by reshaping how they view themselves and their circumstances.

When it comes to narrative therapy, life events are viewed as stories that shape our identities. In that aspect, some stories take precedence over others in the journey that is life. Sometimes, negative events can define a person’s identity, leading to emotional and behavioral problems. This therapy seeks to rewrite these events by finding buried stories related to principles, strengths, and goals.

During therapy, you will be encouraged to consider yourself as the expert on your life. Narrative therapy does not advise; it facilitates a deeper understanding of yourself and life. Together, you and your therapist will explore and bring out those buried narratives, such as your skills, hopes, dreams, and goals, that actually define who you are as a person rather than your troubles.

In this collaborative environment, you will learn to re-author your story and change limiting beliefs. You can open new doors to living a life you want to embrace.

Narrative therapy has shown great promise in treating a broad spectrum of mental health conditions and everyday struggles. One study reported that participants who received this therapy experienced an improved quality of life and decreased symptoms of anxiety or major depression.

Another research demonstrated that it improved empathy, problem-solving skills, and social behavior among children. This therapy has also been used in marital relationships to enhance intimacy levels and marital satisfaction, as revealed by the research conducted on married women.

A study involving group narrative therapy showed a notable reduction in ADHD symptoms among girls, which was sustained after treatment.

While more research is needed to understand the full scope of what this kind of therapy can do, these findings do indicate that it can be a very useful tool in mental health treatment.

If you or a loved one is considering narrative therapy, it is a unique approach to therapy/counseling. Getting started with narrative therapy will require you to find a licensed mental health practitioner who has received advanced training in the therapy. This may be tricky, especially if it is your first time.

At the NuView Treatment Center, we offer narrative therapy for a broad spectrum of mental health challenges. When you reach out to us, our team will seek to understand your background, challenges, needs, and goals so as to connect you with a narrative therapist who is best aligned with your expectations and journey.

Q1. Is narrative therapy CBT?

No, narrative therapy is different from cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). The latter seeks to identify and change maladaptive thinking patterns that have an adverse impact on emotions and behaviors. The former seeks to reshape negative, overwhelming life stories.

Q2. What are the 5 steps of Narrative Therapy?

The five key steps of the therapy are:

• Putting together your narrative
• Externalizing the problem
• Deconstruction
• Increased interpretation skills
• Unique outcomes

Q3. What is a Narrative Therapy approach?

This kind of a therapeutic approach emphasizes storytelling, treating you as the author/expert of your own life. By reshaping and rebuilding unhelpful narratives, you can journey toward a fulfilling life by removing those beliefs that are limiting to you.