“Between stimulus and response, there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and freedom.” -Viktor Frankl
I will never forget this one particular group. I was sitting in a treatment center in Tucson, Arizona in the spring of 1986 and the facilitator asked for a volunteer. I froze. There were 30-35 patients sitting in a circle in a large conference room with a wide-open space in the middle as the facilitator moved gracefully around the center. After a few moments, a young woman, who I believe came in two weeks ahead of me, timidly raised her hand. The therapist thanked her and for the next 90 minutes I observed sublime human connection.
What did I just witness? Here was this peer publically sharing voices and experiences long kept silent within herself. Here was this peer showing vulnerability, courage, and strength. Here was this peer who seemed to have gained new insights and awareness about past events, and subsequently, new insights and awareness about herself. Here was a clinician who showed expertise, restraint, and seemed to allow the patient to tell her story without an agenda.
As an observer, there was a juxtaposition of fascination and emotional fragility. The intellectual and the emotional were at war. What I know now, and didn’t then, was that she was telling a human story. My story. Her pain connected to my pain. Her loneliness connected to my loneliness. I thought I would be safe as an observer, but little did I know the impact of that afternoon.
This was my introduction to the term, the concept, and reality of Psychodrama. I was a patient barely two weeks sober trying to grasp themes of sobriety, unmanageability, and powerlessness, and at the same time, having difficulty identifying and expressing feelings. What I witnessed that day was a brave woman, a skilled therapist, and a room full of patients “magically” connected in a moment of healing.
Fast-forward thirty-one years. I have spent the past 28 years as a clinician, and for the last 10 years, I have used group psychotherapy utilizing psychodrama and other experiential techniques with eating disorder patients.
Psychodrama and other action-oriented techniques developed by J.L. Moreno, and later by his wife Zerka Moreno, can be especially effective in the treatment of addiction and trauma. It can be extremely effective in the treating of eating disorders. An effective clinician has done his or her own work and will attain regular monitoring and supervision. Clinical judgment is needed, as those with medically compromised weights and those detoxing or actively psychotic are not appropriate for such work.
If clinically appropriate, Psychodrama, Sociometry, and group psychotherapy provides the chance for an individual or individuals in a group setting to heal and connect. Psychodrama creates a space for the safe expression of emotions. This therapeutic space can provide an opportunity for the patient to understand themselves and their history better, to resolve loss and trauma, to overcome fears, to improve their intimate and social relationships, and to practice new skills to prepare for the future.
We Can Help
Remuda Ranch at The Meadows incorporates a variety of treatment methods and therapies to help our patients achieve long-lasting recovery from their eating disorder. Our specialized approach combines proven medical and clinically intensive treatment to help restore balance to the lives of women and girls struggling with an eating disorder.
To learn more about the treatment therapies we offer, visit our treatment page. For immediate help, please call to speak to a Counselor at 866-329-7713.
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