Dissertation - World Federation of Music Therapy

In fig. 7.1 the therapist has given every session a title and included a miniature
version of the mandalas. The process developed from: anxiety, doubt, feeling
threatened, having pains, being isolated, having low self-esteem, being “at the bottom
of the barrel” to: being confident, being able to tolerate the pain and uncertainty,
accepting and exploring the conflicts, having images of other qualities, using fairy
tales and fantasy as a resource, “being on top of the barrel”.
How this process can be described and interpreted within a narrative framework is
discussed below. The therapist described session #6 as a pivotal session. The bottom
was reached, the client endured this very difficult experience, and from then on it
went slowly but surely upwards, as confirmed by PIJØ in the interview: “This is also
a way to find inner strength: I dare risk something, even if I am extremely vulnerable.
I found courage to do that [LOB: and it gave results?] Yes”.
The participant’s experience as expressed in the interview
PIJØ contributed to the grounding of all core categories except ‘Coming to terms with
life and death”. Quotes can be seen in table 6.2. In the interview she described how
old ‘scripts’ were changed, and how this influenced her quality of life and
interpersonal relationships: “Before I felt very much that I had to be strong, that I had
to handle everything. I almost think it can make you sick to live like that. I have also
experienced how people in my network react if I am weak. It is OK to be in that state
and not fight all the time. Be able to say: I need peace and rest. [Do you consider that
an important change?] I feel that I am much better to live here-and-now – and not
worry so much about how I manage. Previously things like my financial problems
would have knocked me down, now it’s like I’m saying ’It’s going to be OK
somehow’. [You don’t get knocked down so often?] No.”
Even if the improvements were somewhat “intangible” and the process was
characterized by frequent changes in physical health PIJØ stated that she was able to
apply some of the coping strategies explored in the imagery to real life problems: “I
took something with me and used it in a different situation”. She described with
several examples, how the imagery was used to explore the conditions and emotions
“on the bottom”, and to “rehearse” new attitudes and the accompanying feelings. On
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