[nabs-l] Seeking alternative techniques for working with problems with couples?

[Cindy Bennett]

I definitely understand and would love feedback especially how to work
with clients who might be halucinating. For example, once in
personality psychology we were going over the personality disorders
and my professors had some examples of clients on tape. We were to
watch them and try to gage their symptoms and match them to a
disorder. During one interview a man commented on how the room looked.
I did not know until someone pointed out that his descriptions were
completely made up, and what he had said about the room, something
about paint chipping, wasn't an unrealistic description, and it made
me wonder how i would gage such things.

My guess, and i am not an expert nor to i have my license, would be to
gage as much as you can from tone of voice and what people are saying
as possible. It is amazing what you can figure out just from those. If
you have a confident mind set that you can figure someone out rather
than have the blocking mind set that you can't because you are blind,
you will be able to go a lot further.

Also, looking through a client's medical history before the interview
and talking to them about their past which is done by any counselor
will give you a lot of insight.

I definitely think it is possible for blind people to counsel, and i
am sure that all clinitians have their clients they are doubtful
about.

Just keep up with the field and new research and knowledge and take
advantage of every opportunity you have to gain experience. Any
psychologist who thinks they have the answer to everything i feel is a
contradiction to the field. We will never know everything, and there
will always be an exception to the rule.

I am interested in more feedback though, and if anyone with counseling
experience has ever had trouble with clients because of their
blindness, i would love to hear how you dealt with it. How do you look
over a client's forms when they fill them out during their first
visit? How do you take notes? I feel like using a computer is a bit
more invasive and distracting than taking written notes, but i
couldn't think of another way to do it.

I will be doing a practicum this fall, and although i won't be
conducting any therapy sessions, i will be shaddowing a lot and am
looking forward to the experience so i can start thinking about how to
answer these questions presented by grad programs or employers,
because with anything, it is always better to walk in with some
answers, so i'm glad you're asking us.

Cindy

On 4/26/10, Gerardo Corripio <gera1027 at gmail.com> wrote:
> Hi listers, especially psychologists or who are studying in the field:
> Unfortunately in university because I didn't have blind psychologist role
> models to look up or ask questions I wasn't orientated right in my course of
> studies thus my question. Any ideas of what alternative techniques or if
> it's possible to work with couples facing problems? Due to the amount of
> visual info required to see how their communication is and other factors
> what alternative techniques do you guy use? Can we blind psychologist work
> with family therapy or problems with husband and wife? Hope I made myself
> understood; I have the idea but don't know if I expressed it right. I
> sometimes have the feeling that my mother especially thinks my teachers
> passed me because of my blindness because she has the exptectations that as
> a psychologist I should have all the answers and know everything! Has this
> happened to you guys also? We're also human bings and have our problems and
> emotions and feelings!
> Any ideas aprreciated or experiences.
> Gerardo
>
>
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