Trauma, Imagery and the Therapeutic Relationship: Langu's story

Authors

  • Belinda Karpelowsky Department of Psychology, Rhodes University
  • David J.A. Edwards Department of Psychology, Rhodes University

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.14713/pcsp.v6i4.1054

Keywords:

acute stress disorder, case narrative, case study, cognitive therapy, guided imagery, post-traumatic stress disorder, psychotherapy, therapeutic relationship

Abstract

This paper, a phenomenological case study, describes the psychotherapy of Langu (pseudonym), a 21-year-old student, who presented with Acute Stress Disorder following a series of motor accidents that affected him and his family. Langu’s most distressing experience was having to identify his brother’s mutilated and severely burned body. Because of the intensity of the intrusive re-experiencing of traumatic imagery and the degree of dissociative numbing, Langu participated in four intensive guided imagery sessions, which involved reliving the incident, and imaginal dialogues with his dead brother. Session records and supervision notes from the therapy process that unfolded over 22 sessions served as the basis for a thematically selective case narrative. Additional material was obtained from several research interviews with Langu over the following months. The narrative highlights the impact of the imagery work as well as relational aspects of the therapy. The case narrative provides a source for examining many aspects of the psychological impact of trauma and the path to healing, as well as the dilemmas and challenges faced by therapists working with traumatised individuals.

Author Biographies

Belinda Karpelowsky, Department of Psychology, Rhodes University

Ban Fishman, Ph.D. Editor-in-Chief, Pragmatic Case Studies in Psychotherapy Professor of Clinical and Organizational Psychology Graduate School of Applied and Professional Psychology Rutgers University Mailing address: 57 Jaffray Court Irvington, NY 10533 914-693-8549 fax: 603-917-2567 email: dfish96198@aol.com

David J.A. Edwards, Department of Psychology, Rhodes University

David J.A. Edwards

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Published

2010-12-22

Issue

Section

Reprinted Articles Linked to David Edwards' Original Article on "Therapist Responsiveness"