Theme 3: Hope as a transformative force 1 Theme 3: Hope as a transformative force

Hope is the key to the transformation, allowing freedom of choice for the participants. Hope is the recognition that for each negative experience the participants have had in the past or may have in the future, the participants can choose how they construe these narratives. They can choose to take action or not to act. There are also choices to be made in terms of goals and future actions. Hope was expressed with a dual nature: firstly hope as recognition of an internal resource and secondly, hope as

152 forward action. Hope was explicitly stated in each narrative, emerging in the initial Narrative Therapy sessions and then as a thread throughout the later sessions as the participants elaborated on their hopes for the future. The participants identified the practices of hope. Hope was the key to the actions they planned to undertake. RT’s actions of changing school, moving country, returning to Ireland to pursue photography, were the actions of hope.

SLT: …maybe that says something that you, about what you are capable of doing when you decide to do something

RT: yeh hope so (Appendix C, line 348-349)

Two years after RT completed the Free to Stutter intensive week, RT described how hope, linked to the actions he has taken and continues to take, was still present in his life.

RT: If it goes bad, I don’t lose hope like I would have done.(Appendix F, p140, line 32)

In “The River”, the therapist (appendix N) took a particular role, that of listening and reflecting back to the client while moving forward through the questions. Mac’s language expressed hope for the future; she recognised that hope has always been there.

Mac: no fear, things are going to be better.

Therapist: any hopes and dreams for the other bank? Mac: that I won’t be afraid again.

Therapist: how long have you had this hope inside?

Mac: if you are talking from when I actually knew that I had all this difficulty, since I was 16, 17, five years…

Therapist: ...how did you do that for five years?

Mac: Just I am a strong person, if I wasn’t strong person; I wouldn’t even be here today kind of a thing, I have to say so. I did have these hopes and aspirations inside when I was a lot younger, but I wouldn’t really have developed as a person yet... (Appendix D, p88-89, lines 335-339)

153 Adam expressed hope that openness could lead to self-fulfilment. In Narrative Therapy Adam was asked what his hopes for the future were. He identified hopes for adapting and moving forward that did not tie him down to a particular pathway.

Adam: take on board what I heard this week adapt what I need to do to take on the challenges to practice to see how it goes. (Appendix E, p125, line 227) Hope at the beginning of Narrative Therapy is the hope of people starting on another new programme, hopeful for fluency, hopeful for change but as yet uncertain of what that change might look like. Hope has kept the three participants involved with the therapy process after the programme has completed.

7.2.2 Subtheme 1. Humour: And lotto win :)

Humour as a subtheme was slow to emerge. Initially, it was the shared experiences of the participants that are greeted with wry and self-mocking humour. These stories, none of which are particularly funny on first reporting, contained pain, suffering and loss. Sharing the experiences with others seemed to create a bond of common misfortune that was transformed and reframed by the participants themselves, over time to experiences of community and humour. Humour was recognised as an internal resource by the participants, a means to acknowledge significant events and reframe them. The stories RT told in his externalisation conversation about school and his unique outcome story about Irish dancing were told with wry humour, though the experiences were at times humiliating and painful. RT had experienced many different programmes to address his severe and overt stuttering behaviour. As therapy has progressed he reviewed some of the stories with humour:

RT: Well, no, possibly if the door doesn’t open (laughs), you got to try (mimes

pushing)… (Appendix C, line 364-365)

His move towards humour was reflected in the outsider witness comments in the definitional ceremony.

Outsider Witness: He’s very very quiet like where as the week has gone on he is after opening out, he is expressing his feelings more, he is, you see him there laughing (Appendix C, line 408)

RT verbalised his intention to move forward with humour. In this way, RT recognised that humour is part of his future actions. Humour itself was a goal for RT, a desired outcome.

154 RT: It’s to move, I think to move forward, just kind of enjoy myself, laugh (Appendix C, line 406)

In an email two years after the programme RT closed with a list of goals and humour: RT: More self-belief is needed too. And lotto win :). (Appendix F, p140, line 36)

The theme of humour was evident in Mac’s response to feedback from other participants (Martin) in her definitional ceremony is humour. Martin had taken the position of outsider witness and had been asked to respond along four particular lines of enquiry (Leahy, et al., 2012). Mac adopted an accent and played with it in the style of a chat show, Martin took this up and identified that she was like a self- promoting wrestling federation competitor:

Mac: I am just so awesome.

Martin (interjects): you like a fella wrestling Mac: I love wrestling! (Laughter)

Martin: like a fella ‘I am awesome’

Mac: I am awesome. (Appendix D, lines 117-121)

The use of the wrestling analogy was quite unexpected. A wrestler performs in a ring: with suspense, drama and bravado leaving the audience guessing what is real and what is put on for the show. As with narratives, there are tricks and surprises. Martin appeared to have intuitively reflected the performance that Mac herself identified as part of her daily life. She reached a position where she can identify her own tricks and within the context of the group, laugh at them.

Mac: I was, I got stuck on the first word and I just let it go. And then I did a trick,

(Laugh) I would have been stuck on it for God knows how long. (Appendix D, lines 103-104)

Similarly, Adam’s externalisation conversation was deliberately told humorously, using colloquial language in the third person voice, disassociating himself from both Stuts (his stutter) and the experiences he has described.

Adam: I am a bit confused because I have been a langer for years and now he’s only going to accept me. Geez. Stuts (Appendix E, p96-97, line 9)

This deliberate humour (Appendix E, line 9 above) was replaced with a dry humour, a wryness and self-deprecation that reflect a change from the angry outburst that

155 followed the DVD on the first night (Appendix E, line 160 below). Adam chose with careful deliberation to use the words ‘the gift’, that so upset him in the DVD. There was a pause, a knowing smile and a flash of eyes.

Adam: I don’t know (smiles), the gift or whatever...

To have as good a time as possible (Laughs) Appendix E, p117, line 160; p127, line 244)

Humour was acknowledged in the emails and letters from other participants: a year after her intensive course, Kate has returned to college and reported that humour was significant for her. She linked hope with her future actions and moving forwards. Kate identified strongly that humour for her is both a resource and a forward action.

Ya I feel that seeing the funny side has helped me a lot to learn to accept