[humanser] verbal techniques and reading affect

Mon Sep 26 02:09:37 UTC 2016

I'd love to meet you someday. Sounds like we both have something in common-love working with kids. I remember you like your seniors experience in the nursing home to. That was one of my favorite jobs I've ever had as activity assistant.

Ericka Short
1750 Fordem Ave. #508
Madison. WI. 53704
608-665-3170

 from my iPhone 6s

> On Sep 25, 2016, at 9:04 PM, Kaiti Shelton via HumanSer <humanser at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> 
> Hi Ericka,
> 
> Yes-the space in and of itself is definitely a challenge.  I was
> rather spoiled last semester with children in a classroom setting
> because we had quite a large area to move around in for large motor
> experiences. I don't know where internships might take me, but I
> don't think I'll continue to work in psych much after my schooling is
> finished.  I've been pleasantly surprised so far in how much I like
> working with this population and the specific factors involved in the
> treatment, but my target populations are children either in a school
> setting or hospitalized children who most often will be in a bed with
> me playing bedside.  Still, I appreciate any other suggestions that
> might come up on this thread, as counseling skills will come in handy
> regardless of where I find myself working professionally.
> 
>> On 9/25/16, Ericka via HumanSer <humanser at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>> Sounds like you're doing all you can in the small room you have. If you
>> really enjoy this setting, maybe you'll be lucky enough to work in a place
>> with more space next time.
>> 
>> Ericka Short
>> 1750 Fordem Ave. #508
>> Madison. WI. 53704
>> 608-665-3170
>> 
>> from my iPhone 6s
>> 
>>> On Sep 25, 2016, at 7:07 PM, Kaiti Shelton via HumanSer
>>> <humanser at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>>> 
>>> Hi Ericka and Rebecca,
>>> 
>>> That probably would make them nervous or distract them.  The room we
>>> are working in unfortunately doesn't have a lot of extra space, so in
>>> order to walk around I'd have to walk around the inside of the circle
>>> of chairs (they're lined up pretty much against the walls), and we
>>> often move drums and other equipment to the center of the circle when
>>> we're not using us in order to give us some physical space.  We
>>> prepare and pass out lyric sheets when we plan for a particular song
>>> to be discussed, but when the clients request songs to communicate a
>>> part of their story to the group we don't even have words for them to
>>> focus on.  I have been able to do this in other group settings,
>>> though; I had a rolling stool I used when working with older adults so
>>> I could play and see their faces when close at eye level, and I found
>>> that helpful.
>>> 
>>> Rebecca, I like your idea of throwing emotions out there.  Perhaps I
>>> already am doing a version of this by repeating a particular line from
>>> the song and asking the clients what they interpreted it to mean.  I
>>> sometimes say what I think of it first and then see how their
>>> responses might be similar or different from mine.  With prepared
>>> songs this is even easier as I put the lyric sheet on my BrailleSense
>>> and can follow along with the clients as the music plays.  I also now
>>> have a general idea of how some of the clients react to different
>>> types of song material, but I am also careful not to assume anything
>>> hard and fast about their reactions as that isn't fair to them, and I
>>> also am mindful of all the other things going on in their treatment.
>>> The only bummer is that we don't have many sessions with them as
>>> they're only in a 28 day program, and we only have practicum twice a
>>> week.
>>> 
>>>> On 9/25/16, Ericka via HumanSer <humanser at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>>>> Is it permissible to walk about the room together more not a verbal
>>>> information or would that make the people nervous while the music is
>>>> playing?
>>>> 
>>>> Ericka Short
>>>> 1750 Fordem Ave. #508
>>>> Madison. WI. 53704
>>>> 608-665-3170
>>>> 
>>>> from my iPhone 6s
>>>> 
>>>>> On Sep 25, 2016, at 12:15 AM, Kaiti Shelton via HumanSer
>>>>> <humanser at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>>>>> 
>>>>> Hi all,
>>>>> 
>>>>> This semester my practicum is in a substance abuse treatment facility.
>>>>> I'm working with a partner and my supervisor on a women's unit and
>>>>> have found that in spite of previous assumptions I had about the work
>>>>> that I love it.
>>>>> 
>>>>> One skill that is addressed in this particular practicum is the use of
>>>>> verbal techniques and counseling skills.  It is different from my
>>>>> previous practicum experiences. My first experience with older adults
>>>>> on a dementia unit of a nursing home was all about just getting
>>>>> comfortable using the music with clients, engaging them, and learning
>>>>> to consider their various strengths and areas of growth in the various
>>>>> domains of functioning.  The next two practicums with a teenager and
>>>>> young children in a special needs classroom were about working in an
>>>>> experience-oriented way rather than an outcome-oriented way, and using
>>>>> music to work on global group needs that contributed to academic
>>>>> learning, such as behavior and social skills as many of the children
>>>>> had Autism Spectrum Disorders respectively. This is my first
>>>>> experience working with cognitively typical adults, who are processing
>>>>> complex emotions and life situations including various forms of
>>>>> trauma.
>>>>> 
>>>>> My supervisor definitely thrives while working with this population
>>>>> and has a history of working in psych, particularly with juvenile
>>>>> offenders.  Sometimes she can get carried away with the group and
>>>>> doesn't leave much room for students to practice leadership, but she
>>>>> recognizes this and has told us to not be afraid of asking/reminding
>>>>> her to step back if she seems overbearing to us.  Right now as we've
>>>>> only just begun co-leading (my partner and I), we often appreciate her
>>>>> stepping in when she does.  The issue for me is that often times when
>>>>> the group starts processing song material the clients often have
>>>>> physical responses to the music, lyrics, or both that I can't see.
>>>>> With the amount of vision I do have I can sometimes notice if a client
>>>>> is hunched over in their seat to form a closed position, but I often
>>>>> can't tell if they're silently crying or have a sad expression on
>>>>> their faces.  My supervisor uses this information a lot as she
>>>>> facilitates processing and will say thinggs like, "Client X, I noticed
>>>>> you had some tears.  Can you share about that?"  I noticed my
>>>>> supervisor also often just asks other members of the group, "Client Y,
>>>>> what about you?  Can you share what you thought of in that
>>>>> experience?"
>>>>> 
>>>>> While I suppose I could always use the latter example as a means of
>>>>> engaging the clients, I'm wondering how I could pick up on some of the
>>>>> physical expressions I'm missing.  This wasn't so much of an issue
>>>>> with the older adults or children I worked with as they were more
>>>>> likely to verbally express their affect.  My supervisor says I'm doing
>>>>> a good job of inserting my voice in the processing even though she
>>>>> doesn't always leave a lot of room for that, and also understands that
>>>>> right now I'm using her facilitation to gather information about the
>>>>> clients that informs my use of verbal techniques when I do speak.
>>>>> This has led me to use a lot of paraphrasing and reflection of feeling
>>>>> and my supervisor understands why that is happening, but I'd like to
>>>>> be able to lead processing experiences with a greater repertoire of
>>>>> verbal techniques if at all possible.  I know how to use a lot more of
>>>>> them than just paraphrasing and reflection, I'm just not sure how to
>>>>> best gain information that will inform my facilitation when the
>>>>> clients aren't verbal or don't give auditory indications of their
>>>>> affect, E.G sniffling or grabbing a tissue from the box in the center
>>>>> of the circle.  I acknowledge that it is okay to rely on information I
>>>>> get from my partner and supervisor as a co-therapist in this setting,
>>>>> but I would like to be able to also perform as well as I can when
>>>>> facilitating on my own.
>>>>> 
>>>>> --
>>>>> Kaiti Shelton
>>>>> 
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>>> 
>>> --
>>> Kaiti Shelton
>>> 
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> 
> 
> -- 
> Kaiti Shelton
> 
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