-What is the meaning of the metaphor? -An autopsy will show... (M. Shirin). It is not uncommon for a client to come to therapy without a clear understanding of not only what he wants from the therapist, but also what he actually wants to change in his life situation. Or, on the contrary, the client, thinking about the request, reduces his problem to some narrow (often “formal”) definition (“self-doubt” or “depression”) and with this “diagnosis” already asks for help. And then, directly asking him questions, it is difficult to understand why the problem in his life arose, why it cannot be solved, and what (specifically) the person is striving for... “The consciousness of a person is a Guardian, not so easily letting all those who are curious inside, and therefore 95% of the work of any psychotherapist is “storming the walls of consciousness”, “putting its Censorship to sleep”, in order to find the “access code” to the Unconscious” (Nazarenko E.). So why not “speak” to the Unconscious in its “native” language ? “The language of the unconscious is images and symbols” (M. Erikson). Consciousness and the Unconscious have a “common language” that allows them to “understand each other” - this is a metaphorical language, a more open form of communication, essentially the “direct speech” of the unconscious , addressed to consciousness... “Metaphor is a way that makes it possible to communicate, a certain overlanguage, something similar to Esperanto,... an artificial language that belongs simultaneously to many languages ​​and to none of them separately” (O.A. Svirepo, O.S. Tumanova Metaphor (from other Greek μεταφορά - “transfer”) - “allegory” (Mikhelson, 1994) - “a word or expression used in a figurative meaning, which is based on the comparison of one object with another on the basis of their a common feature" (Wikipedia)..."A metaphor is born when the characteristics of one image are applied to another, it is a “border trespasser”, an information channel connecting two worlds separated from each other (O.A. Svirepo, O.S. Tumanova). “A metaphor is... a spark that arises from the “impact” of two realities against each other. It, like a flash, illuminates the correspondence of two spheres: verbal and inexpressible, real and imaginary, conscious and unconscious. This is how a spark of meaning is struck, a spark of understanding. As a result of the contact of these realities, something unusual is born - the brilliance of life. Actually, the essence of therapy lies in the fact that a person stops simply moving along the well-trodden rails: sparks of life flare up in him." (L.M. Krol). Metaphors are used in almost all areas of psychotherapy. Why? Advantages of working with metaphor. Often, When trying to describe a problem or his condition, the client himself uses a metaphor: I feel such a weight on my shoulders. Or: I think I’m broken... Or even: “I feel like I was cut into pieces and passed through. meat grinder,” “I’m so afraid, my soul has sunk into my heels.” It is clear that in reality he does not have any burden on his shoulders, and he is not a machine to really “break down” and in appearance he is quite “whole” and that’s it. the presence of a soul (not counting the possibility of its movement) still requires scientific confirmation... But any of these phrases speaks very eloquently (and even screams!) about a person’s experiences and, in most cases, we understand perfectly well what the person wanted to say. and we can connect his words with our own experience... - We use metaphors because it is quick, concise, accurate and understandable. In a situation of ambiguity, when awareness (and naming) of contradictory sensations and feelings is difficult or too painful, a person, through a metaphor (resonating with his state), displays it in a symbolic form (for example, through comparison with objects of living or inanimate nature, etc. )…and then, through a familiar image, the possibility of a “meeting” appears: the client with his experience and the client with the therapist... - Metaphor is the starting point in the work, because while the client is in merging with his experience, he cannot do anything with it , the presence of a metaphor allows us to “bring it to the surface”,"to move from the inner world to the outer world." A figure appears that, like an “actor enters the stage” (emerges from the “background”), and therefore can be viewed by the therapist and the client. - The metaphor is similar to a “zipped file”, it contains a huge amount of information in a compressed form. Like the client’s problem, it exists on several levels, and the process of contact with it makes it possible to clarify the perception of the problem, habitual patterns of behavior and previously unobvious (unusual) alternatives, beliefs, values ​​​​for the client (sometimes not accessible to rational research, because “words are created in order to hide one’s thoughts” (Fouche) and “everyone lies!” (House), and they lie, first of all, to themselves!), - Metaphor determines perception, conceptual system and behavior (for more details, see below). “That What we think determines what we believe. What we believe influences what we choose. What we choose determines what we have" (Jim Rohn). - Metaphor gives us a new perspective on things, because “a metaphor is a comparison of two (at first glance) completely unrelated things or phenomena. This “otherness” creates dissonance in our perception, i.e. tension that requires resolution” (M. Parkin). “Metaphor is thinking in terms of something else, so it can open “psychological locks” - attitudes that block thinking, forcing it to remain within the usual framework” (Lakoff and Johnson). Thanks to metaphor, we can expand the client’s existing behavioral stereotypes and help him find solutions to the problem. The imagination is free, like a bird. And as spacious as the sea. No one will stop him. (H. Murakami, Wonderland without brakes and the End of the World) - Metaphor gives the therapist a “key” for understanding the client’s “language”, allows him to make interventions that are more consistent with the peculiarities of perception and thinking of clients (i.e. . are more easily accepted and assimilated by him), etc. There are many ways to work with metaphor, but in Gestalt therapy priority is given to the client’s metaphor (compared to the therapist’s metaphor, such as in NLP), since it reflects a person’s unique understanding. about my experience. Working with the metaphor of life. “It was,” said Memory. “It couldn’t be,” said Pride. And Memory gave in... (F. Nietzsche). Each of us has our own idea of ​​life, which is formed on the basis of experience (a person’s contacts with the world). But our memory “stores” not all memories... but (mostly) only those that... correspond to our basic idea of ​​​​life.... Our eyes, like an imaginary movie camera, snatch out pieces of stories from which the pictures of someone’s memories are gradually put together .(H. Murakami, Afterglow) According to the concept of A. Brach, “autobiographical memories are far from accurate photographic photographs and are of a metaphorical nature. Agree, our thoughts are not verbal descriptions at all. When we “say” our life, trying to describe the images of our past as accurately as possible, we make a “play” out of the “script”. We do not always perceive the life we ​​live meaningfully; rather, we feel it. And that is why when working on “life images” it is so logical to use metaphors” (E. Alipova) ... Sometimes, finding it difficult to say what is actually wrong (“it’s just bad or uncomfortable to live”), the client himself metaphorically describes his life ... “My life reminds me of a waiting room at a large train station... benches, drafts, people running outside the window, they don’t see me, they are in a hurry, getting on a train or a taxi. They have where and to whom to go... And I sit and wait... What if something happens... And my life will finally begin..."? (The heroine of P. Leconte's film "The Girl on the Bridge")... Life is a box of cookies.... In the box of cookies there are some favorite cookies and some not so favorite ones. If you eat the most delicious ones first, only the ones you don’t particularly like will remain. When I'm sad, I always think about this box. If you endure now, it will be easier later... (H. Murakami, Norwegian Wood) Many clients would completely agree with these literary descriptions. They spendlife waiting for “permission to start living it,” spending days on end “studying train schedules” (and “not going anywhere”) or putting off pleasant things for later (which may never come)…Are they aware of their attitude towards life? Not always... After all, a person doesn’t often think about what his life is like... Just at some point he realizes that this is no longer possible... and comes to a therapist in the hope of changing something for the better, because there is nothing worse than an epitaph : “life passed, and you never took part in it” or “nothing happened to her”, or “good times never came”... Does the therapist understand what the client thinks about life in general and about his own in particular? Also not always... Or, at least, not right away... After all, a person usually talks only about certain aspects of life. As a rule, problematic ones, those about which he knows everything “well”... It seems to me important to see the “picture” as a whole. When working with a client, it is important to know inside (and through) what metaphor he lives (or, alas! exists): what he thinks about life, the people around him and himself. This is a person’s point of view on his life, on the basis of which he forms the “objective” (and in fact subjective) reality in which he lives... Therefore, at the beginning of work, I sometimes invite the client to compose a fairy tale about his life (or remember the story of some -the hero, similar to his life and tell) or simply formulate a metaphor for his life, and then together “decipher” (analyze it) ... “A metaphor for life is a model or representation of a person’s life experience. Reflecting one’s life in a metaphorical form is an act of ordering and generalizing the components of life, serves to integrate dispersed and unrelated components of the life path.” (Bulubash I.D.) In addition, this is: - “an express way (“snapshot”) of seeing your life, - an accessible and intuitive way of shaping your future, your values ​​and goals” (N. Kozlov). Metaphor of life describes a variant and method of identification (who am I in this metaphor?), a certain attitude towards oneself and other people (who are they in this metaphor?), a method of communication with other people, understanding of the situation, fixed static rigid patterns belonging to this metaphor, the formulation of personal problems, the client’s contribution to its occurrence and the choices that are open to him to change his life (individually possible and preferred method of solution), resources and expected course of action in the future. Through the metaphor of life, such beliefs are revealed, expressed and explored. By working with the client's metaphor, working through the literal context, and finding connections with his social reality, you can quite accurately understand what is happening in his life, “whether he has strength or is living at the limit, he is on the rise or in decline, in struggle or defense, what he would like to change and what he is afraid of, in what direction he is moving (“where does he live”?), is his life meaningful or meaning lost” (N. Kozlov)… In in the latter case, you can help create a new metaphor, find a new meaning... Another metaphor may correspond to other feelings, other patterns of behavior, other resources that allow you to find a solution to a problem situation. Many psychologists agree: awareness, analysis and change of images of your past, present and future, entails an adjustment of the life path itself. That is, if you want to change your life, start changing the metaphor of your life. At a minimum, make it conscious. Awareness of your ideas about life allows you to make a choice: live the way you live, or try something different. We ourselves choose the restrictions in which we live...Have you ever wondered what metaphor of life you live in? Working with the client’s verbal metaphor. What do they mean when they say that: “the metaphor of life used by a person always contains certain limitations experience and behavior"? Let us turn to the most frequently used metaphors of life (most examples of metaphorical definitions of life are takenfrom the article by Yu. Volkova “The use of life metaphors in the modern Russian press”) Very often, when talking about life, people use the following metaphor: “life is a struggle” (constant, stubborn, harsh, etc.). A close metaphor is “life is war.” For example, “Life is a war of one against all” (F. Nietzsche). Metaphorical expressions reflecting this point of view: “to break someone’s life, to fight not for life, but for death,” etc. Everyone has their own battlefield... (H. Murakami, Afterglow) What could this mean? For example, the fact that a person for whom “life is a struggle (war)” will no longer be able to perceive it as a “wonderful journey.” An old English proverb says: “If you only have a hammer in your hand, you will see only nails everywhere.” To achieve what he wants, such a person has to overcome many trials and difficulties. They are a priori “inscribed in life”...Without them there is no life itself (for him)...Struggle presupposes the presence of a goal. Everyone has their own goal in this struggle: some fight for independence, some for survival, some for an idea, etc. Then it’s worth asking: what is the goal that this person pursues in his struggle? Is he waging an open struggle or is he “partisan,” secretly “derailing trains”? Who does the person living in this metaphor see himself as? Is he an “experienced fighter” or a “naive youth”? Or maybe he is already a “corpse”, a person “fallen in an unequal battle”...? If you believe that “life is a struggle or war”, you will definitely find enemies who, perhaps, were not around you in the first place. “A fighter sees challenges thrown at him everywhere...” (K. Castaneda) Living in this metaphor, you perceive most people as opponents (or at best, temporary comrades in the fight). You endlessly attack enemy positions and defend yours. Your lifestyle is battle, victory or defeat, the means to achieve a goal is murder (not necessarily literal, perhaps symbolic), the motto “who is not with us is against us.” You experience global distrust of the world, are in chronic tension and anxiety, looking at other people through the sniper scope of a rifle and living by the principles “an eye for an eye - a tooth for a tooth”, “either I am them, or they are me...”, “don’t believe , don’t be afraid, don’t ask”... To put it mildly, many “dislike” you... Man is designed this way: if you shoot at him, blood will flow... (H. Murakami, My favorite sputnik) Life can be not only (and not so much) a struggle with external forces (circumstances), but also a struggle of contradictions, opposites within a person. How is this “battlefield” represented in his inner world? It’s a completely different matter if for you “life is a game” (endless, strategic, multi-turn, etc.). According to this metaphor, each person has a specific role in life (what is your role?). A person’s actions are game moves, consequences are winning or losing. Definitions close to this metaphor: “life is an adventure” (which “does not know how it will end”...), “performance”, “art”, “music” (“song”) (for example, sad, cheerful, fast, calm, lullaby, swan, etc.); “dance” (your own dance with Life). And then, if “life is a dance,” then what dance could metaphorically reflect your life? Flamenco, step, “saber dance”... “white dance”? Are you a solo dancer or a partner dancer? Do you prefer to lead or follow? Etc. “This metaphor implicitly assumes that everyone you meet in life is a dance partner. Dance, as a rule, means joy, celebration, movement... This metaphor “hints” that in life there may be no logically detectable meaning, but there is beauty” (A. Girshon). The beauty of a dance depends on the ability to catch its rhythm, and not on whose tune you dance to... You may not have the freedom to refuse to dance, but you have a choice of position and movement). ... DANCE and don't stop. What is the point of this - don’t think about it. There is still no point, and there never was. If you think about it, your legs will stop... all your contacts with the world around you will be cut off... so there is no way for your legs to stop. Eveneverything around seems stupid and meaningless - don’t pay attention. Follow the rhythm - and keep dancing... squeeze yourself like a lemon. And remember: there is nothing to be afraid of. Your main opponent is fatigue. Fatigue and panic from fatigue. This happens to everyone. It will seem that the whole world is arranged incorrectly. And the legs will begin to stop by themselves... and there is no other way, you definitely need to dance. Not only that: dancing is very cool and nothing else. So that everyone will look at you... so dance. While the music is playing - DANCE.. (H. Murakami, Dance, dance, dance) “Life is a road (path, journey).” The journey can be together or alone... The road can be endless, long, winding, slippery, full of obstacles, difficult, dangerous, unpredictable, fun... What is it like for you? The road has a beginning and an end goal. And then what is this goal? At what stage of the path are you? A person can “stand at a crossroads”, “go his own way”, “make his own track” (his own path) or move in a crowd... A close definition: “Life is an ascent.” “It is implicitly assumed that in life there is some peak (and even more implicitly it is assumed that there is one) to be climbed. The path to it is not easy and dangerous, but the summit is worth the effort (although until you have visited it, this assumption seems at least hypothetical). This metaphor often describes a “spiritual path” or career” (A. Girshon). “A more “esoteric” metaphor is “life is a school” (big, cruel, eternal), if we accept it, then it turns out that we come to this world to learn something important, to know, to gain some important experience. Just as life is divided into stages (childhood, adolescence, etc.), so the school consists of different classes (junior, middle and senior). It is implicitly assumed that there are a sufficient number of such classes and schools, and for those who believe in “reincarnation” there may be an infinite number of them. At school you receive different grades, in some cases you are punished, in others you are encouraged (metaphors of “hell and heaven”)” (A. Girshon). “That’s how school works. The most important thing we learn there is that , that we will not learn all the most important things there." (H. Murakami, What am I talking about when I talk about running...) What experience have you already acquired?...A similar definition: “life is an exam” (for example, on maturity)…And then at what stage are you? Are you still preparing (“live and learn?”) or are you already passing? Who's on the admissions committee? How will you know that the exam has been successfully passed? What will you do next, with a “diploma”?... Or “life is an examiner, a teacher (severe, strict, chief, etc.), who shows a person in the best possible way how to act and behave. You have to pay for mistakes—sometimes even with your own life (“expulsion”). For some, “life is a lesson”: “a hard lesson, interrupted by short changes (happiness)”...or “a long lesson in humility”, as a result of which you acquire many skills... “Life is a story (history).” Similar definitions: “life is a book, story, chronicle, novel, fairy tale.” Perhaps you think that life acquires meaning and completeness only if it is told... I am one of those types of people who cannot understand anything until they won’t try to write it down on paper... (H. Murakami, Norwegian Wood) And then, if “life is a book”, and the years lived are “pages that time turns,” then are you ready to “open” it for another person ?Every story has its time when you simply must tell it. If a person does not do this, he dooms his soul to remain connected with this secret forever... (H. Murakami, My Favorite Sputnik) What is it (this book) for you? Fascinating, sad, tragic...? - What title would reflect what you have written? - What is your style, tone of the story? - What are the chapter titles? - What about the cover and foreword? Will people want to “read” you? - Give are you what you promise in the preface? - Which chapters of your life were the most difficult to write? - Whichchapters you would like to cross out? - What do you think people will think if they read your life “from cover to cover”? , and others run nearby and shout: “Where is this world going?!” (unknown author) Perhaps your “life is a continuous love story”, which has a twisted plot, it is full of adventures in which everything is mixed up or, on the contrary, interconnected... there are a lot of people (participants in events), but little meaning... Or maybe your life is a poem (short) or a story (boring) ... which interests no one and cannot interest anyone ... Compared to the bright, full of tragedies and triumphs of the fate of Jack London, my own life seemed gray and inconspicuous, like a timid squirrel hiding in branches of an oak tree waiting for spring. At least for a few minutes it really seemed like that to me. Who would want to read the biography of a librarian from the town of Kawasaki who lived a peaceful life and died quietly in his bed? No - reading other people’s biographies? It’s as if we demand some kind of compensation for something that, alas, not a damn thing happens in our own lives... (H. Murakami, Dance, dance, dance) Metaphor “Life is death” Death is not a substance polar to life. Death originally exists in me. And no matter how hard you try, it’s impossible to get away from it. (H. Murakami, Norwegian Wood) Phrases characteristic of a person living in this metaphor: “I don’t live. “It killed me,” etc. Sometimes, life itself for a person turns into a source of suffering, from which you can only get rid of it by completely killing yourself. The world of such a “potential suicide” is tragic: the past... is “in the past”, the present is sad, the future is doubtful... And then, from what moment did a person’s life “cease to be life”? What could “revive” him? Metaphor “Life is a gift (gift)” (priceless, greatest, divine, fragile, mysterious, etc.). Whose gift is this? How does it make you feel? Do you remember that gifts cannot be returned? Etc. Close definitions: “life is a reward” (usually the “highest”), “miracle” (extraordinary), “good” (which, as a rule, “one must be able to use correctly”)... Metaphor “Life is movement” Metaphorical expressions: “chase after life, keep up with life”... Description: the world is constantly moving forward, moving in time and space. A person (by analogy) goes through certain stages (stages of development). What movement is this? “Eternal, rapid, oncoming, in a spiral, according to traffic rules or without”, etc...? What are you moving towards? Metaphor “Life is a dream” - Every morning after work, when I get into bed, the same thing happens in my head. Lord, make sure I don’t wake up. So that she can sleep and sleep for eternity... (H. Murakami, Afterglow) If life is a dream, then what kind? (pleasant, incredible, bad, etc.). Whose dream is this? What will happen if a person wakes up? As a rule, those who live in this metaphor are characterized by dividing life into periods of sleep and wakefulness, and a desire to prolong the state of avoiding worries. “A person for whom sleep is a desirable state views ordinary time as the interval between two periods of sleep. He tends to daydream and “fly away” at certain moments from reality (perhaps under the influence of stimulating, state-altering drugs), plunging into the world of his fantasies (V.N. Druzhinin) ... “Life is time” (fleeting, temporarily released us, etc.)…Reality slips between her fingers, like sand in a clock, and time is not on her side. (H. Murakami, Afterglow) And then what do you spend it on? “Time is money” - is this about you?... “Life is water” (stream, swamp, sea, whirlpool, river, ocean, etc.) Example: “Life is a whirlpool” - constantly rotating around its axis and draws you in. “Life is a river”: stormy, big, with rapids, etc. “My life is a swamp...” - the client tells you. The more I try to cope with problems myself, the more I get bogged down in it...” What is this about? Perhaps about monotony, boredom,hopelessness, the viscosity of life in which nothing happens? Or...? How to understand? Ask the client. You may have your own “swamp” (your own associations associated with this metaphor), while the client has his own. For example, for me, this definition of life automatically updates in my memory the song from the cartoon “The Flying Ship” - “Eh, my life is a tin”... Remember? I’m a merman, I’m a merman, if only someone would talk to me, otherwise my girlfriends: leeches and frogs .ugh, what disgusting! Eh, my life is a tin, fuck it in a swamp, I live like a toadstool, and I have to fly, and I have to fly, and I want to fly. I am a merman, I am a merman, no one hangs with me. Inside me vodka, well, it’s disgusting to deal with such a person! But what do I have to do with it? We are exploring the life (“swamp”) of the client... What could the therapist ask the client according to this metaphor?... - What kind of swamp? (let him tell you about it in as much detail as possible. What is it like?) - What does it mean to “live in a swamp”? (primarily at the level of feelings, sensations). - What is the main problem of the “swamp dweller”? (for example, depression or, say, loneliness? (“Would someone talk to me”)… - Has his life always been a “swamp”? If not, then how did his life turn into a swamp (as it was before)? How did he get into it? (himself or someone helped? Who (what) exactly?). - Who is he in it? (“I am Vodyanoy, I am Vodyanoy…”). in the eighth row") - “Vodyany - in Slavic mythology, an evil creature that lives in water and COMMANDS it” (they love it when sacrifices are made to them, otherwise they “amuse themselves” by taking them to their underground rooms, for an irrevocable life, those , who would decide to swim at an “inopportune hour”), although the client, of course, is not required to know mythology, and may understand all this differently, so it is worth clarifying: “Who is the Vodyanoy”?...) - What or who surrounds you? (“All my girlfriends, leeches, and frogs - wow, what disgusting!”...) - What is the desired development of events (maybe all the client wants is to improve the “apartment conditions” (for example, change “swamp” to “ocean”, and not at all “become a person,” as the therapist decided) or: “And I want to fly, I want to fly, I want to fly!!” (what does “fly” mean in real life) - Is there anything good in life? in a “swamp” (an attempt to find out what the secondary benefit is from the problem)? For example, you can hide in it so that no one will find it... And then: “From what?” What resources does the client have? (for example, “he knows how to swim well in troubled water”) - What does he expect from the therapist, who is he in this story? (For example, “the one who will give the client a pole so that he can get out” (and then what does “stretch a pole” mean in real life (and in therapy)?), “the one who will help cleanse himself of the mud of the swamp,” or “ the one who will jump into the swamp and keep him company”?, or perhaps “the one who will give wings so that the client can fly”, etc. - If you imagine that he is pulled out of the swamp, what happens to him? client further? Etc. Perhaps, after the above example, you decided to clarify whether the author of the article is a certified specialist, this is your right, I don’t know about you, but I don’t think that “therapeutic work” necessarily has to be “dull” serious”… and I absolutely agree with Roger van Oych, who once said that “Creative thinking using metaphors plays the same role in our lives as sex. It’s a kind of sex for the mind.” on muscles - use it, or atrophy, working with metaphor allows you to get not only results, but also pleasure from the process...). In addition, with the help of working with metaphor, you can: - expand the client’s subjective picture of the world, make it more holistic, - return the client to an active (author’s) position in his own life, share with him responsibility for what is happening and the subsequent result, - connect the client’s subjective perception and his practical experience in a real situation. It is not necessary to work with a verbal metaphor of life; alternatively, you can offer the client to work with a drawing (visual metaphor). Drawing is difficult to control... there is a chance to “say” more than you yourself realizedor planned to tell... “The chalk of fate” in this case are colored pencils or crayons).Working with drawing is widely used in many areas of therapy, for example, in the same Gestalt therapy, without it it is impossible to imagine art therapy, etc. . “The first to use images for psychotherapeutic purposes were obviously primitive people. Indeed, what other practical significance could rock paintings depicting animals, people, or hunting scenes have? The emergence of painting is not a whim or a whim. There was no time for this in that harsh world. People created these pictures in order to put themselves and their fellow tribesmen into a certain psychological state.” (O.A.Svirepo, O.S.Tumanova). Hunting scenes are a way of “modeling” the desired future - the hunter pierces an animal with a spear, and thus, as it were, “experiences” the victory ahead of schedule, overcomes fear and sets himself up for success... Forms a scenario for the successful development of events. For many years, humanity has been consciously applying ancient techniques. Therefore, creating a metaphorical picture of life (“as it is” and “as we would like”) is far from a new idea in psychology. There is a point of view in therapy that when we change something in a drawing, something in us changes. You may not believe it, but why not try? Progress of work: “What is your life like? What picture could you use to describe your feelings about how you live? What is it: climbing a difficult peak? A squirrel in a wheel, running in circles at ever-increasing speed? Walking in the fog? (N. Kozlov).Make a drawing.2. What would you like to change in your life (how would you change the first picture to say: “I live the way I would like to!”?) Try to develop your metaphor in a positive way, modify, complement, expand. Make a drawing.3 . Discussion and analysis of drawings. How is the first drawing different from the second? By what means (first, perhaps, “magical”, and then real) can we achieve the desired results? When analyzing drawings, we can rely on the criteria for interpreting art therapeutic products, the symbolism of colors, features of the composition of the drawing, etc. It should be remembered that the main expert is the client, not the therapist. When entering, wipe your feet. When leaving, close the door. These are the rules for guests. (H. Murakami, Wonderland Without Brakes and The End of the World) Decoding metaphors: Despite all the difficulties of working with metaphors, working with them can be formalized. To do this, they should be analyzed according to several parameters: Dynamism - static content of the metaphor (examples of dynamic metaphors are: “a road going into the distance, “a river flowing into the sea”, static ones - “reward”). Moreover, dynamics indicates that a person perceives his life as a process, and statics as a given, a phenomenon. Further see the book “Life is a success! How to manage to live and work fully” by N. Kozlov: Movement from left to right or right to left, towards the horizon or from the horizon “Left to right - movement in line with the natural course of life, from right to left - struggle, movement against someone or something. Towards the horizon - to move away from the main flow of life, from the horizon - to return to life. Movement: up - down. Movement down is a reflection of fatigue or the feeling that something is not working out, is not working out. Surrender of positions. Sometimes this reflects a philosophy of life, a desire to live easily, without stress. Rising up in the picture - a person has a willingness to fight, there is a sense of achievement and success. The one who walks along the road smoothly, neither up nor down, keeps himself on a level, does not look for an easy life, but does not plan to specifically strain himself. Brightness - faded The brighter and more colorful the image, the greater the interest in life, the level of energy and willingness to accept life in all its manifestations. A black and white image is a protest against some aspects of life. Limitations are possibilities If you are limited by walls, fences, mountains and other elements, you feel your lack of freedom and weakness in front of forces that are superior to you. If in front of you there is a high sky, openingopen spaces, scattering in different directions of the road - you feel your potential and the wealth of opportunities opening up to you. Hostility - friendliness of the environment A hostile environment in the picture is a feeling of hostility of the surrounding world. If you “ordered” a stinging, hostile wind in your face, then you will fight with someone or something, overcome something. This is written in your picture. It is written down - you will receive it. I am relative to others. Someone sees themselves above others, someone below. Stronger or weaker than the environment. Together or separately from others. What picture do you have? Source of power If in your picture your fairy-tale carriage is driven by magical winged horses, and feasts are arranged by bright fairies with a wave of a light hand - either your life is fabulously lucky, or you are setting yourself up to live for free. Dubious bet. Do you agree? Fog - clarity Fog in the picture - a sense of the complexity of life, confusion in views and assessments, lack of life perspective, no understanding of what to do next. Clarity - confidence in one’s own views and assessments, vision of further steps and prospects. In some pictures there is no fog - everything is visible brightly and clearly, but only up close. The immediate life is clear, but what comes next is not. The better the details are visible, the more specifically a person imagines his future, his prospects. Prospects and results. Perhaps the road just spreads out in front of you, everything around is good, wherever you go along this road, it’s sunny everywhere and the same everywhere... If there are turns, then there will be nothing new and unexpected around the turn. This is a bright and smooth life, but in such a life there is not enough desire for results, and sooner or later a person, having sat down again, will no longer get up: “Why?” Why move forward if everything ahead is the same? This is a choice of philosophy of life - the choice of life as a process worker or as a result person. Which choice suits you? “A person grows as his goals grow.” (Schiller) Even if you have reached the top (result), is there anywhere for you to move on? Will you have new heights? This is not an uncommon situation: a life goal has been achieved, and a person freezes: “And what next?...”... Working with the metaphor of life, we can see a lot of useful things: how the person himself relates to life (does he expect only bad things from the future, because “ it has always been this way,” or good), what are his main life guidelines, what “life role” he assigns to himself and other people, etc. Nobody says that creating drawings and their subsequent analysis will “solve all problems.” I agree with D. Khlomov that working with metaphor “resembles some kind of “throwing”: “The old man threw a net - a tin can, threw a second time - there is nothing, third time threw - a galosh, fourth time threw - a goldfish.” This is approximately the same action, the same nets that need to be cast in relation to the drawing. They threw it, looked: galoshes, - well, okay!” What if?)…In Gestalt, working with metaphor is based primarily on awareness of one’s perception of reality and understanding the degree of its influence on the client’s behavior and life in general. Working with metaphor involves the following stages: Stage 1 of work. Creating a metaphor. Talking about a metaphor. After creating a metaphor, the therapist invites the client to talk (in the third person) about it (i.e., in this case, about the content of his drawing). In the description, it is proposed to use as many adjectives as possible that describe the objects of the metaphor, their relationships, and methods of interaction. At this stage, the client carries out a study of his vision of the situation. This corresponds to the phase of working with confluence (merging with one’s experience) and working with introjection (beliefs). Stage 2 of work. Contacting. Work on assimilating projections. The therapist helps the client clarify the content of the metaphor by asking him to talk about his metaphor in the first person. The main task of this stage is to clarify the client’s blocked needs. To do this, special attention is paid to the main character (central fragment) of the metaphor. Questions can be used: what does the main character do, how, whydoes he need it? It is important to find out: what need is frustrated, what makes its satisfaction scary? The client can identify not only with the main character, but also with various parts of the metaphor (projective images) and assimilate his feelings and desires. According to F. Perls, this is work with parts of a projected image, where the client alternately becomes each of the parts and, at the same time, lives them holistically. The polarities of each of the poles can also be clarified. The therapist encourages the client to stay with the sensations and feelings that are evoked by the metaphor or image. Stage 3. Full contact. Finding ways to satisfy needs. When the client’s projections are assimilated, introjects are worked out, he gets the opportunity to navigate his needs and look for new ways to satisfy them. At this stage, it is important to clarify what actions are avoided by the client and for what reason. An active creative search, experimentation to expand the boundaries of the “acceptable”, and enrichment of the behavioral repertoire are appropriate here. The manifestation of psychological defenses is possible: retroflection and egotism. Shuttle into a real life situation. In order for the changes in behavior that occurred during the session to become more conscious of the client, it is necessary to draw his attention to how the situation of the metaphor is connected with the real life, personal and professional activities of the client. The client gets the opportunity to understand who this or that need is addressed to and find a way to contact it (in real life). Next, as a rule, follows work with internal phenomenology or work on the boundary of the therapist-client contact. Further work with the metaphor of life. A metaphor for life is not a life strategy formulated once and forever. It can be changed. Of course, it’s not enough to just draw yourself on a throne or write: “I want to be the mistress of the sea”... “Deciphering” the metaphor does not cancel further work. By the way, if the experts are right, and we remember only those events that correspond to our idea of ​​the world , then it’s worth remembering that in the lives of each of us there are both negative and positive experiences. If you try very hard, you can recall any memories from the past. Everything that happened to you in life. Everything that she herself considered long forgotten. Just tune in to the right rhythm, it’s right there – once! - and jumps out. From the depths of memory - straight into your brain. But do you know what's most interesting? Our memory is a terribly strange thing. Such a huge closet with drawers, crammed with everything. Extra knowledge, useless information, delusional thoughts fill this closet from top to bottom. But you can’t unearth something really important, even if you crack it... (H. Murakami, Afterglow) For example, “Draw a graph of your life. On the X axis, the past is on the left, the present is on the right. On the Y axis, negative experiences are at the bottom, positive experiences are at the top. Mark in this coordinate system the most important events for you (even if they may seem insignificant to some) and reflect the amplitude of their negative and positive impact. After analyzing the current situation, try to remember the maximum of good things that happened or are in your life. Draw a new life schedule and compare it with the old one. Is it a completely different matter? Working on negative points on the life graph involves a detailed examination of the presented situations, their analysis and rethinking. For example, even the presence of quarrels with loved ones indicates that you had someone to quarrel with), while some people have no loved ones at all. Perhaps you need to “complete” some situations from the past, since you remember them” (E. Alipova) In groups, an exercise may be offered to realize the degree of “your participation” in life. We often don’t notice how we involuntarily relieve ourselves of responsibility for something. For example, we say: “He wipes his feet on me.” Participants are asked to recall some significant situations from life. Another person, listening to the story, tries to understand how much the first participant believes that he influenced this event. Then the participant is asked.