Narrative Therapy

We all have grown up listening to many stories since our childhood—stories about superheroes, kings and queens, fairies, Santa, etc. We have believed in them and, at times followed them, and these stories have at some level altered our way of seeing the world. We all have different stories for different events of our lives whether it’s about, our first encounter with school, our first job, our first relationship, our first travelling experience, and a lot more. These stories are what are called narratives in this therapy. But the question is, do these stories have any relevance in the light of therapy? Let us see by understanding narrative therapy.

Narrative therapy is a relatively new kind of psychotherapy. It was first introduced by therapists Michael White and David Epston in the 1980s. The core of this therapy lies in the life events of people. It believes that people are experts in their own lives and they can live meaningful lives by creating stories about their lives based on their competencies, abilities, values, and faith and by separating their problems from their lives. What exactly are narratives? It means events in people’s lives that are linked together in a sequence according to the plot. People weave events of their lives together to form a story with a certain meaning attached to it.

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Purpose

The purpose of narrative therapy is to help people understand the interpretations they make of their stories. What we make out of our life experiences has a lasting impact on our cognition, emotion, and behaviour. There is not a single narrative that is linked with people’s identities, rather different kinds of narratives are at work. Some narratives help people grow in their lives, while others are unhealthy and can become a cause of distress for people. Thus, the main goal of this therapy is to help individuals understand that they can limit the problems of their lives by creating alternative stories and dealing with their life problems more constructively. According to David and Michael, this therapy is based on three primary ideas:-

1. It views the client as an expert,
2. It is a non-judgemental therapy,
3. It is respectful towards the client.

Techniques:

1) Telling one’s story: this is the first step towards healing. Here, the client is supposed to tell his/her story in their own words. The idea is for the client to author their life stories so that, they can give new meanings, and form new identities. As the story is completed, both the therapist and client work in a collaborative way to find the problematic events.

2) Externalization: It is a technique where the therapist helps the client to understand that their problems are not within themselves rather they are external events that can be controlled. It can help the client to develop a positive identity and develop their self-confidence.

3) Deconstruction: It is a process where the therapist breaks down the client’s problems into chunks so that he/she can easily understand the complete picture. It helps in understanding clearly where the exact problem lies and makes it more specific.

4) Unique Outcome: This technique is used when the clients fail to address their issues constructively. The idea is for the clients to re-author their life stories and to change their perspectives. Its goal is to help the client create a story they like and move away from the one that is holding them back.

Areas where Narrative therapy can help

This therapy is for anyone who feels that their problems have overpowered them. The idea is to not see themselves as the problem but rather change their thinking pattern to a more positive way so that they can change their external conditions. Following are the areas where narrative therapy can be used:-

• Grief
• Anxiety and depression
• Attachment issues
• Post-traumatic stress disorder
• Eating disorders
• Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder
• Low self-esteem
• Negative experiences, thoughts, or emotions
• Relationship issues
• Childhood traumas
• Addiction Problems
• Coping difficulties
• Difficulty in managing emotions
• In increasing the Self-Compassion of individuals

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Narrative Therapy and Research

Since this is relatively a new therapy, it still needs comprehensive research but the following studies have shown the effectiveness of this therapy:

• This therapy has shown that it is quite helpful in maintaining relationship dynamics and intimacy of couples. (khodabaksh et al.,2015).
• It has also shown significant improvements in depression and anxiety issues in adults (Shakeri et al., 2020).
• One study found that it has helped children with Autism to manage their emotional and behavioural symptoms (Cashin et al., 2013).
• In one study it was shown that it helped in improving school behavior of a small sample of girls with ADHD (Looyeh et al.,2012).

In conclusion, narrative therapy can help people believe in their abilities rather than in the problems created by the consequences. It helps people become the heroes of their lives rather than victims. Its purpose is to help people externalize their problems rather than internalize them. It respects the individual experiences of people and is a non-judgemental space for people. As Michael White and David Epston said “ the problem is the problem, the person is not the problem.” It’s time to ask ourselves, What’s my story? This will help us move away from our past and create a meaningful present and future.

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