Taking care of a real self - description of the psychotherapeutic process of a patient with narcissistic personality disorders in the field of dance/movement psychotherapy

Introduction: Dance/movement psychotherapy (DMT) is a psychotherapeutic trend that belongs to the approaches that involve working with the body. Thinking about a wider perspective, DMT belongs to the group of action-oriented psychotherapies. It assumes that the person, while moving, can show his/her emotional states. Additionally, it can lead to development and personal integration. The goal is to deepen awareness. Psychotherapy with dance and movement is practiced among psychotic patients, patients suffering from neurotic or personality disorders, and as a method of personal development. The aim of the work is to describe the psychotherapeutic process of an individual client in the field of dance/movement psychotherapy as a method in which dance leads to development and personal integration. Material and method: Working with a client, Beata, took place in a strictly defined setting. Meetings took place once a week in the same office during 55 minutes. They were of an individual nature. First, Beata was diagnosed according to the DSM-5 [1] and ICD-10 [2] classification, which was supplemented with the PDM-2 diagnosis [3]. During the therapeutic work, the phenomena of transference and countertransference were taken into account, the patient’s behavior was interpreted according to John Bowlby’s attachment theory and mentalization. During practicing DMT it is important to take care of Authentic Movement method, observation of movement using the Laban Bartenieff Movement System (LBMS) method and the Kastenberg Movement Profile (KMP). Results: The changes that DMT psychotherapy started to bring were observed both in the client’s movement and in the verbal layer. The client has acquired the ability to observe her feelings and needs. This influenced her perception of announcement heard from different people and the decisions she made. The DMT therapy with Beata is not over yet, which makes it possible to take a deeper look at topics related to therapeutic goals. Conclusions: Dance/movement psychotherapy has proved to be an effective method of working with patients with personality disorders psychopathology of the narcissistic type. This method makes it possible to build a sense of the patient’s boundaries and needs, and to strengthen self-esteem. Sessions seem to be very helpful in integrating inner life, feelings and experience. In addition, it helps in dealing with the internal tension of patients and gives the opportunity to expand ranges of movement. In the verbal part, it is possible to discuss the problems that the client carries within himself, which cause him fear, anxiety and other unpleasant emotions.

From De-Humanization to the Flourishing Feast: A Study of Ecological Conversion by means of a Triple Colloquy with Pope Francis, Pope John Paul II, and Bernard Lonergan, S.J.

This paper will first source Pope Francis’s notion of ecological conversion with Pope John Paul II’s writings that advocate for an awakening of humanity to a harmony with nature and one another. Second, using Bernard Lonergan’s notion of conversion as the foundational structure of religion, this paper will establish ecological conversion as an authentic movement into living more consciously as a member of the body of Christ. Finally, this paper will address how ecological conversion can reverse the destructive cycle of decline by drawing all of creation to the great heavenly feast.

Reconceptualising emotional capital and intimacy using a sociological lens: the Authentic Revolution

Sociologists and public health scholars have called attention to the rise of social isolation and loneliness in the US. Considering these developments, it is vital to extend the sociological imagination to better understand the forms of meaningful connection and social relationship characteristics sought by individuals. The growing Authentic Movement represents a series of decentralised social groups in the US and abroad that focus on Authentic Relating and Circling Practices. This ethnographic research combines semi-structured interviews and participant observation techniques to examine how these groups promote and allow for participants to explore concepts of emotion intimacy and alternative ways to form authentic connections with others in psychologically safe and (semi-) structured environments. In addition, the research aims to explore how these communities specifically address the rising trends and social problem of social isolation and limited meaningful (emotional) connection with others.

Dance improvisation through Authentic Movement: A practice of discernment

Dance improvisation in performance is often spirited and unpredictable. But the form can also be hampered by its conditions of uncertainty so that a state of open, spontaneous creativity can actually become difficult to achieve in performance situations. In particular, the perceived ‘judgment’ of an audience can alternately enhance or inhibit the performer’s creative engagement with open improvisation. This article describes a studio process utilizing Authentic Movement which was directed towards a performance in which the dancers attempted to diminish the negative impact that external factors, or internalized perceptions of external factors, can have on improvisation. However, the article is specifically focused on the experiences of a single dancer (the author) in the studio practice which underpinned the performance. At the heart of this practice were personal explorations of how best to discern a positive personal interest while improvising. This discernment is framed as a means to define an ‘inner witness’ (drawing from Authentic Movement theory): an internal perceptual anchor at the centre of the practice which helps fosters an open, imaginative engagement with improvisation. The article also seeks to clarify a subjective situation in objective, theoretical terms and so to shed light on a phenomenon also experienced by many other performers of improvisation. Drawing on the work of Teresa Brennan and Mihali Csikszentmihalyi, the article examines how the affective impact of judgment can interrupt the spontaneous flow of embodied imagination in improvisation.

An Embodied Artistic Inquiry into Attachment-Oriented Therapeutic Relationships

In this study, I utilized an embodied artistic inquiry self-study to explore my experience of attachment in the therapeutic movement relationships (TMR) created as a dance/movement therapy intern at a psychiatric residential treatment center for children. The research was guided by three questions: How do I experience the TMR with children in a psychiatric residential treatment setting using attachment theory? How is my personal attachment style influencing and guiding the therapeutic relationship? How does my identification of salient moments relate to my own attachment style and aesthetic preference? Data were collected using journal entries that reflected on the researcher’s experience of attachment, saliency, and Tortora’s D.A.N.C.E. qualities of attachment (Clin Soc Work J 38(1):37–50, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10615-009-0254-9, 2010). I analyzed the data using discussion and Authentic Movement with a research consultant in order to synthesize and describe the experience of each salient moment. Repeated movements included grounded and unstable walking, changing of levels, core-distal movements, circling and carving arms, and recuperation. The themes that resulted from repeated movements and discussion with the research consultant include foundational movements, holding discomfort, connection to a specific client, and playfulness. These results reinforced the importance of stability and self-awareness for a therapist especially in relationship to how their movement and nonverbal preferences may have been learned from attachment relationships. Furthermore, results show the impact of saliency and the clinician’s aesthetic preference. In addition, the results reflected the strong relationship among nonverbal qualities of attachment and the TMR. These results suggested that qualities of attachment underlie the effectiveness of the TMR. Although limitations of the study prevented me from drawing correlative conclusions, the therapist may be able to strengthen the therapeutic relationship by targeting primary attachment models, and suggestions for further research are included.

Somatic‐Performative Research: Artistic practices, pedagogical processes, methodological principles

Somatic‐performative research (SPR) is a mode of Artistic Practice as Research I have been developing in the past fifteen years. Major influences of SPR have been Laban/Bartenieff Movement Analysis, Authentic Movement, dance theatre and performance. Performativity in a somatic perspective is a constant state of change, between pulsing and resting, innovation and balance, in a process of merging, differentiating and growing. In SPR, the research subject and its enquiries are alive and pulsing in contrasting forces. We merge into them to move with and be moved by them, in dynamic relationship with an inter-artistic creative environment. The association of somatic and performative research implies specific pedagogical choices, strategies and activities. As part of an academic moving field, the SPR encompasses the integration of inner attunement and coherence with artistic exploration, sensorial merger and critical analysis, creativity and social relevance.