I have been using the MOL in individual therapy with a 53-year-old man.
I have been audio taping all sessions so far and intend to transcribe
them.
Some impressions so far:
1. The original plan of taping only the MOL sections did not work out.
It was easier to just let the tape recorder run for about 45 minutes per
session.
2. I feel that we have made a good deal of progress in only a few
sessions. More importantly, so does the patient.
3. The background issue may become evident through nonverbal behavior.
As this man was talking about abuse experiences by his uncle, he
pinched his earlobe until it bled and became aware of choking the
microphone. This helped him become aware of the anger he felt towards
his uncle. He started off the session by commenting that he was not
angry at his uncle.
4. The man talked about feeling as though we were going in circles and
hoped that I could make sense of it. This made me think that one of the
side effects of the MOL, where topics changes can occur rather rapidly,
could create the "going in circles" feeling.
5. I feel as though I am listening better when I am doing the MOL. It
does require a lot of concentration.
That is about it for now.
ยทยทยท
From: David Goldstein
Subject: MOL Progress Report
Date: 4/19/98
From: David Goldstein
Subject: MOL Progress Report
Date: 4/19/98
I have been using the MOL in individual therapy with a 53-year-old man.
2. I feel that we have made a good deal of progress in only a few
sessions. More importantly, so does the patient.
That's a relief.
4. The man talked about feeling as though we were going in circles and
hoped that I could make sense of it. This made me think that one of the
side effects of the MOL, where topics changes can occur rather rapidly,
could create the "going in circles" feeling.
When people say that, I always ask them what they're thinking about going
in circles. Going in circles might indicate going back and forth between
sides of a conflict. You might ask if the person can describe the circle he
feels he's going around in. If you can get the person to talk about going
around in circles, he won't be going around in circles any more, will he?
Also, going in circles could indicate that the person really wants to stop.
Maybe the end of a chain has been reached, and the person has nothing to
pursue at a higher level, at least for the time being. "Are you at a place
where you'd like to end this session?" could be a useful question. A
judgement call, of course.
... listening better when I am doing the MOL. It
does require a lot of concentration.
Agree on both. In fact I wonder whether a standard 50-minute hour isn't a
lot too long for this sort of method. The end-point of a session probably
ought to depend on how the person is feeling more than on the clock. If the
person has reached a relaxed and pleasant frame of mind 15 minutes before
the time is up, why not end it there?