What to do when a diagnosis doesn’t fit?— Amy Druker
$9.90
This article will explore ‘the politics of naming problems’. Who should have the right to name the problems that we face? I will share from my work with a 17 year old, K who, despite really wanting a diagnosis, determined that the one selected for her was not a fit, and how we went about re-writing the ‘diagnosis’ to one that she felt suited her much better. Narrative therapists are interested in the meaning a person makes of a diagnosis. What about the label fits or does not fit? These questions demonstrate our belief in a person’s expertise about their lives. In the asking, we hand over the ‘authority’ to the person consulting us to decide if a label fits, and if it does not, to choose a name for the problem that does. ‘Therapy’ becomes a collaborative exploration, in which the person’s expertise about their own life is sought and valued.
