Creative Methods in Schema Therapy Advances and Innovation in Clinical Practice

1. Assessment and formulation in Schema Therapy
2. Experiential techniques at assessment
3. Somatic perspective in Schema Therapy: the role of the body in the awareness and transformation of modes and schemas
4. Understanding and meeting core emotional needs
5. Core principles of imagery
6. Imagery rescripting for childhood memories
7. Working with trauma memories and complex post traumatic stress disorder
8. Current life imagery
9. Creative use of mode dialogues with the Vulnerable Child and Dysfunctional Critic modes
10. Spontaneity and play in Schema Therapy
11. Creative methods with coping modes and chair work
12. Bridging the gap between forensic and general clinical practice: working in the ‘here and now’ with difficult schema modes
13. Schema Therapy for couples: interventions to promote secure connections
14. The art of empathic confrontation and limit-setting
15. Authenticity and personal openness in the therapy relationship
16. Therapist schema activation and self-care
17. Developing a compassionate mind to strengthen the Healthy Adult
18. Building the Healthy Adult in eating disorders: a schema mode and Emotion-Focused therapy approach for anorexia nervosa
19. Brief work: schema informed CBT
20. Endings and the therapy relationship

Creative Methods in Schema Therapy captures current trends and developments in Schema Therapy in rich clinical detail, with a vividness that inspires and equips the reader to integrate these new ways of working directly into their practice. It begins with creative adaptations to assessment and formulation, including the integration of body methods to promote engagement and to bring about early emotional change. Other chapters introduce innovative methods to lift a formulation off the page and it goes on to bring to life new developments across all aspects of the ST change repertoire, including limited reparenting, imagery, trauma processing, chair work, the therapy relationship, empathic confrontation and endings. For the specialist, there are chapters on working with forensic modes, eating disorders and couples work. Finally, the book includes chapters on the integration of key principles and techniques from Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, Emotion Focused Therapy and Compassionate Mind work into a core schema model. The book will appeal not only to full-fledged schema therapists, but also to junior therapists and therapists from other modalities who are willing to enhance their ways of working.