Daniel Keeran, MSW, President, www.collegemhc.com

The College of Mental Health Counseling presents:

Transformative Counseling A Course in Empathy, Finding Wisdom: Verbalizing Your Inner

Dialogue, Creative Solution Development, Counseling

Assessment Self-Healing Life Story Questionnaire, Your

Spirituality Score, Counseling for Depression

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Copyright 2014 by Daniel Keeran

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without specific written permission from the author except for use in public schools and in the case of brief quotations in reviews for inclusion in a magazine, newspaper, or broadcast. Photocopies and electronic copies may not be sold. Special permission requests and inquires can be directed to the author at collegemhc@gmail.com

ISBN-13: 978-1503292567

ISBN-10: 1503292568

Printed in the United States.

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Dedicated to

my loving wife and daughter

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Table of Contents

A Course in Empathy: The New Revolution

of the Heart 8

Finding Wisdom: Verbalizing Your

Inner Dialogue 32

Counseling Assessment Self-Healing

Life Story Questionnaire 40

Reaching Agreement: Steps To Peace Through

Creative Solution Development 46

Your Spirituality Score 50

Counseling for Depression 56

About the Author 60

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A Course in Empathy The New Revolution of the Heart

How do you think society might be affected if empathy was

taught in the home, the workplace, and in schools? Imagine a

world in which everyone, children and adults, knew how to care

about how others feel and what they need, want, and think.

While each individual has a unique capacity for empathy, some

more than others, the author believes empathy may be assisted

and encouraged for those who possess some aptitude.

Empathic development requires an awareness of one's own

emotions, addressed in the first exercise on page 12, in order

to begin to recognize and feel connected with the emotions of

others.

Now for the first time, we have a set of tools to actually learn

empathy so that it becomes part of one's way of relating to

others.

On completion of assignments* for A Course in Empathy, with

no more than a two-page report for each chapter including your

responses to questions found at the end of each one, the

Certificate of Empathy Development is awarded by the

College of Mental Health Counseling.

In this concise volume, the author describes ten practical

exercises to enable the development of empathy and thereby

aid the transformation of the self and the community.

The way to peace with everyone is empathy for everyone,

including and especially your opponent in any matter. Empathy

for self and others is the key to inner peace and world peace.

For connecting with a social media group about empathy go to

https://www.facebook.com/groups/empathicskills/

*Assignments and inquiries should be directed to Daniel Keeran, MSW, at

the College of Mental Health Counseling collegemhc@gmail.com

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Introduction: What Is Empathy?

Lesson Objectives: 1. To understand empathy. 2. To acquire an increased sense of empathy for the emotions and circumstances of others. Empathy Definition: To sincerely and accurately feel and reflect the specific emotion(s) of another person. Empathy also means to value others’ emotions.

Why teach and learn empathy? The important reason to teach and learn empathy is that if individuals are able to learn empathy skills, they will be most likely to apply the skills in their current life with peers and future adult relationships. The ability to have empathy is important as a foundation for caring and compassion between and among people and contributes to positive relationships in all areas of life. Empathy builds a sense of community and reduces the tendency to discriminate or exclude others. Someone who bullies or excludes others can benefit from being aware of the emotions of a potential victim and to value those emotions. While some people may have difficulty feeling or communicating sincere empathy more than others, everyone will derive some benefit from the exercises in this lesson. Select those exercises that correspond to the overall capacity of the age group and modify exercise descriptions for the comprehension level of the group.

Group Discussion:

1. What is empathy? How are empathy and sympathy

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different? Empathy is not sympathy. Empathy means to feel

the emotion of another person. Sympathy means to agree

with the thoughts of another person.

2. Empathy means that you must set aside your own thoughts

and feelings and pay attention only to the other person’s

thoughts and feelings. Why does this ability require inner

strength?

3. How is empathy communicated? Empathy is communicated

in the sincere accurate reflection of the emotions of another

person, conveyed in accurate facial expressions for the

emotions, accurate voice tones for the emotions, and

accurate words for the emotions.

4. How are thoughts different from emotions? Emotions are

not thoughts. Emotions are sensory experiences in the mind

and body such as relaxed, fear, caring, anger, guilt, happy,

sadness, confident, low self-worth, hopeful, despair.

Thoughts are ideas about another person, thing, or situation.

5. What is sincerity and why is it important? Sincerity means

to be genuine, to truly value the other person’s feelings as

important, and to take his or her feelings seriously. If

sincerity is missing, then empathy will not be communicated.

6. Are emotions OK? Yes. Emotions are neither good nor bad.

Having emotions is an important part of being human.

Believing this is necessary in order to have sincere empathy

for another person’s feelings. What you do with an emotion

can be healthy or unhealthy.

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Exercises For Empathy Training

Exercise One: Building Your Emotion Vocabulary

Description: The leader introduces the exercise by saying that

having a vocabulary of words for different emotions, is helpful

for making sentences that communicate empathy. Many

feeling or emotion lists can be found on the internet.

Emotions can be separated into categories of pleasant and

painful feelings. For example, pleasant emotions are: happy,

excited, peaceful, relaxed, calm, hopeful.

Examples of painful emotions are: fear, anger, guilt, sad,

empty, low self-worth, and despair.

An acronym can be used to help remember a list of words. For

example, the acronym FAGSELD is a way to remember the

painful emotions listed above.

Invite group members (in group or as an assignment) to make

a list of emotions or feelings they have about different

experiences during the day. Examples: waking up, getting

dressed, smelling breakfast, getting on the bus, hearing

people arguing, hearing people laughing, entering the room,

sitting at the desk, listening to the teacher, going to recess,

taking a test, having lunch, doing homework, seeing parents,

playing with friends, sitting down to dinner, going to bed.

More information: Painful feelings can be divided into

hard and soft emotions. Examples of hard painful feelings

are anger, frustration, irritation, and annoyed, while

examples of soft painful feelings are fear, sadness, guilt,

emptiness, low self-worth, and despair.

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Post-Exercise Discussion:

1. What do you realize about emotions and experiences?

2. Why is it important to be aware of your emotions as you

feel them in the moment?

3. How does being aware of your own emotions affect the way

you understand other people and things that happen in their

lives?

Assignment: Make a list of your experiences between the end

of group today and the next group meeting and then write the

emotions related to each experience.

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Exercise Two: Distinguishing Emotions and Thoughts

Description: In this exercise, group members are asked to

make three sentences beginning with “I feel” followed by a

feeling word such as happy, sad, frustrated, or other

emotion.

Examples: “I feel happy when it’s time to play.”

“I feel excited when I get to do math.”

“I feel sad when my friends have to go home

after visiting.”

Post-Exercise Discussion:

What is the difference between a thought and a feeling? A

thought is an idea. A feeling is an emotion.

More information: Remember that a thought, instead of

an emotion, is expressed if “I feel” is followed by the

word “that” rather than a feeling word. The phrase “I

feel that....,” really means “I think” or “I believe.”

If you begin a sentence with “I think” followed by an idea

such as “I think this subject is interesting” or “I think this

group is fun,” you are communicating a thought instead of

an emotion.

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4 Exercise Three: Making Sentences for Empathy

Description: Practice making sentences that communicate

empathy using this form and words from the feeling list. Fill in

the blanks, followed by checking to see if you are accurate:

“You feel____________ because ___________. Is that

accurate?”

Scenario examples: Here are examples of two scenarios

followed by examples of sentences that show empathy and

checking for accuracy.

1. Jill has a frown on her face and says her best friend just

moved away.

Empathic reflection: “Jill, you feel sad because you best

friend just moved away. Is that what you feel?”

2. Dad is very quiet when he comes home from work and says

he just lost his job.

Empathic reflection: “Dad, you feel worried because you lost

your job. Is that what you feel?”

Practice Scenarios: After each scenario below, write a

sentence that shows empathy followed by checking to see if

you are accurate.

1. Your brother comes home crying and then says he was

called hurtful names at school.

2. The boy at school that others just called hurtful names, is

sitting quietly and looking down.

3. Your friend says he does not want to go home because he

received low scores on his report card.

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4. Your friend says she can’t invite you over because her Mom

doesn’t feel well.

5. A person at school is sitting alone at lunch time and not

eating his lunch.

Post-Exercise Discussion:

1. What questions do you have about writing a sentence that

shows empathy?

2. Why is it important to check to see if you are accurate?

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Exercise Four: Role Reversal

Description: In the Role Reversal exercise, empathy skills are

increased when individuals are asked to imagine he or she is

someone else who will be interviewed in pairs. The group is

divided into pairs, and each person takes turns telling the

other person basic personal information in answer to a brief

set of questions. Then each person imagines he or she is the

other person and speaks to the group in the first person as if

he or she is the other person. Mary interviews Rosie and then

presents herself as if she is Rosie by saying, “My name is

Rosie. I am 12 years old,” etc. Then Rosie does the same by

saying, “My name is Mary. I am 12 years old,” etc.

Accuracy is important for building empathy skills in this

exercise.

The following is a list of basic questions for collecting basic

personal information:

1. What is your name?

2. What is your age?

3. What is your favorite color?

4. How many brothers and sisters do you have?

5. Where did you go on vacation?

6. What do you like to do most? Demonstrate to the group:

“Now I need a volunteer to show you what role reversal looks like. Who would like to volunteer?” The leader asks the above questions to the volunteer as you sit together in front of the group. Then the leader presents herself as the student speaking in the first person and relating the information collected in the interview using the questions above.

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Then the leader says, “What questions do you have about

what you will be doing?”

Instructions to the group:

“Now I want you to divide into pairs and interview each other

using these questions (written on the board or given as a

printed handout). Remember what the other person says, and

then you will present yourself as if you are the other person

starting with the name and so on. You will have to listen very

carefully and remember what the other person said. What

questions do you have about what I am asking you to do?”

Post-Exercise discussion:

1. What was it like hearing your partner speak as if he or she

was you? Was he or she accurate?

2. What was it like being your partner? What did you feel or

think when you were being someone different than yourself?

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6 Exercise Five: Doubling

Description: In the Doubling exercise, similar to the Role

Reversal exercise, the individuals build empathy skills by

becoming a double or alter ego for another person. This is

done by inviting students to walk around the room in pairs (or

to sit in chairs in parallel position) while one speaks as the

other doubles.

The speaker talks about a happy memory or expected future

event. As the speaker is talking, the Double also talks in the

first person as if he or she is also the speaker and reads

between the lines by inserting feeling words.

Example:

Speaker: “I am going to visit my grandparents next week.”

Double: “And I feel happy.”

Speaker: “My grandma makes the best cookies.”

Double: “I am excited to eat the cookies.”

The speaker can let the Double know if she or he is accurate

or not by saying what the accurate feeling is.

Demonstrate to the group:

“Now I need a volunteer to show you what Doubling looks like.

Come here and sit with me (chairs in parallel position facing

the group). Talk about a happy memory or something you look

forward to in the future.”

As the volunteer talks, the leader speaks in the first person as

if she or he is the student and fills in feelings or emotions not

spoken by the volunteer.

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After a brief while, the leader turns to the group and says,

“What questions do you have about what I am asking you to

do?”

Instructions for the group exercise:

Divide the group into pairs, and as they are engaged in the

exercise, let them know when to switch roles with one as the

speaker and the other as the Double.

Post-Exercise Discussion:

After each person has had an opportunity to experience both

roles (speaker and Double):

1. What was it like being the speaker and hearing the Double

speaking as yourself?

2. What was it like being the Double? What was the hardest

part?

3. How did the exercise of Doubling help you understand the

other person?

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7 Exercise Six: Listening with Empathy

Description: Practice listening to another person talk about

something that is personally important, and make sentences

for empathy that reflect his or her emotions. Remember that

empathy means to set aside your own thoughts and feelings

and to pay attention to what the other person thinks and

feels.

Demonstrate to the group:

“Now I need a volunteer so that I can show the group what a

sentence for empathy sounds like. Think of something you can

say about what is important to you or something that

happened or you hope will happen in the future. Who would

like to volunteer?”

After a brief demonstration, thank the volunteer and ask the

group, “What questions do you have about what you will be

doing?”

Instructions for the group exercise:

“Now we will practice making sentences for empathy. I want

you divide into pairs. One of you will speak for a little while

and the other will listen. The speaker can talk about

something that happened last night or today or something in

the future. The listener will make a sentence for empathy and

check to see if it is accurate. Then I will tell you when to

switch, with the speaker becoming the listener, and the

listener becoming the speaker. Remember that empathy

means to set aside your own thoughts and feelings and to pay

attention to what the other person thinks and feels.”

After giving instructions, ask the group, “What questions do

you have about what you will be doing?”

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Post-Exercise Discussion:

1. What was it like being the speaker and hearing the listener

make sentences for empathy (reflections)?

2. What was it like being the listener? What was the hardest

part about it?

More information: In making an empathic reflection, an

overstatement of the other person’s thoughts and feelings

can give added support when the reflection is accurate and

sincere. This involves seeing implications of what the

speaker says and including these implications in the sincere

reflection while being careful to check for accuracy. If the

empathic reflection is an understatement and leaves out

accurate basic information given by the speaker, the

speaker will feel a lack of empathy and support.

Additional exercises can be created to assist group members

to recognize and reflect empathy for different specific

emotions such as fear, anger, guilt, sadness, celebration,

humiliation, and others. See an exercise for empathizing

with anger below.

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8 Exercise Seven: Becoming Another Character

Description: In this exercise, members are asked to break

into groups of three to do the following:

1. Write the dialogue for and then enact a scenario for three

people: a victim, a bully, and an observer.

2. Each group enacts the scenario three times. Each time the

scenario is enacted, each person rotates to take on the role of

a different character.

3. After all scenarios are enacted with each person rotating to

each role, each person then discusses what it was like to take

on the role of each character, what emotions were felt, and

what thoughts came up in each role.

Post-Exercise Discussion:

1. What emotions did you feel as the bully?

2. What emotions did you feel as the victim?

3. What emotions did you feel as the observer?

4. What decisions have you made after doing this exercise?

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9 Exercise Eight: Understanding the Story

Description: This exercise is about understanding the story of

another person. “An enemy is someone whose story you have

not heard.”

1. Ask members of the group to think (and write) about

someone they are afraid of or someone with whom they do

not want to be friends and to give a reason.

2. Ask group members to imagine they found out reasons why

the person behaves in a negative way and to write the reasons

down.

3. Ask group members to share how they feel about the

person after realizing there may be a story that explains the

negative behavior of the person.

Example: (corresponding to the three points above)

1. I do not want to be friends with Rosie because she never

talks to me.

2. I found out that Rosie is unhappy and lonely at home, and

she is afraid her Mom may not be able to pay the rent.

3. Now that I know this may be true, I want to be friends with

Rosie because her not talking is not about me but about her

feelings about what is happening at home.

Post-Exercise Discussion:

1. How has this exercise changed the way you think about

people you are afraid of or with whom you do not want to be

friends?

2. Imagine how understanding the story of the other person

could affect the way people feel and think about their

perceived enemies, nations in conflict, and groups of people

that you or perhaps others dislike.

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10 Exercise Nine: Imagine the Emotions of a

Historical Character

Description: This exercise is about understanding the

emotions of a historical character. The leader asks group

members to make a list of five people from history and

circumstances. Then write emotions that each person may

have felt about what was happening in history or in the life of

the person when they were experiencing the emotions.

Alternatively, the leader can make a list of historical people,

describe their circumstances, and then invite group members

to list emotions the person might have had.

Example: Abraham Lincoln sees slaves being sold in the town

square, and in that moment he feels sad that they have no

families of their own, angry that men would treat other men

as property, and hopeless that he could do nothing about it.

Post-Exercise Discussion:

1. Who would like to share your list of historical people and

circumstances with the group?

2. What emotions did you come up with and what are the

emotions about?

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11 Exercise Ten: Having Empathy for Anger

Description: This exercise assists the development of ways to

cope with the anger of another person by using empathic

reflection. Empathy for anger can sometimes have the effect

of reducing the anger of a person.

A scenario is demonstrated by the leader who makes a

reflective empathic statement when someone is very angry.

After observing this, group members are asked to form pairs

and to practice making a reflective empathic statement to

the other person who makes an angry statement.

Example: (demonstrated)

Angry Person: “You never do what you’re told, and so now I

have to do it for you.”

Empathic Listener: “You feel angry because I didn’t do my

work, and that makes more work for you. Is that what you are

feeling?”

Following this demonstration, ask group members to enact the

same scenario in pairs with each person taking turns being the

angry person, then the empathic listener. Use the statements

provided in the above example and repeated them to help you

feel more of the emotion and what it is like to say and hear

the words.

Post-Exercise Discussion:

1. What was it like making the angry statement?

2. What was it like making the empathic reflective statement?

3. What was it like as the angry person hearing the empathic

reflective statement of the listener?

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4. Imagine how empathic reflection could be used between

nations to reduce hostility. How could it work?

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Finding Wisdom

Verbalizing Your Inner Dialogue

New generation psychological technology can improve

conditions in persons with normal or average cognitive

functioning. The cognitive mental functions give humans a

particular advantage in terms of creative solution development.

Humans are constantly engaging in a process of internal

dialogue across a variety of subject areas. Mental distress may

be at least partly remedied by verbalizing, understanding, and

perhaps modifying the internal dialogue.

For persons suffering from chronic dependency as well as

anxiety, depression, and relationship issues, the following

technique may be useful:

1. Invite the client to talk about what they know will improve

their situation and what could worsen their situation.

2. Identify the parts of the self as the knowing confident self and

the unknowing negative self.

3. Ask the client to verbalize each part of the self in response to

the other (like Golum in Lord of the Rings).

4. Discuss ways to strengthen the knowing confident part of the

self. This is also the observer will part of the self that is able to

evaluate and modify the dialogue and draw a conclusion that

works best.

The above technique can be easily learned, recorded through

journaling, and repeated as a core process in therapy in order

to make the inner dialogue most conscious and useful to the

client. This psychological technology can improve conditions in

persons with normal or average cognitive functioning.

The therapeutic use of inner dialogue can focus on a specific

issue or area of mental distress and invite the client to have a

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conversation between the knowing confident part and the

negative self-doubting or unhealthy part.

Here is an example of an exchange using this inner dialogue

approach:

Client: I feel so inadequate and lacking in self-confidence.

Counselor: So, part of you feels inadequate and lacking in

self-confidence. I wonder if there is another part of you, a

knowing part, even a small part, that feels adequate and

confident about some things.

Client: Yes, there is. I moved out here on my own. I have a job

and pay my rent (client smiles).

Counselor: You are very resourceful, capable, and

independent. You can strengthen the positive, capable part of

yourself just by talking more about it. Tell me more.

In this example the counselor further supports the knowing

supportive self by adding to the dialogue. The counselor can

also invite the client to verbalize the inner dialogue between the

positive knowing part and the negative doubting part.

Counselor: Now I want you to speak your negative thoughts

and also your positive thoughts.

An exchange with someone suffering from

depression

Counselor: If there’s a conversation inside you about the

depression, how does it go? Speak the conversation out loud.

Client: I am a failure. Nothing I do is good enough.

Counselor: So that is the negative part of you that feeds the

depression. There is another part of you, even if it is a small

part, that knows more and that can see the big picture. What

does that part say?

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Client: I have been resourceful, independent, and self-reliant. I

pay my own rent, buy my own food, hold a job, moved far from

home, and have travelled to Europe on my own.

Counselor: Yes. Which part of you feels better than the other

part of you: the negative part or the other part?

Working with different personality disorders

The beginning of the process is to identify the central issue

defining the personality disorder.

Personality disorders are understood as a pattern of behaviour

beginning in childhood, causing subjective distress and

affecting social and occupational functioning.

The central issue of each disorder is actually the voice of the

negative unhealthy self that is larger or stronger than the

positive confident self. The goal of therapy is to strengthen the

positive confident self and thereby relieve mental distress. This

occurs by bringing the inner dialogue into conscious awareness

and by focusing attention on the positive healthy confident self

by talking about, elaborating, and affirming it.

The negative unhealthy self is significantly fed by negative

uncaring experiences during childhood, usually the parental

relationship. A way to strengthen the positive self is to say,

“What would you say or do if what happened to you happened

to your own child?” and “If you were the healthy caring adult or

parent in the situation you describe, what would you say or do

for you, the child?”

This approach utilizes the person’s own cognitive ability and

sense of empathy to create and define healthy choices.

Another approach is to say, “If you had power to change any

three things about your childhood or family when you were

growing up, what would they be?” and, “I wonder if you can

imagine how you might be different today in some ways if

things had been different as you describe.”

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This approach helps the person use memory to identify

significant unresolved issues from childhood that require

healing as well as visualization in order to identify and

strengthen the positive healthy self. A key to moving forward is

to hold two opposite realities simultaneously, the reality of loss

of parental caring or other loss and also one’s power to make

healthy choices in thought and action now: “Maybe you could

not choose what happened in your childhood, and you can

choose what you do now.”

Paranoid Personality Disorder

Central issue: No one can be trusted because they want to

harm me in some way.

Common associated major negative life experience: Loss of

caring and closeness in the parental relationship during

childhood. Possibly physical or verbal abuse.

Therapeutic statements supporting the healthy self:

What happened in your childhood or your past that you think

has contributed most to your distrust of others?

I wonder if part of you knows what someone would be like if

they could be trusted.

How much is your fear and distrust based on what you think

about other people? If you could allow yourself to think

differently about others, how might your fear be affected?

How would you feel toward others if you could believe that

people are generally sincere and well-intentioned?

Schizoid Personality Disorder

Central issue: No one understands me because I am different.

I prefer to be alone.

Common associated major negative life experience:

Childhood abuse, loss of parental caring, bullying.

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Therapeutic statements supporting the healthy self:

When in your life did you first start feeling alone or of being

lonely?

What happened in your childhood or your past that you think

has contributed most to your desire to be alone?

I wonder how you might be different today if there had been

something different in your life when you were growing up.

What is your image of the person you want to be? Describe this

person for me.

Part of you prefers to be alone. Another part of you has a

different need or different idea about people. What does that

part say?

Schizotypal Personality Disorder

Central issue: I have odd or delusional thoughts but I may not

recognize them as odd or delusional; no one can be trusted.

Possible abuse or abandonment experience in childhood.

Common associated major negative life experience: Loss of

parental caring; lack of social skill development in childhood.

Therapeutic statements supporting the healthy self:

Part of you thinks what you described (the odd thought) is true,

and maybe you need to have those thoughts for now.

Part of you believes no one can be trusted, and everyone

wants to harm you in some way.

There is another part of you that may have a different idea

about your thoughts and knows what you need and who you

can be. What does that part of you say?

Antisocial Personality Disorder

Central issue: I am willing to violate the rights of others to

serve my own profit and pleasure.

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Common associated major negative life experience: Lack of

parental discipline during childhood; loss of parental caring.

Therapeutic statements supporting the healthy self:

Part of you is use to surviving on your own, believes sometimes

you must take advantage of other people to look after your own

interest, and that the end justifies the means. Is that accurate?

There is another part of you that feels a little guilty about taking

advantage of others to meet your own needs. What does that

part of you say?

Borderline Personality Disorder

Central issue: I don’t have control over my emotions. “I hate

you, don’t leave me.” I am afraid of abandonment.

Common associated major negative life experience: Abuse

and/or abandonment during childhood.

Therapeutic statements supporting the healthy self:

Part of you hates people, feels emotionally negative toward

others, and also fears being left alone by others. Who was the

first important person in your life who hurt or left you?

Another part of you, perhaps a small part, believes that you are

capable of being OK and surviving even if people leave you.

What else does that part know? Maybe that you can manage

your emotions, especially your anger?

Histrionic Personality Disorder

Central issue: I need the attention and approval of others in

order to be happy. My worth depends on my physical

attractiveness.

Common associated major negative life experience:

Childhood abuse and learning to believe that value is

associated with sexuality or external appearance. Lack of

training in healthy values and beliefs during childhood.

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Therapeutic statements supporting the healthy self:

Part of you believes your worth depends upon your sex appeal

and physical appearance.

There is another wiser part, even if it is a small part of you, that

knows more about you and your worth as a person. What does

that part say?

Narcissistic Personality Disorder

Central issue: My ideas and abilities are superior to those of

others.

Common associated major negative life experience:

Parental abandonment or rejection by the father.

Therapeutic statements supporting the healthy self:

Part of you thinks your ideas and abilities are superior, perhaps

far superior, to those of others.

Another part of you thinks you may be an imposter or feels very

inferior to others. What does that part say?

And part of you thinks others are capable of having important

ideas and abilities. What does that part say?

Avoidant Personality Disorder

Central issue: I am afraid that others will criticize me in social

situations.

Common associated major negative life experience: Critical

parenting during childhood or bullying by peers or siblings.

Therapeutic statements supporting the healthy self:

There is part of you that is afraid of criticism in social situations.

Another part of you is able to reassure you or encourage you.

What does that part say?

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Dependent Personality Disorder

Central issue: I fear being alone and must subordinate my

own needs and feelings to those on whom I rely.

Common associated major negative life experience:

Dominating parenting that makes obedience and subservience

a condition of caring.

Therapeutic statements supporting the healthy self:

Part of you believes you must serve others in order to be

accepted by them, and you must be accepted by them in order

to be happy.

Another, knowing part of you believes you are worthwhile even

if others do not accept you. This part wants you to be true to

yourself and to assert your own needs and feelings even if

others are displeased. What else does it say?

Obsessive-Compulsive Personality Disorder

Central issue: I must control my environment and finances,

because of my fear of chaos, disorder, or poverty. Things,

working, and financial security are more important than people.

Common associated major negative life experience:

Poverty or financial stress or financial loss during childhood.

Therapeutic statements supporting the healthy self:

Part of you thinks you must achieve and maintain financial

security even if you must sacrifice closeness and caring in your

relationships with others. If that seems accurate, elaborate on

this a little.

Another part of you believes people and the quality of your

relationships are more important than things or even than

keeping order.

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Counseling Assessment Self-Healing Life Story Questionnaire

Introduce Yourself 1. What is your first name?

2. What is your age and gender?

3. What is your marital status? Single, married, separated,

or divorced? How long? Explain the reasons for

separation(s) or divorce(s). What happened?

4. What is your race, ethnic, or cultural background?

Caucasian, Chinese, East Indian, Aboriginal, Other?

5. What are your children's genders and ages? If they are

adults, give their occupations and marital situation.

6. Do you live alone or with someone? How long?

What Happened? 7. What problems and concerns do you have now?

8. What emotions have you been having and what is each

one about? Fear, anger, frustration, guilt, sadness, low

self-worth, despair, other feelings?

9. How long have you been feeling this way? (for each

feeling or problem)

10. What happened at the time you began feeling this way?

11. When have you felt like this in the past and what

happened?

12. Any health problems? E.g. epilepsy, diabetes, etc.

13. Any counseling or hospitalized for emotional reasons?

How old were you? Please give the reasons.

Instructions: Only say as much as you want to. Skip questions that

are too uncomfortable, but think about why they are. Simply

completing this questionnaire can be a healing experience in itself.

To understand the deeper meaning of the questions and your

answers, consider this important resource Effective Counseling Skills.

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The Family You Grew Up In and Your

Childhood 14. How many brothers and sisters do you have? Give each

person's gender, age, occupation, and marital situation.

15. Which one are you in the line of birth? First, last, second

or third, etc. How many years separate you from the

others nearest you?

16. Who were you closest to when growing up?

17. Are your parents still living? What was your age at their

death?

18. Have your experienced any other deaths of family

members or friends? What was your age?

19. Describe your father's (and step-father's) personality and

your relationship to him when you were growing up.

Were you close, not so close, distant, affectionate? Give

an example of something that happened that shows this

and how old you were.

20. Talk about how your relationship with your father (or

father figure) during childhood may have affected you in

both positive and negative ways.

21. How have the negative experiences with your father

figure(s), come up again in your relationships with other

people up to now?

22. Describe your mother's (and step-mother's) personality

and your relationship to her when you were growing up.

Were you close, not so close, distant, affectionate? Give

an example of something that happened that shows this

and how old you were.

23. Talk about how your relationship with your mother (or

mother figure) during childhood may have affected you

in both positive and negative ways.

24. How have the negative experiences with your mother

figure(s), come up again in your relationships with other

people up to now?

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25. What were your spiritual or religious beliefs before age

10 and how have your beliefs changed since then?

26. What was your role in the family when you were growing

up? Think of a word, e.g. peacemaker, black sheep,

victim, outsider, assistant parent, invisible, baby, etc.?

Give an example of what happened.

27. Describe your parents' relationship. Were they

affectionate? How did they deal with conflict? Give an

example of what happened.

28. Was anyone in the family or extended family ever

hospitalized for emotional reasons or commit suicide?

Any mental retardation?

29. How did family members relate to each other when you

were growing up? Give an example.

30. How were feelings of anger, sadness, fear, and guilt

expressed? Give an example.

31. Describe a time when you were disciplined that was

most painful for you. How old were you? What

happened?

32. What personality features do you have which your

parents also have?

33. Who was there for you when you were hurt as a child?

34. What messages about your worth and the worth of

others, was communicated by each parent both verbally

and nonverbally?

35. How old were you when you left home, and why did you

leave?

36. If you had power to change your family when you were

growing up and your childhood in any three ways, what

would you choose?

37. If your family experience had been different in the ways

you mentioned above, how do you imagine your life

might be different today?

38. Do you know if your mother had any problems with your

birth?

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Your School Experience and Friends 39. What was the first day of school like?

40. How many moves and school changes occurred during

school years? How old were you, what grades did you

move and why?

41. Describe your relationships with teachers.

42. Describe your relationships with peers.

43. Do you believe you achieved your best in school? Why?

What grade or education level did you complete? What

happened?

44. Did you have a group of friends during the first six

grades? If not, why?

45. Did you have one or two very close friends as a

teenager? If not, why?

46. Did you tend to be a follower or a leader with friends as

a teenager?

47. How old were you when you first started go out with

someone (or dated)?

48. Do you have a satisfactory network of friends, family,

groups? Describe these briefly.

49. How would you describe the types of people you

associate with? (What is your role with friends and

acquaintances? Helper, victim, other?)

Your Work Experiences 50. How old were you when you first went to work?

51. What types of jobs have you had and how many? Why

did you leave each job?

52. What has been your role at work? Helper, invisible,

responsible, victim, other? And how have you gotten

along with bosses?

Your Social Life and Relationships 53. What was your first date like for you?

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54. How old were you with your first sexual experience? And

first intercourse?

55. How many sexual partners have you had over time? And

what is your sexual preference or orientation?

(heterosexual, homosexual, bisexual)

56. Describe your partner’s personality and your

relationship. Aggressive, passive, abusive, caring,

other? And describe previous meaningful relationships,

their personalities, and why they ended.

Your Legalities, Use of Substances,

Financial Situation 57. Have you had any past arrests, warrants, charges, suits

against you? How old were you and what were they

about?

58. What amount of debt do you have?

59. Any drug or alcohol use? Why do you use it? Has

anyone complained that you use too much or too often?

Your Mood 60. Have you ever had suicidal thoughts at any time in your

life? How old were you? What happened?

61. What is your mood right now on a scale of zero (0) to 10,

with zero meaning ‘life is not worth living’ and 10

meaning you are very optimistic and life is wonderful?

What number do you give your mood?

62. Any thought of wanting to harm yourself or anyone else?

Your Final Thoughts and Understandings 63. What are your greatest strengths? And what skills or

abilities do you currently have the most confidence in?

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64. Having looked at your life from early days until now,

what do you think may have contributed most to your

present difficulties?

65. Of all the questions above, what has been most difficult

for you to face?

66. If you were to continue on a path of change and growth

what would you hope to achieve or what would be your

goals in counselling?

67. What has it been like completing your Life Story

Questionnaire?

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Reaching Agreement Steps To Peace Through Creative Solution Development*

The process can involve a single individual, a couple, two or more parties having issues, or a large group, and moves beyond control to mutual agreement or majority decision. Explain that the process depends upon acceptance of the following guidelines by all participants:

1. Do not judge, criticize, or evaluate any ideas as you engage in the solution development process.

2. Do not use attempts to exercise power or control of any kind: such as anger, yelling, name-calling, put-downs, threats or intimidation or manipulation.

Step One: Identifying Issues

1. The facilitator invites participants to say “what issues and challenges need to be addressed.”

2. The facilitator writes these issues in a numbered list on a chalk board or flip chart.

(As the issues are being stated, the facilitator uses reflective listening as needed in order to clarify meaning. In the event a strong emotion is expressed or a participant becomes too verbal, the facilitator uses reflective statements, checks if the person feels understood, then directs the participants back to the issue.)

3. The facilitator then asks members to say the number of one of the listed issues that he thinks needs to be addressed first.

4. The facilitator makes a tick by the number of each listed issue selected by participants, then circles the one with the most ticks; this becomes the first issue for solution development.

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Step Two: Creating Solutions

1. Writing the issue on the chalkboard or flipchart, the facilitator makes a numbered list below it and says, “Now I would like us to brainstorm as many solutions for this issue as you can think of, and as you state them I will write them down on this list without judgment, criticism or discussion.”

2. To increase the number of ideas and with writing material, large groups can break into small groups or dyads and brainstorm using the following statements presented by the facilitator:

a. Let’s write down what’s happening now, because that is always a choice.

b. What’s the opposite of what’s happening now?

c. What is a fantasy of what you might like to see happen but you don’t think is possible?

d. Think of an approach that seems silly or ridiculous.

e. Imagine what someone you respect (a relative or other wise person) might say as a solution.

f. I can think of a possible solution that would work well and that no one has mentioned. Can anyone quess what it is? (the facilitator writes down ideas the participants guess)

g. My idea is ...... (facilitator adds his or her solution to the numbered list)

Step Three: Reaching A Creative Agreement

1. The facilitator says: “Now using your writing material, I would like each of you to take a separate sheet of paper and privately write down the number of up to three of the listed possible solutions or approaches that you think would be most practical or workable to address the challenge or issue.”

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2. The facilitator says: “Now tell me the number of the listed solutions you have chosen, and I will make a tick by each of the solutions.”

3. The three solutions most selected by the participants become the creative agreement or solution strategy for the issue addressed.

4. Depending on the issue, volunteers can be invited and a time can be determined to implement the strategy or action plan.

5. Repeat Step Two and Step Three for the second, third, fourth, etc. issue selected most often by the participants.

*If the conflict is related to differences in philosophy, religion, personal taste, or if agreement cannot be reached, the following approaches may provide a solution: agree to disagree, flip a coin, take turns or agree to separate or alternating action plans, implement trial time periods to try different plans, or return to the above process.

Additional information is found in the practical manual How To Do Professional Mental Health Counseling.

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Your Spirituality Score

Spirituality provides values and beliefs for making healthy

choices, a foundation of hope and meaning for direction and

optimism, and support and encouragement to face major life

difficulties.

Strengthening your spiritual growth and awareness can set you

on a path to find inner peace, physical and mental healing, and

personal fulfillment.

Your Spirituality Score is based on how many questions of the

total for which you can provide a confident answer, rather than

saying, “I don’t know.” Responses can be written, verbal, or

mental, but written may be beneficial for most people.

1. What is your age, gender, and ethnic/race origin?

2. What were the spiritual/religious views of your father? Your

mother?

3. How has your spirituality changed from your childhood until

now?

4. Is there anything more than the material universe? Do you

believe anything is true that you cannot personally and directly

perceive with your five senses? Explain.

5. Do you believe intelligence and creativity exist in the

universe? Explain.

6. Do you believe in the existence of a transcendent

intelligence or superior reasoning power? Explain why or why

not.

7. Do you see evidence of creative intelligence in the design

and complexity of the universe or do you lean toward a material

natural explanation?

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8. Do you believe all human beings have equal worth and

value? Explain why or why not? What are the implications?

9. Do you believe the human species has greater or superior

value or greater importance or more responsibility compared to

other life forms? Why or why not? What are the implications?

10. What is the meaning or purpose of human existence?

11. How do you know what is right and wrong?

12. What is the most important thing you can do with your life?

13. Is hope important? Explain.

14. What happens after you die? Does your individual identity

or consciousness continue to exist? What are the implications?

15. Is the idea of the meaning of human life essential to the

idea of hope? Explain.

16. Is the idea of right and wrong essential to the idea of

meaning? Explain.

17. What have been some of the most important influences on

you for what you value and believe?

18. What spiritual practices do you have? Prayer, centering

prayer, meditation, scripture reading, worship, singing, other.

19. Does moral accountability only happen within the legal

systems of nations? Is there ultimate accountability in a venue

after death? What are the implications?

20. If people are reborn into new lives, what if anything

determines the nature or quality of their existence? What are

the implications?

21. Comment on this statement: “Many people think only

tangible things are real, yet the same people admit intangible

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things are most important: love, compassion, empathy, justice,

morality, consciousness, wisdom, human value, meaning of life,

and eternity... for without these, life is void and vain, and

aspirations mere illusions.”

22. Have you ever experienced what you believe to be a sign or

communication from God or other spiritual being?

23. What is your view of this statement? “Humans are spiritual

beings existing in physical bodies.”

24. Do you believe you have convincing evidence of spiritual

reality?

25. What is your idea of an ideal society? World? Life?

26. When does an individual human life begin?

27. What is the essence of the self?

28. Do you believe angels and demons exist?

29. Do you believe everyone after death goes to heaven or to

hell?

30. Do you believe the superior reasoning power has ever

communicated with humanity?

31. How open are you to exploring different aspects of

spirituality?

32. If you saw someone raise the dead, what would you think or

do?

33. If you saw a person die and then you saw him alive again a

few days later, what would you think or do?

34. Comment on the statement: “Humans are a parasite

infestation of the earth.”

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35. How can you prove to anyone else that you are aware of

yourself, your own consciousness?

36. Describe a healthy relationship.

37. How important is your spirituality to your life? And do you

want your spirituality to increase or decrease?

38. If we are made in the image of God, what qualities do we

share with God?

39. Read Isaiah, chapter 53, written in 700 BC. Who is being

described? See other amazing examples of future-telling here

or http://goo.gl/uM1e7p

40. Do you now belong to or have you thought of joining a

spiritual community to strengthen your values and beliefs for

making healthy choices, to acquire a foundation of hope and

meaning for direction and optimism, and to receive support and

encouragement to face major life difficulties?

41. How has this questionnaire affected your awareness of your

belief in non-material things?

Final instructions: Count the number of questions for which

you struggled to give a sincere answer, and then subtract the

number from the number 41. The answer is your Spirituality

Score.

How to use this assessment: Whatever your score may be,

give further consideration to questions you are unsure about or

for which you have difficulty giving a response.

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Calculating Your Spirituality Score

1. Make a mark indicating any question for which you feel

unable to give a satisfactory answer or that you find

especially challenging.

2. Add the number of marks in #1 and subtract this

number from 41.

3. The answer to #2 is your Spirituality Score.

NOTE: This score and your answers to questions are

to be used only by you and anyone to whom you grant

permission.

Total number of questions 41

Number of difficult questions

Your Spirituality Score

For assistance to explore or discuss your score, email

collegemhc@gmail.com

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Counseling for Depression

Depression can be caused by chemical changes in the body, physical illness, and different types of loss. Very often, depression and anxiety are the result of self-defeating life patterns forming unhealthy neural pathways that can be healed by incorporating caring self-talk and by supporting self-worth and assertiveness. We tend to do to ourselves and to others that which was done to us in childhood. Now as adults we must give to ourselves all the healthy things we needed from healthy parents. Here are some things to do to change the inner-dialogue foundations of depression and anxiety:

Step 1. Write down the negative things you think about yourself, others, and your circumstances.

This activity will bring to your conscious awareness the negative thinking and self-talk that is common to many kinds of depression and anxiety. The negative and self-critical self-talk demoralizes the ego and manifests as feeling down, blue, sad, anxious, fearful and self-doubting. This low mood and anxiety then affect sleeping, eating, and low energy. Common examples of negative self-talk are: I am incapable, I can't do it, I am unlovable, I am a failure, I failed again, I can't do it, No one wants to talk to me, No one cares about me, etc.

Step 2. Write down statements that are self-caring, nurturing, reassuring, supportive, and validating.

This exercise helps to identify the opposites of the negative self-talk: I can do it, I have strengths and abilities, I am caring and kind, I can get what I need and want, I deserve to be happy, I can succeed, I am just as important and valuable as anyone else, My pain is normal for what I have been through, etc.

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Step 3. Write down negative things parents said or communicated to you when you were growing up.

Here you can write down what you thought parents felt about you by what they said or did such as: I wish you were never born, I do not like you, I do not care about you, I care about alcohol more than I care about you, I do not want to be around you, You are in the way, You are a bother, You should be seen but not heard, You can’t do that, You could have done better, You will never amount to anything, Don’t cry, etc.

Step 4. Write down things you needed or wanted parents to say to you as a child.

Here you can write the things you wanted or needed parents to say or do such as: I love you no matter what happens, I am so glad you are in my life, You can succeed, It's OK to cry when you're hurt, Everything will be OK, I felt the same as you sometimes, Imagine the possibilities. You are good at that, You are so helpful, You are so kind and caring, etc.

Step 5. Write down what you would do or say if you saw another child being treated the way you were treated in #3.

If you heard someone say mean things to a child or slap a child, what would you say? Maybe you would say things like: You have no right to say that, Be nice to the child, The child needs your love, You need to support your child and be reassuring and caring and loving and affectionate, You need to be encouraging, etc.

Step 6. If you had all the positive things as a child that you needed from healthy parents, how do you imagine your life might be different today?

If your parents had said encouraging, caring, and supportive things to you as a child, how do you imagine your life might be different today? This step helps you formulate and create a vision for how your life can be different in a healthy way. Depression that comes from negative self-talk is a form of self-

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abandonment and self-abuse. The ultimate self-abuse and self-abandonment is self-harm and suicidal thinking. Conversely, hope, optimism, self-worth, and self-confidence form the basis of a stable mood and sense of security, safety, confidence, well-being, inner peace, personal power, and happiness.

Step 7. Now you must be for yourself all the things that you needed your parents to be for you: encouraging, nurturing, loving, caring, supportive, and reassuring.

This means you need to say to yourself and be for yourself all the positive things you needed from healthy parents. If no one else can give you the caring that you need, who does that leave? Ultimately, you are the one who must care for you. So this means you must choose healthy people to be in your life, and you must be supportive of yourself and of that other healthy caring person you have chosen to be in your life. In this way you will be caring of yourself. Another important piece is to stand up for yourself and support yourself when you are treated badly by others.

Step 8. You must be assertive.

Stand up for yourself by saying things like: I don't like your

tone, I deserve more respect than that, I deserve a raise in

salary, I feel annoyed when...., etc. Take care of that little boy

or girl who was abused and mistreated. That little boy or girl is

still inside you and needs your protection. Be for yourself now

what you needed then as a child. Will you stand up for him or

her? When will you start?

The Angel View

When depressed some years ago because of a painful loss, I

was sinking and stuck in despair. Then I thought that the angels

are watching, looking down from above, and able to see my life

from beginning to end. They can see the valleys and mountains

of my life, and they are wondering how I will face the present

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challenge. Will I be stopped and give up, defeated? Or will I

move forward and on to the next challenge?

On realizing this and seeing my life from beginning to end, I

understood that life is an adventure with obstacles and

opportunities, mountains and valleys. I concluded that my life

will change if I can persevere. I saw that the sense of loss and

depression were only temporary and that other challenges

await.

When I saw the angel view, my depression lifted, and I felt free

to go forward in my life knowing that I am able to move through

the momentary difficulties and challenges of life.

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About the Author

Daniel Keeran, MSW, has been a counselor and therapist for

over 30 years in hospital and private practice settings. He is the

author of Effective Counseling Skills: the practical wording of

therapeutic statements and processes, and the founder and

President of the College of Mental Health Counseling providing

practical online skill training in counseling, for personal and

professional development.

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