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Thursdays with Marion: the therapist's tale

Susan Sobel1

  • 1Department of Psychiatry, College of Medicine, University of Vermont, 1 S. Prospect Street, Arnold 6, Burlington, VT 05401, USA. susan.sobel@vtmednet.org

Journal of Genetic Counseling
|October 1, 2005
PubMed

Insights

This case study explores narrative therapy for individuals facing chronic or terminal illnesses. It highlights a collaborative approach to address depression and anxiety following presymptomatic testing for Huntington’s disease (HD).

Area of Science:

  • Psychology
  • Clinical Psychology
  • Psychotherapy

Background:

  • Individuals with chronic and terminal illnesses often experience profound psychological distress, including depression and anxiety.
  • Presymptomatic genetic testing for conditions like Huntington’s disease (HD) can precipitate significant emotional challenges.

Observation:

  • This paper details a case study of a patient undergoing narrative therapy after presymptomatic testing for HD.
  • The therapy aimed to address the patient's depression and anxiety, focusing on the impact of illness on family narratives.

Findings:

  • Narrative therapy provides a collaborative framework for exploring and reframing the impact of illness on personal and family stories.
  • The therapeutic process involved examining the premises of a narrative model in the context of chronic illness.

Implications:

  • This approach offers a potential therapeutic avenue for individuals confronting the psychological burden of genetic predispositions to serious illnesses.
  • The findings underscore the importance of narrative approaches in understanding and managing the psychosocial aspects of chronic and terminal diseases.

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