A heuristic investigation Is there a need for a counselling/psychotherapy service for people with cleft lips?

Abstract

Having a facial anomaly is more than likely to cause some degree of psychological discomfort. Prior to establishing the most appropriate psychological intervention, there is a need to determine how having an atypical appearance manifests in day-to-day life. Counselling/psychotherapy provides people with the opportunity to talk about their experience -to tell their story. The aim of this heuristic investigation is to determine the lived experience of having a cleft lip and the potential need for counselling/psychotherapy. A heuristic approach was selected as the most appropriate method and one which would enable participants to talk about their experience. It also requires the researcher to have personal experience of the phenomenon. This study highlights the lack of opportunity to talk about how the presence of a facial disfigurement impacts upon life. Even within the family, it seems, the norm was that 'it' was there, yet not spoken about. Counselling/psychotherapy could therefore provide a form of education. Provision of such a service would give people a choice. A discussion on the limitations of heuristics indicates the importance of the researchers' awareness, of their own experience, in relation to the phenomena being investigated. In conclusion, a counsellor/ therapist is considered to be an essential member of the multi-disciplinary cleft team, caring for persons with clefts from birth to maturity.

Social class and the therapeutic relationship: The perspective of therapists as clients. A qualitative study using a questionnaire survey

“…From birth, socialisation messages, identified by Liu (2011Liu ( , 2013, shape how we respond to and interpret our environments (Piff, Stancato, Martinez, Kraus & Keltner, 2012), influencing our values, behaviours and perceptions in order to remain congruent within one's social group (Kraus, Piff, Mendoza-Denton, Rheinschmidt & Keltner, 2012). In the process of socialisation, these messages are absorbed and become so innate we do not recognise them (Rose, 2004), until they bump up against an 'other'. Clients' socialisation messages may therefore influence how they see themselves (equal/superior/inferior) in relation to a therapist from a different social class (Kim & Cardemil, 2012).…”

Taking care of staff: A comprehensive model of support for paramedics and emergency medical dispatchers.

“…The scientific literature reviewed as part of this article questions the appropriateness and validity of stand-alone debriefing and, in some instances, has found that such approaches are toxic practices (Arendt & Elkit, 2003; Rose, 1997; Wessely et al, 1999). Research by Regehr et al (2002), Shakespeare-Finch et al (2003), and Beaton et al (1997) indicates the benefits of social support in general, and work colleague support in particular, in the promotion of psychological health within an emergency service context.…”