[ Contents | Search | Next | Previous | Up ]
From: Ellen-Marie Silverman
Date: 03 Oct 2007
Time: 13:03:30 -0500
Remote Name: 205.188.116.74
[[If they do not want to change (like you wrote, some pelple like being "comfortable"), what is the next step you would take with a client with this attitude? Do you work to get them to understand that change will happen and that they need to accept that and build from there?]] Hello, Evan, I appreciate your interest in working effectively with change. I think speech-language pathologists generally estimate, i.e., make a prognosis, regarding clients' ability to effectively address change at the present time before making a decision about whether or not to offer treatment. That said, I think most speech-language pathologists would agree that it would be foolhardly to enroll a client in therapy who does not show the insight and committment required to achieve realistic goals through participating in speech therapy. A referral to a psychologist or other professional who helps individuals develop self-confidence and personal insight might be appropriate at this juncture. But it is important to realize that someone who does not appear ready to accept responsibility for communication change in the present may be ready to do so later on, so that needs to be carefully and clearly expressed to clients we choose not enroll in the present because of what we could label their CURRENT inadequate motivation. Also, recognizing our own preference to feel comfortable rather than to face the unknown to bring about changes we say we desire for ourselves helps us have compassion for a client who, like us, occasionally feels at a, perhaps, unspoken or unrecognized personal level fearful of change. That apparent contradiction of simultaneously wanting change and not wanting it is oh, so common. If clients are afraid at the moment to make a committment to the program we offer, we recognize they are not doing anything bad. They are simply being human. That is when we mix in a dose of patience with a barrel of compassion. And, "Yes," if it seems appropriate, I do mention that change will take place regardless of addressing it formally by pariticipating in treatment. Habits strength will increase, for example. So, all-in-all, the longer we wait to actively substitute helpful perceptions and concepts for out-worn and, currently, detrimental ones and servicable communication and speech practices and behaviors for unhelpful ones, the harder it will become to do so. BUT that is the client's choice once we make it clear as we show compassion and patience rather than harsh judgment as we explain the consequences of the different choices available. Again, Evan, thank you for your thoughtful responses. I hope my reply has been helpful. Ellen-Marie Silverman