Integrating therapeutic humor into psychotherapy is more than simply using humor with clients. This presentation will explore how and why integrating humor into clinical practice can be effective as well as assist clinicians to use humor with clinical awareness. Participants will learn a model of clinical humor that provides a foundation for the use of humor in psychotherapy and discover how humor (when purposely chosen as a clinical intervention) can be used as a relationship enhancing intervention, as well as a diagnostic and treatment tool.
The clinical method of the Awareness Integration model has evolved from Cognitive, emotional, Behavioral, body-oriented, and trauma releasing theories and has been researched with a diverse population with significant results toward minimizing Depression and Anxiety.
While this workshop teaches useful tools for brief therapy, it also will give participants positive experiences for themselves. This workshop evokes experiences that lead clients to discover solutions that work. Whether the client experiences their solution, or has a dramatic shift in understanding their options it often leads to motivation and success.
One way of modeling Milton Erickson is to consider the states that he commonly inhabited when he was conducting psychotherapy. Erickson "states" will be described and examples will be provided.
Therapists need theoretical and technical constructs, including those that are empirically based. Therapists need to understand how to create a comprehensive treatment plan.