Without being aware, people often focus on the worst possible outcome. A psychological term for this perspective is awfulizing. When that is happening, what they most need is a change in perspective. You can help your patients change unhelpful perspectives in two ways: (1) Change the content of what they say, or (2) change the context (time and/or place) of their statement.
Statement: I’m always in pain.
The content is “pain.” The context is “universal.”
Reframing context: How long have you been thinking you’ve always been in pain? [Reframes context from universal to past.]
Reframing context: How do you know you’ll be in pain tomorrow? [Reframes context from universal to future.]
Reframing content: How will you know when you’re feeling less discomfort? [Reframes “pain” to “discomfort.”]
Reframing content: You’re only saying that because the pain had been especially bad this year. [Reframes content from general to specific.]
Send your questions about how other-than-conscious communication skills can hurt or help your patients and clients to Joel P. Bowman (Joel@SCS-Matters.com) or Debra Basham (Debra@SCS-Matters.com), co-developers of Subtle Communication Systems. We will provide answers to those for you. For more information about Neurolinguistic Programming (NLP), Hypnosis or Hypnotherapy, or about the Imagine Healing Process, visit:http://ImagineHealing.info or http://SurgicalSupport.info. Healing with Language: Your Key to Effective Mind-Body Communication is available for a limited time for $10 plus $5 shipping within the U.S. For volume orders and overseas shipping, check with Debra.See the Table of Contents and List of Exercises in PDF format for more information about this comprehensive text and training manual. |