Psychodrama began in 1921 with JL Moreno, a physician who immigrated to the United States from Austria in 1925. Blatner defines psychodrama as a method of psychotherapy in which patients act out relevant events in their lives rather than simply talking about them. . This involves exploring in action not only historical events but, more importantly, dimensions of psychological events that are not normally addressed in the conventional dramatic process: unspoken thoughts, encounters with those who are not present, enactments of fantasies. of what others might be feeling and thinking, imagining future possibilities. , and many other aspects of the phenomenology of human experience.
Even before leaving Vienna, Moreno was an active pioneer in many of the concepts that most counselors take for granted today: terms like group psychotherapy, action methods, and warm-ups. Psychodrama, in its most inclusive definition, has developed a variety of applications: group psychotherapy, clinical role-play, supervision, marriage and family therapy2, dramatic play, play, social drama, and therapeutic community; and derivatives, such as Playback Theatre, developed by Jonathan Fox. It has influenced many schools of therapy: Fritz Perls (gestalt and the empty chair technique); Virginia Satir (family therapy and family sculpture that Moreno called sociograms of action); Transactional Analysis by Eric Berne). Perhaps one of the brightest recent developments for Christians is Peter Pitzeles’3 bibliodrama, presented as a form of midrash, an experiential form of Biblical/Jewish storytelling.4 Why psychodrama is wonderfully suited to Christian counseling One of the psychodrama most attractive to Christians is the fact that it can be so Christian friendly to use. 5 Moreno, although born into a Sephardic Jewish family, sympathized with Christianity. He once said that Christianity could be considered the most ingenious and powerful psychotherapeutic operation ever invented6. Of his works
Moreno conceives a religion based on the recognition of the resemblance to God in each person and the ability to bring out the creator of each person. The expression of these religious beliefs would be in action, interaction with others according to principles based on the sacredness of spontaneity and the creativity of each individual. He posited that if we get sick in relationships, we should get better in relationships, a therapeutic service that the body of Christ should offer to all who become members. While most talk therapies emphasize the verbal mode of healing, psychodrama brings body language actions, role-playing, and behavioral rehearsal to psychotherapy. As most of what happens to us is an experience, much more than verbal, the techniques of psychodrama allow us to reproduce life in such a way that it can be revived, understood, reaffirmed, reconsidered, faced and rehearsed new behaviors. in a safe and secure environment. The relationships between group members reproduce both society and their own personal ways of relating in a microformat within the group, giving us the opportunity to see in loco how members interact, give each other feedback, and even work through conflictual relationships to acquire new modes of interaction.
The basic framework of psychodrama: The basic framework of psychodrama requires a director (the therapist), an assistant (co-therapist or members of the group), a stage (where the action takes place), the audience (other members of the group), and the protagonist (member of the group chosen to work on your topic). The beauty of this structure is that it allows the protagonist to project on stage whatever he wants to work on. The story belongs to the patient and not to the therapist. Anything within a person’s Imagination can be worked on, including metaphorical and religious themes, such as one’s relationship with God.9 Once the different objects/people have been staged, the protagonist has the opportunity to explore in a concrete level its meaning and what he or she wants to do with these things. He or she can even try different ways of doing things safe in the knowledge that if they don’t work in the scenario, the client can delete them, try again, or go back to the way they were before.
There is the additional benefit in psychodrama of providing a safe environment where specific conversations can take place. Many patients are encouraged by their therapists to go home and talk to the important person who they feel has hurt them. Sometimes that person is not available, due to death or distance, or simply because it is inadvisable. On the contrary, the psychodrama setting offers the unique opportunity to bring such conversations to life. The healing that is usually achieved in such situations is permanent and irreversible. Find a therapist to get your problems resolved.
Even if it didn’t take place with the real person, there was real conversation and real resolution. Perhaps the jewel in the crown of Moreno’s psychodrama techniques is role reversal. Putting oneself in another person’s role results in feeling that person’s feelings, looking into that person’s soul, gaining new insight into what makes the person tick, and possibly discovering what makes the person do what. what are you doing. It often means dying to previously held opinions about that person and their motivations. It is impossible to return to one’s role after a change and be the same. You know something you didn’t know before.10 Perhaps the most magnificent example of role reversal is that of God himself as he assumes humanity in the person of Jesus Christ. It is interesting to note (as a psychodramatist, not a theologian) that the redemptive work of salvation culminates at the cross, where God in the person of Jesus Christ reverses roles with humanity, feels our pain, sin, and lust, and then dies in our hearts. place. The resurrection is the final seal that establishes our access to the Lord. Since then, nothing will be able to separate us from the love of God.
