A Depressive Case Report: Using Metaphor and its Changing Meaning throughout the Psychotherapy Process

Abstract

The psychotherapeutic discourse provides researchers a fruitful content to investigate the theoretical properties of metaphors. In the current article, metaphorical expressions were explored through a clinical case report. The male patient who applied to our clinic with depressive complaints was chosen for this investigation. “A boy throwing stones” was a very comprehensive metaphor which interacted with the various aspects of the treatment process. The expressions and functions of the selected metaphor were explained in the six-stage model. The change in metaphor throughout the treatment process was analyzed with the help of voice records and session notes. At the early stages of the sessions, “a boy throwing stones” was perceived as furious, harmful and disturbing. However, in the following sessions, the qualities of the metaphor had dramatically changed. The patient stated that a boy might want to warn him about some threats and protect him from adverse outcomes. In conclusion, consistent with the positive changes in the depressive symptoms, the content of the metaphor had also changed. 

Keywords

• case report,metaphor,depression,figurative language,qualitative studies

Psikoterapide Metafor Kullanımı ve Değişen Anlamı: Depresif Bir Olgu Sunumu

Abstract

Metaforların teorik özelliklerinin incelenebilmesi için, söylem aktivitesi olarak psikoterapi süreci, araştırmacılara oldukça zengin bir içerik sağlamaktadır. Bu makalede, psikoterapi sürecinde ortaya çıkan metaforik anlatımlar seçilen bir metafor ve vaka özelinde ele alınacaktır. Olgu sunumu için, kliniğimize kendi isteğiyle depresif şikâyetlerle başvuran, erkek bir hasta seçilmiştir. Bu olgu sunumunda seçilen “taş atan çocuk” metaforu, tedavi sürecinde pek çok farklı alan ile etkileşim halinde olmuştur. Bu metaforik anlatım ve işlevi, vaka ile yürütülen psikoterapi süreci paralelinde 6 aşamalı bir model üzerinden ayrıntılı olarak ele alınmıştır. Vakanın ses kayıtları ve seans notları incelenerek, süreçteki metafor değişimi incelenmiştir. Görüşmelerin başlangıcında, “taş atan çocuk”, öfkeli, zarar vermeye çalışan, keyif kaçıran ve anın yaşanmasına engel olan şeklinde nitelenmiştir. Ancak ilerleyen seanslarda, bu çocuğun hastayı korumaya ve uyarmaya çalışan tarafları da fark edilmeye başlanmıştır. Sonuçta, hastanın depresif duygu durumundaki değişime paralel olarak, metaforun açıklanma biçimin de değiştiği görülmüştür. 

Keywords

• olgu sunumu,metafor,depresyon,figüratif dil,niteliksel çalışmalar

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