BEYOND TALK THERAPY ALTERNATIVE THERAPIES FOR TEENS - BC Association of Clinical ...
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BEYOND
TALK THERAPY
ALTERNATIVE THERAPIES FOR TEENS
BY DEIRDRE MCLAUGHLIN, RCC
8 BC ASSOCIATION OF CLINICAL COUNSELLORS
W
orking with teens in of the brain that a person wishes to And finally, creative exploration is
the counselling space hold onto. Between the differentiation a feature of the idealism we often see
can be incredibly rich provided by pruning and the linkage from youth — that ability to see beyond
and rewarding — and from myelination, the brain becomes (and challenge!) the status quo and
it also holds its own considerations. more integrated. And integration, imagine what could be.
Beyond basics like whether they’ve according to Siegel, is what allows Why spend so long setting the
come to therapy of their own accord “more intricate functions to emerge — stage simply to discuss alternative
or have been sent by a caregiver, there such as insight, empathy, intuition, and therapies for teens? It’s important to
are other factors to be aware of when morality. A result of this integration is appreciate who we are working with
working with this population. Simply kindness, resilience, and health.”1 so we can understand better ways to
put, teens are their own animal. Their In his work, Siegel puts forth what serve them. What follows are some of
brains are developing in different he calls the ESSENCE of adolescence my favoured approaches to working
ways than younger children or adults. — an acronym that stands for Emotional with teens — and there are many more
This invites counsellors to view them Spark, Social Engagement, Novelty- as well.
through a broader lens and also offers seeking, and Creative Exploration.
the potential for deep discovery and ART THERAPY
Emotional spark refers to the way
insight in therapy. Art therapy is a great go-to with teens.
“emotion generated from sub-cortical
At this age, straight-on talk therapy
areas washes over the cortical circuits of
SETTING THE STAGE can feel too direct. For some, language
reasoning.”2 When we talk about teens
Dr. Daniel J. Siegel, psychiatrist and isn’t a great resource, and talk therapy
and emotions, we often hear stories
founding co-director of the Mindful can be quite demanding in this respect.
about attitude. Viewed from a more
Awareness Research Center at UCLA,
empowering lens, however, emotional
explains the twofold task of the
spark points towards their passion and
adolescent brain as it remodels itself.
idealism.
Its first task is to prune itself. Whereas
Social engagement refers to the
TEENS ARE THEIR
in younger childhood the brain is
absorbing any and all information,
importance of relationships in our lives. OWN ANIMAL.
during adolescence, the brain begins to
During adolescence, this can look like
THEIR BRAINS ARE
turning away from parents and more
differentiate. This is where teens begin
to specialize and find their passion. towards peers. It also highlights how DEVELOPING IN
The second task of the adolescent central relationships are influencing DIFFERENT WAYS
and shaping who we become. Social
brain is myelination. Myelin is the
engagement is an important aspect of
THAN YOUNGER
healthy sheath that allows connected
neurons to communicate with each our sense of connection to the world CHILDREN OR
other in a faster, more efficient and around us.
ADULTS.
coordinated way. Teens can use this Novelty-seeking can certainly be
focused attention to become more problematic for teens: though their
aware of themselves, others, their bodies are strong, they can be at greater
environments, thoughts, and activities. risk for injury and harm. It’s one of the Others are in counselling because their
The potential this offers in counselling reasons getting a driver’s licence is such caregivers want them to be. In those
is vast, as so much of our work with an arduous process and why insurance cases, buy-in is not even a guarantee.
adolescent clients involves supporting rates are higher for new drivers. On Finding common ground and ways
them to expand self-awareness, build the other hand, novelty-seeking is what to establish therapeutic rapport are
interpersonal skills, and connect to their allows teens to move beyond the safe paramount.
meaning and passion. and familiar and into the great unknown Many adolescents also prefer a
This myelination — or linkage, as — an important task in becoming their more casual approach, finding a clinical
Siegel calls it — can reinforce parts own people. setting to be too formal for them to
INSIGHTS MAGAZINE | WINTER 2020 9SOMATIC THERAPY
Somatic therapy is a body-based
PULLING OUT ART SUPPLIES approach to working with clients (soma
CAN HELP TEENS FEEL AT EASE. means body in Latin). In this therapeutic
IT INVITES IMAGINATION, technique, the body is seen as a holder
CREATIVITY, AND PLAY. of information — if you’ve ever heard
the expression “your issues are in your
tissues” it fits here. It’s particularly
useful when working with trauma. There
are certain situations when cognitive
approaches fall short: simply put, one
cannot think their way out of trauma.
When trauma is alive in the body, it
must be resolved in the body.
In situations of dissociation or
disconnect, somatic therapy is a means
by which counsellors can help the client
re-enter their bodies in a safe way. A
guiding principle is that we cannot
change what happened in the past,
relax and feel safe in. Pulling out art there. I made an exception in this case but we can change the way it’s held in
supplies can help teens feel at ease. It because the severity and immediacy the present. And the way we do this is
invites imagination, creativity, and play. of the trauma warranted intervention. twofold: with present-time awareness
And though play sounds like a simple We plodded along, week after week — and relational support.
concept, its effects can be profound. me, trying to build therapeutic rapport Generally speaking, the present
One of the things we can work with and them, steadfastly withdrawn. One moment is safer than the traumatic
in art therapy is implicit rather than week, we did some drawing to explore memories from the past. As
counsellors, we can help clients anchor
explicit processes — the emotional the trauma. What they drew was
themselves in the present moment so
more than the cognitive. In Right- nuanced and expressive, the emotional
they can recognize and distinguish this
Brain Affect Regulation: An Essential communication as clear as a bell. While
from the past. It must be a felt sense:
Mechanism of Development, Trauma, they were drawing, I also drew — a
their body must take in the information
Dissociation, and Psychotherapy, Allan unicorn wearing high heels. For the first
of the now and allow it to update
Schore discusses the dominance of the time, I saw this client laugh, marking
residual fear and trauma still being held
right hemisphere of the brain in “the the beginning of our therapeutic bond.
in the body.
recognition of emotions, the expression Through the lens of Daniel
Another key piece of somatic
of spontaneous and intense emotions, Siegel’s work, what came alive in this
therapy is the relational nature of
and the nonverbal communication of interaction was the client’s emotional trauma. Oftentimes, there was not
emotions.” When we sit down to play
3
spark as they shared their passion for enough (or any) support for the
with our adolescent clients, we come art with me, their social engagement individual when the trauma occurred. A
alongside and communicate indirectly as we connected relationally for the phrase that lends well to the experience
with their emotions. first time, and, of course, their creative is “No map, no help, no exit.” Our
The results are often surprising. One exploration. They wordlessly taught role as counsellors is to help repair
teenage client I worked with had been me what they needed from therapy: that rupture, as we support the client
coming for weeks, quite unwillingly. As an approach that fit their passions and in the present. We do this through
a general rule, I tend to decline working a language through which they could attunement, validation, and mirroring
with clients who do not wish to be express themselves. the client’s words and gestures.
10 BC ASSOCIATION OF CLINICAL COUNSELLORSSomatic therapy lends well to themes their bodies of what feels “just right.”
that can arise for teens, such as bodily Another way to explore boundaries
awareness and boundary support. Growing is with props. I offer them rope and
up, it’s fairly standard for children to be encourage them to create a circle around
given a lot of direction. As they enter themselves, however large or small they
adolescence, they begin to see the world feel it needs to be. Then using other
more through their own eyes. This fits props (pillows, furniture), I encourage
well with Siegel’s pruning concept: rather them to make the boundary as strong or
RESOURCES
than taking in any and all information, as permeable as feels right to them. Then Dr. Daniel Siegel’s work,
teens begin to specialize and find their own we again explore how close feels okay for including articles, videos,
and books:
passions and interests. What helps any of them to have someone approach. During www.drdansiegel.com
us know what matters to us? What rings adolescence, teens often begin to explore
Art therapy content and ideas:
true and what does not? Bodily awareness intimate relationships for the first time. expressiveartworkshops.com;
is essential to this — the ability to check in Whether for this reason or simply to arttherapyblog.com;
thirstyforart.com
the sense of what fits, what feels safe, and practise assertiveness, boundary work can
what inspires us. Some people call this gut be a means for learning about embodiment, SOMATIC RESOURCES
instinct. autonomy, and empowerment. Opening to Grace Somatic
Studies. This is where I received
A FINAL WORD my certification in relational
somatic therapy.
An academic supervisor for my counselling openingtograce.com
SOMATIC THERAPY degree once said to me, “You should be
Lisa Mortimore. Dr. Mortimore
IS A MEANS BY experimenting in therapy.” This surprised has contributed to Insights
magazine in the past and also
me: at the time, I really thought we had
WHICH COUNSELLORS to do things by the book. As open as
offers trainings in somatic
attachment.
CAN HELP THE teens are to novelty-seeking and creative lisamortimore.com/workshops-
training/
CLIENT RE-ENTER exploration, they are among the most
up for experimentation in therapy. Our Trauma Geek: Trauma and
THEIR BODIES IN A adolescent clients are wonderful teachers.
Neurodiversity Education.
This creator generates incredibly
SAFE WAY. In the end, it comes down to safety comprehensive and educational
posts on, among other things,
and rapport. When clients feel safe with somatic therapy tools.
you, they are more likely to trust the facebook.com/TraumaGeek/
As teens move beyond their families therapeutic process. The more we, as
and into broader social connections, clinicians, can abandon our own agendas
understanding boundaries takes on new and show up for what happens in the
REFERENCES
meaning. There are a couple of activities present moment, the more our teen
1 Siegel, D. About Interpersonal
I like to use to help them gain a greater clients will feel seen and respected. And Neurobiology. https://www.
drdansiegel.com/about/
sense of their own personal space. In I might add that it’s better for us, as well. interpersonal_neurobiology/
the first activity, they stand still, and I Curiosity, exploration, and play don’t 2 Siegel, D. The ESSENCE
of Adolescence. https://
gradually approach them. This goes very stop in adolescence. These qualities help www.drdansiegel.com/
slowly so they can continually check in us keep the passion for our work both blog/2014/02/07/the-essence-of-
adolescence/
with their bodies and see how they feel: generative and alive. ■ 3 Schore, A. N. (2009). Right-brain
affect regulation: An essential
Is the person too close? Do I want them mechanism of development,
to come closer? Would I like them to be trauma, dissociation, and
psychotherapy (p. 112–144). In
more to the left or right of me? I encourage Deirdre McLaughlin, RCC, is a counsellor and D. Fosha, D. J. Siegel, & M. F.
sexual health educator living on the unceded Solomon (Eds.), The healing power
teens to get really fussy about their needs of emotion: Affective neuroscience,
traditional land of the Ktunaxa, the Syilx, and the
— oftentimes, a new permission for them. Sinixt peoples. She’s listening and learning every
development and clinical practice.
W. W. Norton & Company.
The goal is for them to get a felt sense in day. www.deirdremclaughlin.ca
INSIGHTS MAGAZINE | WINTER 2020 11You can also read
