‘Therapist authenticity, creativity and use of positive resources in cognitive analytic therapy’.
In July 2018 OM presented a case study from the CREW project delivered for Barnet, Enfield and Haringey Mental Health Trust, in workshop form at the ACAT conference. The workshop was delivered by Dr Nick Barnes, Jon Hall and a young person from CAMHS.
Jon and Nick have been working together over the last couple of years, developing ways of working that seek to shift the perspective of how we see those with emotional distress and mental health needs from within the safety of our services. Often those that access and engage with services are viewed through a framing of their distress, difficulties and deficits, and seldom given the opportunity to demonstrate their strengths and abilities and seldom given the space to work through their assets.
The CREW project has sought to challenge this stance within services offering opportunities for people to access support for their emotional wellbeing through art and music, as they progress on their journey of recovery and re-connecting. The CREW programme allowed for people to work 1:1 and in groups through art and music and to eventually contribute to the running and delivery of a performance for friends, family and staff – a performance that allowed the spot light to be shone on
‘C’ as she described her journey from engagement in CAT informed work, both in the clinic and the community, through to participation in the CREW programme, and eventually, allowing her to go on and become a peer support worker.
For the final part of the workshop delegates got to experience what it’s like to create and record their own short song together, overcoming any resistance and ending up with an improvised rough track entitled ’Connected’. The track featured improvised signing, words and melodies recorded and performed by the everyone in the workshop. It was featured for the conference ‘culture shot’