I am consecrated, healed, freed by encounter.
Jacob Levy Moreno (founder of psychodrama, pioneer of group psychotherapy, 1889-1974)
My focus
The quickest way to solve a problem is often through group work. As group leader, I find that the security and acceptance one finds in a group assists in the spontaneity of meetings, joy and creative freedom. “Experience instead of being stuck in the mind” – in addition to intellectual deliberation, I emphasize the importance of action, where situations, experiences and visions can actually be experienced and lived through.
Methods
In my work with groups, I adopt a solution-based focus, drawing on personal strengths and resources. I use action-oriented, creative and scenic methods: role play, production of metaphors, improvisation, and pictorial work.
I build on psychodrama (from the Greek psyche “soul” and drama “action”) – one of the oldest methods of psychotherapy. Its founder, Jacob L. Moreno, saw people as creative and social beings, (co-)responsible for their own actions, as well as for those of the communities to which they belong. According to Moreno, the mental health of the individual is closely related to his or her integration into these communities. In order to cope with problems, a person must develop his/her creative potential in so-called action and experience roles.
My work is strongly influenced by my beloved and respected teacher and mentor, Dr Max G. Clayton (1935–2013). He was a student of Moreno and was director of the Australian College of Psychodrama. I am profoundly grateful to him for many years of inspiration, as well as for his provocative and creative ways.