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Recognising and Defeating the Multi-Headed Hydra of Negative Self-Narrative: The Punitive Superego
Date and time
Location
Novotel Christchurch Cathedral Square
52 Cathedral Square Christchurch, Canterbury 8011 New ZealandRefund Policy
Description
HYDRA LERNAIA (Lernaean Hydra) was a gigantic, nine-headed water-serpent, which haunted the swamps of Lerna. Lerna was reputed to be an entrance to the Underworld. Hercules was sent to destroy her as one of his twelve labours, but for each of her heads that he decapitated, two more sprang forth. So with the help of his faithful servant Iolaus, he burned away the heads of the Hydra, and buried the ninth, or immortal one, under a huge rock.
Whether we call it negative self-narratives, negative self-schemas, the punitive superego (PSE) or the Hydra, it has many heads and all are destructive. It lurks in the shadows of our patients' minds, hard to see directly, but easy to see for it's effects: a "stuck" therapy, where the patient barely or doesn't progress and the therapist can often feel helpless, frustrated and/or defeated.
As therapists we need to be able to identify, in the moment-to-moment interaction with our patients, the heads of the Hydra; the particular negative ideas that each head feeds our patients. From self-criticism, to self-neglect, self-sacrifice, self-denial, self-attack and more; each head has a different theme, reflects a different aspect of our patients' early attachment patterns, and has different impacts on the lives of our patients. We need to be able help patients recognise the Hydra, examine the utility of each of it's heads, and, if they decide they no longer want to be dominated by the Hydra, help our patients to decapitate each head and to cauterise the wound to prevent regeneration.
In this workshop we will focus on the Heads of the Hydra:
- Recognising when the patient is dominated by the Hydra
- Identifying the different heads of the Hydra
- Understanding the lies the Hydra tells our patients (Patients typically believe these "lies")
- Helping the patient gain some reflective space to accurately observe the Hydra
- Developing the interventions to help the patient question the utility of the Hydra
- Building self-care within the patient
- Creating an alliance with the patient against the Hydra
- Defeating the Hydra
This workshop will demonstrate interventions using video recordings from actual therapy sessions. Therefore, all participants must be registered/licensed mental health professionals.
Workshop commences at 9.00am Friday 7th September. Please arrive at least 30 minutes early to ensure you can complete Sign In.
Arrival tea/coffee, morning tea, lunch and afternoon tea will be provided on each day.
Refunds are not available after 31st August 2018.
Hercule et l'Hydre de Lerne, Gustav Moreau, 1876.
The work of art depicted in this image and the reproduction thereof are in the public domain worldwide. The reproduction is part of a collection of reproductions compiled by The Yorck Project. The compilation copyright is held by Zenodot Verlagsgesellschaft mbH and licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License.
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Dr Stephen Arthey is a clinical psychologist. He practices and provides training and supervision in ISTDP. Dr. Arthey has presented numerous workshops, both nationally and internationally, and published articles on theory, training and research in ISTDP.