The Pattern System allows a psychotherapist to map the psyche of a therapy client in detail. It provides a way for you to clarify the unique character structure of your clients, leading to an understanding of each client's specific needs, strengths, and difficulties.
This organizational map makes it easier for you to apply your existing therapeutic knowledge in a way that is tailored to each person. It is especially useful when your treatment of a particular client is stalled or you are confused about how to proceed. By mapping his or her patterns and healthy capacities, you are guided to a clearer understanding of where the growth process is stuck and what to do about it.
The Pattern System provides handy information about the kinds of underlying dynamics that are likely to be operating for each type of pattern a client may have. It also will help you to understand possible transference and countertransference issues that may arise with each client depending on their patterns and yours.
For example, clients who have a Prideful Pattern have a need to be seen as special and better than others. Some of them can become easily hurt by what they perceive as criticism from others, including you. They need to be gently led into an exploration of their underlying feelings, which often come from the Basic Deficiency Wound.
On the other hand, clients with a People Pleasing Pattern need to become aware of their tendency to try to please others, including their therapists. They grow by learning to assert themselves, set limits, and take initiative.
The Underlying Dynamics of Each Pattern
Once
you assess that a client has a certain pattern, the Pattern System
provides readily-referenced information about the possible underlying
defensive motivations for this pattern and their possible origins in
childhood (or occasionally, in adulthood). For any given pattern, there
are a variety of options. The Pattern System doesn't attempt to tell you
exactly what your client's dynamics are because every client is unique
and each story is different, so the Pattern System just indicates
possibilities. It shows you the most common motivations and origins to
help you gain insight into what might be going on.
Learning about a Client's Patterns
Of
the patterns that can be affecting a client's life, some are more
obvious than others. A client will bring up certain patterns that he or
she knows are causing problems. For example, a client might say that it
is hard for her to leave a relationship even though she can see that it
isn't good for her because she feels dependent on her partner. This is
the Dependent Pattern, and understanding it can give you insight into what might be going on underneath.Some patterns are fairly easy for you to spot even if the client doesn't see them. For example, if you recognize that a client finds it hard to assert herself with her husband and is constantly trying to please him, this is clearly the People-Pleasing Pattern.
With patterns that are more subtle, the Pattern System can be particularly helpful in recognizing something that you might otherwise have missed. For example, a client might have a Passive-Aggressive Pattern, where he or she appears to be a pleaser but actually causes people frustration and pain through unconscious and indirect aggression. Another subtle pattern is the Change-Avoiding Pattern, where clients do good work on themselves except that they block or resist actually healing their underlying wounds or making changes in their behavior, often in hidden ways.
You can encourage a client to use the Pattern System to learn about a certain pattern in order to enhance their understanding of their issues and help them to know what needs to change. In addition, if a client is having difficulty with a spouse, child, relative, or other person in their life, the Pattern System could help them to gain a better understanding of the other person, and the dynamics of their relationship.
In some cases, a client may have a pattern that operates in all areas of life. However, many patterns only become activated under certain circumstances. For example, a man might have the Assertiveness Capacity with his wife but have the People-Pleasing Pattern at work with his boss. Or vice versa. Thus in mapping a client's psyche, it is useful to assess not just which patterns or capacities he or she has, but under what circumstances they are activated.
The Pattern System delineates patterns that manifest primarily in therapy sessions as well as those that show in behavior in the person's life. For example, a client may have a pattern of shutting down emotionally (Closed Pattern) or becoming distracted (Distracted Pattern) whenever you approach painful material. Another client may become self-judgmental (Inner Critic Pattern) whenever vulnerability begins to arise.
This is an excerpt from the forthcoming book The Pattern System which will be out in October. For more information about the Pattern System, see www.patternsystem.com.
