Service Description

Erving Polster wrote a book entitled, Every Person's Life is Worth A Novel (1987). He recognized that in therapy, the story of each person's life held all the elements of a gripping novel. He writes that there is a healing effect from a person learning how remarkably interesting his life's journey has been. Laura Perls changed his title for a lecture she presented at the New York Institute in 1988, "Every Novel is a Case History". When Felicia began writing life narratives with her child clients, she talked with Erv Polster who graciously agreed for her to adapt his title. This workshop gratefully honors an inspiring Gestalt mentor. After over 30 years as a child therapist, I have found that one of the most profound healing effects in therapy is in co-writing with a child a cohesive story of her life or a life experience. The findings of neurobiology and research in attachment theory confirm and inform this approach, as well as narrative theory and traditional storytelling. The collaborative process moves the child toward greater neural integration and a sense of stability and well-being in the child’s life. When a therapist writes a child's life narrative, he works closely with a child and the creativity of both result in an emotionally rich and coherent story. Participants will learn the fundamentals of storytelling and biography and will have the opportunity to practice the process of authoring a child's narrative. Presenter: Felicia Carroll, LMFT, RPT-S Location: Solvang, CA CE: 15 contact hours Learning Objectives Participants completing this workshop will be able to: ● Describe the importance of a child having a life narrative that supports healthy integration ● Identify three purposes in writing a life narrative in healing trauma, developing an integrated sense of self, and providing meaning and closure to difficult life circumstances; ● Apply strategies and resources in co-creating and writing a life narrative with a child ● Write a narrative of one child client of their choosing.