Motivational Interviewing
I love motivational interviewing because children and families are told what to do so many times that sometimes I feel like they know more answers than the therapist. Ha-ha. So, This technique helps the client realize that the “client is an expert” and helps them find and act on their own solutions and ideas. I also want to add that this looks so easy intellectually easy, but it needs a lot of practice and skill to not go into “fix it as a helper” mode but go into “exploring and supporting” mode.
What is motivational interviewing:
I feel like I always add articles from positive psychology. They have wonderful articles. But this article covers information about it really well. https://positivepsychology.com/motivational-interviewing/
How to use it in the session:
After I give counseling home works and have two or three weeks of the client not following through with it. I like using these questions to help the patients move towards change. The best part is the one where you explore more on why don’t you want to change which will need the OARS of motivational interviewing where you are asking
– Open ended questions :to help them think on why they don’t want to change.
– Affirmation: to praise them for the hard work they are putting into acknowledging that there might be benefit for not changing.
– Reflective listening : to not judge them and also teach them to not judge themselves for not wanting to change.
– Summarizing : Lastly, being able to validate what is shared and gently reframe the situation to help them push towards change.
