Difficulties or Stressors Strengths or Areas of Resilience Family • Often angry with children and
husband
• Believes she’s no longer a good mother
• Husband works long hours
• Mainly responsible for children and home
• Stable, long-term marriage
• Caring parent
• Previously engaged in children’s activities
• Maintains household routines
• Provides stable home for family, last year able to care for sick child
• Parents live nearby, good relationship
• In-laws live nearby, good relationship Friends and
Social Contacts • Shy• Currently avoiding friends
• Small group of close, long-term friends
Recreation &
Organizations • No hobbies • Enjoyed organizing school play last year
Difficulties or Stressors Strengths or Areas of Resilience Work or
School • Dreading work
• New school, avoiding interaction with other teachers
• Avoiding afterschool activities
• Grade four teacher (indicates completed undergraduate and graduate training)
• Previously enjoyed work
• Enjoyed colleagues at previous job
• Participated in afterschool activities (school play)
Health • Daughter has history of ear infections, not currently a problem
• Own health is good
• Does not use alcohol or drugs as coping mechanism
• Daughter’s ear difficulties have resolved
Finances • Earns less than her husband and consequently feels guilty about asking for help
• Earns a regular salary
• Has a job with benefits
• No particular financial stress Changes • Change in school
• Longer commute
• Mother-in-law no longer babysits
• Some health problems with her daughter
• Genia, her best friend, moved away
• Despite all of the changes maintaining a stable home
• Responsible teacher
• Organized babysitting
• Recognized difficulties and coming for therapy
Often in the beginning of therapy, clients are very hesitant to notice their strengths. In the next few chapters we’re going to talk more about how to use your clients’ strengths. Before we continue, ask yourself: how did thinking about Suzanne’s problems using the different categories affect your under- standing of her problems and strengths? What was it like to consciously notice her strengths?
Agenda Item #5: Meet Raoul
It’s now time to meet the second client we will be following throughout the book, Raoul.
Raoul is fifty-eight and lives with his wife in a medium-size city. He has three grown children who all live about an hour’s drive away. For the past twenty years he has worked at the same job as a govern- ment employee in the tax department. His daughter was home for a visit and noticed that he did not seem like himself. He told her that he was not sleeping well and was pretty anxious about work. She suggested that he see a therapist, and he reluctantly agreed. His daughter called and made an appoint- ment for him.
Raoul introduced himself to his therapist with a formal handshake and gave his full name. He walked slowly into the room and lowered himself onto the couch with effort. He gave a small smile and said it was his daughter’s idea that he come. His therapist asked how she could help him. Raoul explained that in the past he has had periods when he felt depressed, but he was always able to get over them on his own. Lately he was depressed again, and things were not going well at work. To better understand Raoul’s concerns, his therapist used Questions to Explore Your Client’s Problems. Raoul said that his problems had started when a younger man was promoted to the job that should have been his. He explained in some detail how unfair the hiring process had been. Since then, he said, he has been having difficulty concentrating at work, and for the first time ever, he recently received a poor work evaluation. He is worried about the work evaluation and what the consequences would be if he receives another one. He stressed that for the past twenty years he has only received good year-end evaluations.
Since the poor work evaluation there has been some tension with his boss. His therapist asked for examples of situations with his boss that were difficult, or projects where he was having difficulty con- centrating. Raoul had trouble giving specific examples of tension with his boss but was able to list the projects on which he was procrastinating.
Raoul’s therapist asked about other aspects of his life, but he was very hesitant to talk about any- thing but his problems at work. Everything else was “fine.” He reported that he and his wife “have no problems.” He occasionally has a couple of beers when he goes out, but otherwise doesn’t drink. He said his health was good. He told his therapist that he was usually shy, but for the past five years he has been part of a bowling league, which his wife had encouraged him to join. His therapist assumed that as therapy progressed and Raoul learned to trust her, she would find out more about the other areas of his life. For the time being, she thought it would be helpful to focus on his work difficulties.
Raoul and his therapist made the following list of problems he wanted to work on:
1. Feeling anxious
2. Not completing projects on time 3. Sleeping poorly
4. Tension with his boss