Roger Lowe

Exploring the Potential of Constructionist Therapy: Deaf Clients, Hearing Therapists and a Reflecting Team

This article explores the use of constructionist therapy with a reflecting team of hearing therapists seeing deaf clients. Using findings from two in-depth interviews, postsession reflections and a review of the literature, we propose that this model has the potential to cater to the diversity of the lived experiences of deaf people and also to address issues of power and tensions between medical, social, and cultural models of deafness. The interviews found there was real value in sharing multiple perspectives between the reflecting team of hearing therapists and these deaf clients. In addition, the clients reported feeling safe and comfortable with this model of counseling. Other information that emerged from the interviews supports previous findings regarding consistency in interpreting and the importance of hearing therapists having an understanding of the distinctions between Deaf and hearing worlds. As the first investigation of its kind in Australia, this article provides a map for therapists to incorporate reflecting teams with interpreters, deaf clients, and hearing therapists. The value of this article also lies in providing a much needed platform for future research into counseling outcomes and the efficacy of this constructionist model of therapy.

Breathwork: An additional treatment Option for depression and anxiety?

Breathwork is an increasingly popular experiential approach to psychotherapy based on the use of a specific breathing technique, however, claims of positive mental health outcomes rely on anecdotal clinical evidence. To ascertain the likely efficacy of breathwork this review clarifies the approach and its theoretical assumptions and examines relevant empirical research relating to breathing inhibition, suppression of inner experience, and possible neurological and physiological effects. Additionally, research into mindfulness-based psychotherapy and yoga breathing-based interventions with comparable features to breathwork are examined. Findings suggest qualified support for the key theoretical assumptions of a three component breathwork model, referred to as Integrative Breathwork Therapy (IBT), and its possible utility in the treatment of anxiety and depression. Further research aimed at exploring specific efficacy of this approach for these disorders may yield a useful additional treatment option utilising a different process of change to existing treatments.

Narrative Therapy with Young People: An Introduction to Concepts and Practice

This paper introduces the major concepts and practices of narrative therapy in work with children and adolescents. Drawing on archaeological and narrative metaphors, the principal concepts of externalizing conversations and reauthoring are explained. These concepts are used to derive the main tools of narrative therapy, the formulation of different types and sequences of questions. Two problem areas are used to provide extended examples of a narrative orientation with young people: Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and young peoples struggles with parents over issues of adolescence. Prospects for the relationship between narrative therapy and psychology are discussed.