How do you choose the best innate abilities for long term use?
A person may have 5 different imaginal abilities. Is there a list to help choose from those 5 abilities which ones might give the best chance for long term success with their chronic pain management?
A person may have 5 different imaginal abilities. Is there a list to help choose from those 5 abilities which ones might give the best chance for long term success with their chronic pain management?
My name is Eugene Irvin.
There is a list. However, if only one session has been completed, the practical value of the list would be reduced as you can only learn so much in one session.
If there are two sessions, this checklist or any checklist you wish to design, can be used to help choose the innate ability or abilities to be emphasised in the next session. A link to the complete resource list.
The more sessions that are completed, potentially the better the chance of selecting more appropriate innate abilities to be used for long term positive results.
The items in the list may influence how sessions after the first session are designed. I emphasise, this is my list and every person’s list might be different.
Please be critical. We are trying to generate questions and ideas and not just tell people things.
Even though I talk about chronic pain, there are many other issues people may find in this checklist of possible relevance.
You can just look at the contents in the list or if you want more information it is there for your consideration. Please add more qualities if you can.
Thank you
SELECTING LONG TERM ABILITIES
A checklist to help choose which person’s abilities might have a better chance for long term success with managing their chronic pain.
Resource is SYNONYMOUS with Innate ability
I emphasise this is just my LIST and every person would probably generate a list with differences.
- Resource strength ranking in the clinic.
- Resources are easy to use in real life in a wide variety of situations/ scenarios.
- Resources are quick to use in real life in a wide variety of situations/scenarios.
- Mental effort required to achieve resources in real life in a wide variety of situations/ scenarios/ stress levels.
- Physical activity required to use the resource?
- Can the resource be used in stressful conditions?
- How confident is the person that the resource can be successful for the long term?
- Is the resource interesting for the person to use?
- Is the resource rewarding for persons to use long term? Must be some tangible reward for the person.
- Can we get feedback under real life conditions that tells people how they are going with the resource?
- Is it possible for the person to vary the level of resource response as desired?
- How easy is it to test the resource at different times in real life to see if it is still satisfactory?
- Is the resource onset an automatic unconscious type of responding or is it totally conscious?
- Does the person accept the explanation/logic as to why this resource should be available for the long term?
- Is there good control with both onset and offset time controls with the resource?
- What is the quality of the resources response in untried scenarios/ situations in the clinic?
- Can the person use this resource, say up to 15 or 20 times with success?
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1. Resource strength ranking in the clinic.
Relevance for long term usage:
Whatever strength ranking of a resource is achieved in the clinic most likely will be reduced in real life, especially over a long interval of time. Thus a high ranking resource from the clinic may be able to be reduced to a low rank and still be of practical value to the person over long periods of time. Particularly relevant with this is the strength of the different parameters.
2. Resources are easy to use in real life in a wide variety of situations/ scenarios.
Relevance for long term usage:
A resource that is difficult to access may fall into disuse. Generally speaking, it is difficult to do anything in life over a long period of time if it is not reasonably easy to do.
3. Resources are quick to use in real life in a wide variety of situations/scenarios.
Relevance for long term usage:
A resource that is slow to access may fall into disuse. Generally speaking, it is difficult to do anything in life over a long period of time if you cannot access it quickly.
4. Mental effort required to achieve resources in real life in a wide variety of situations/ scenarios/ stress levels.
Relevance for long term usage:
The more conscious mental effort required to access a resource, the greater the chances it may fall into disuse. Generally speaking, it is difficult to do anything in life over a long period of time if it is not automatic and when real mental effort is required.
5. Physical activity required to use the resource?
Relevance for long term usage:
The more physical activity required to use a resource, the greater the chances it may fall into disuse over longer periods of time. Generally speaking, it is difficult to do anything in life over a long period of time if it requires anything more than minor physical effort.
6. Can the resource be used in stressful conditions?
Relevance for long term usage:
Any long term use of a resource will require its use in a stressful environment. Even if the resource is not meant to be used in a stressful environment, real life means that it will occur at times. If stress reduces or eliminates the effectiveness of a resource, then its value for long term usage may be limited.
7. How confident is the person that the resource can be successful for the long term?
Relevance for long term usage:
This may be a rough measure but simply ask the person what they think of using this resource over a long period of time.
8. Is the resource interesting for the person to use?
Relevance for long term usage:
What do we mean by interesting? Does it keep your attention, is it fascinating, is there something about it that intrigues you?
A resource may be purely functional for long term use or it may be one that is functional but is also interesting in a number of ways as an entity by itself. One may assume the combination effect would be more desirable for long term effective use than just a purely functional use.
9. Is the resource rewarding for persons to use long term? Must be some tangible reward for the person.
Relevance for long term usage:
The emphasis here is that the resource needs to have some type of tangible reward for the person. If a person is using a resource long term without consciously being aware they are receiving a reward for using it, then its usage will most likely disappear
10. Can we get feedback under real life conditions that tells people how they are going with the resource?
Relevance for long term usage:
How aware is the person of the presence of the resource and its rank as time passes. Sometimes familiarity with a resource may give the person the wrong impression that the resource is now not present, whereas in actual fact it may be and still functional. If the resources ranking changes, then a `refresher’ visit may be required with the therapist.
11. Is it possible for the person to vary the level of resource response as desired?
Relevance for long term usage:
This means the therapist initially, then with self control handed over to the person, for the person to be able to consciously vary the level of a resource’s response especially in different real life situations/ scenarios. This may be a good confidence booster for the person using that resource. It also means they may have some control over the level of the resources response and vary it as required over a long period of time
12. How easy is it to test the resource at different times in real life to see if it is still satisfactory?
Relevance for long term usage:
It is easy to lose sight of what abilities/ skills you have, especially if you’re feeling a little stressed or down. This normal psychology where we often forget what our abilities really are. The same of course applies to learned resources. Some type of simple test to clarify to the person that they haven’t lost specific resources.
13. Is the resource onset an automatic unconscious type of responding or is it totally conscious?
Relevance for long term usage:
Long term use of a resource will be facilitated if it is readily activated in the presence of certain cues, that is, with little or no conscious effort. Thus automatic responding to specific cues has to be over-learned and with different types of testing, both vitro and vivo, if it is to have any chance of becoming long term because in real life, especially long term, the situations/ scenarios surrounding those specific cues can vary considerably.
14. Does the person accept the explanation/ logic as to why this resource should be available for the long term?
Relevance for long term usage:
The therapist may simply assume the person accepts their logic as to why the resource should work over a long period of time. This assumption could easily be wrong. The level of acceptance of the logic needs to be very deliberately and unambiguously asked of the person. If there are any doubts as to the logic acceptance, then this can place the foundations of using the resource long term on shaky ground.
15. Is there good control with both onset and offset time controls with the resource?
Relevance for long term usage:
If a resource has poor onset and poor offset controls and is used over a long period of time, then it may become less of a distinct entity to the person. In other words it may become more vague as to when it is and is not present. When onset and offset controls are good, resource vagueness may be reduced and the person is more aware as to when the resource is present and when it is not present
16. What is the quality of the resources response in untried scenarios/ situations in the clinic?
Relevance for long term usage:
A resource that is to be used for a long period of time needs to be tested in a multitude of different types of scenarios. These scenarios may be using distraction or challenge testing, different themes, stress levels, noise levels, and so on. Long term use will have endless untried scenarios/ situations.
17. Can the person use this resource, say up to 15 or 20 times with success?
Relevance for long term usage:
There can be many reasons, some the person may consciously be aware of and others they would have no idea, as to why a resource may lose its effectiveness if they use it say ten times. It might be that up to eight times, it worked well. If a resource is to be used long term, it must be trialled over at least 15 to 20 times.
Stay Questioning
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