Decision Strategies (II)
Decision Strategies (II)
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As we had discussed about before, decision strategies are
a major point in addictions recovery. Let me say that addic-
ted people had made their decisions in a way that drive them
directly to their habit.
The neuronal metaphor
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We could also consider this situation in other words: we could
say that they have their neurons connected in such ways that
all information contained in a particular stimulus is processed
quickly and efficiently by a special set of neurons. This ef-
ficient,experienced and powerful set of neurons is driving the
person to respond to the stimulus - being addicted.
At this point, the fact is ,even if we are teaching the person
to have different decision strategies, the old powerful stra-
tegy is still here. In other words even if we are setting another
whole bunch of neurons to process the new strategies the old set
of neurons is still there ready to work, more powerful, more
trained, faster (faster again because the old strategy is a short
one). Therefore there is a big chance for this old strategy to
come back especially in a certain critical situation when quick
responses are needed.
The person had generally spent a whole life training his/her
neurons to perform a very efficient compulsion. So "destroying"
the old neuronal setting makes sense as being the only solution
to avoid the person getting back to their habit, if something
activates the old decision pattern. In fact the neuronal setting
will not be destroyed: we'll ask the person to do something, so
she/he will go *away* from the old pattern in spite of going *to*.
The addict's typical decision strategy
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As Richard Bandler and Michael Breen taught us and as we had
already noticed: addicts build their decision looking at a
dissociated picture of themselves. Most of the time, this
picture is a small *still* image (I don't want to say always
;-) but...). It is a good looking picture of themselves
before or just when they start drinking or..so.
As said in the previous article, just after they jump into the
picture and run the compulsion. They could say something
in their head like "oh ! Cool !..." or so, then they jump into
the picture.
The strategy is easy, fast, convenient, efficient and can
deliver quick relief. Therefore we cannot rely only in setting
a "better" decision strategy. The point would be to prevent the
patient from getting back in the old decision strategy.
This picture doesn't have any content about any of the conse-
quences of their habit. So the only solution is to force the
client to make pictures of the consequences.
Making pictures and assembling them in a movie
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Now we have to ask such questions to the client they will
drive him/her to make internal pictures of what would
happen step by step if he/she will drink again. The NLPer
must maintain the patient dissociated from these pictures.
We must collect pictures until we'll get the last terrible
one as going to jail, dying, divorcing, being at the mental
hospital or so. This picture must be the ultimate one.
When we get the full set of pictures, we have to ask the client
to assemble them in a movie, in the right order.
Associating the client in the movie
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This is the last step. It has to be done thoroughly with a
certain tempo. The client must be driven all the time without
any blank.
You have to ask your patient to run the movie in front of her/him
staying dissociated until the last picture. As soon as the movie
stops on the last image you have to make your client jump into
this last terrible image and maintaining her/him associated, just
asking :
- Do you actually want this ?
At this point you must have a very strong response from your
client both verbally: "Oh! No! NO! NOT THAT!" and non verbally:
just calibrate.
If you ask your client about his feelings he would say he feel
really anxious and he can't stay that way, he would say he need
something else. Richard says you have to litteraly SCARE your
client.
So it's time to install something else, it's time to ask the
patient what does he actually want in his life ? It's time
to do the change work, it's time to install new strategies.
At this point, I think that we can use everything, from
hypnosis, to NLP or DHE, it will work, the changes will
last, especially with "reluctant" people. Now they do
really *need* something else. So you have to help them
learn something else valuable otherwise they could learn
to be addicted in something else (!!!).
Conclusion
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In fact all this process could be boiled down to: How to
install a fobic response against the "let's go to my
habit decision". In other words we could say that the
patient had become fobic against a special set of neurons.
The client will no longer use the old way of making
the addicted decision. Depending how wide is the decision
area you will have to install immediately at least one
new decision strategy. You could install the kind of
strategy described in my previous article or you could
design a specific taylored one.
Remark
------
We had tested all the process described in this posting
and it works. We do think that every well trained therapist
could use it sucessfully. This process is not dedicated
to people having a very particular set of skills as
Richard Bandler or Bandler's freaks.
We assume that the benefits of this process will last
even if we don't have yet any long time followup.
Warm Regards to every body and now write back your comments.
-Bernard Frit (technical assistance Elisabeth Frit)
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WARNING : Apologies.
As English is not my native langage, I am sure there are a
lot a syntax and spelling mistakes in this article.
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