How to use non-judgmental curiosity in working with intellectualisation as defence

Описание: After trauma, it really helped me to have a therapist who gently highlighted my emotional coping strategies – things such as intellectualising – but totally without judgment. Her approach affirmed my need, at times, to think rather than to feel – because feelings at times were too overwhelming to be able to cope with, and I sought safety instead in a more detached, intellectual approach.

She didn't try to change me, but understood why I was doing it. Her total lack of judgment evoked in me a greater sense of safety and also in turn the ability to start to be curious about what was going on in me. This led me to being able to explore alternative ways of engaging with my emotions.

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I’m Carolyn Spring and I’m an author, trainer, consultant and Founder of the Trauma Recovery Community. I help counsellors and therapists help their clients recover from complex trauma. Over 40,000 people have accessed my live or online training , and I’ve provided hundreds of hours of 1:1 consultations with therapists to unpick the really tricky aspects of working with complex trauma.

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