Mapping in Therapy

Can anybody explain exactly what this involves? I feel a little apprehensive about starting it in therapy. Thank you everyone.......

hi kindergirl!

we are not in therapy so it's difficult to say what the right way to map is, but i have (tried) to do this myself, and some parts of me have been a bit more successful at it... basically how i do it is basically a list of everyone inside that i know and how they are related to each other (if they know each other etc, who they split from, me or somebody else, stuff like that). it's ok to not know all this at first, put what you know on it and question marks or empty circles (i do it like a "thought map", usually i put myself in the circle in the center and start drawing lines from there - there are other ways to do this, too, no wrong way) are perfectly ok too. i've seen some people also write the distinctive features of each alter or small snippets of info about them.

hope this helps!

I agree with Twilight!!!

One of my alters, Tosh, who is the artistic one, wanted to do our own map so we got some poster board and got our crayons, markers, and pencils out and got to work. There were a couple alters that were iffy about it and didn't like the idea, but once we did it and got a bigger picture, it helped us understand and come to grips with everything.

My T worked with us to do a map in therapy too, but she just drew it out on a piece of paper with her pen.

It's really just identifying who makes up your system, like twilight says, and where they are in relationship to eachother. Like, all of my littlles are on the right lower corner of my map, but some are more distant from eachother and some are closer to others. This represents a tighter, or looser bond between each of them. All my adults are on the left side...except for one, who's down in the right hand corner hiding/sleeping most of the time.

For some systems it can be stressful because it means acknowledging their presence, and the systems main function is safety so they don't always like to be out in the open. They feel more vulnerable that way.

Hope this helps a bit...... so long!!! LOL!!! I can write novels!!!

I take 5x8 inch cards cut from old cereal boxes and collage on them. I got the idea from SoulCollage. On each card I collage pictures from the internet doing a google search or from magazines symbolizing how I feel at different times. Then I use them in therapy and show my T which way I am feeling. Some of them are Parts, some are just emotions, some are memory scenes. Like I have a photo of me on a real confident day where I was on top of my game. On another card I have a picture of a little girl crying. This is a form of mapping my system.
Another way I have is that I list each Part as they come up and some information about them. After a while I had a whole list of Parts and just a few words that defines how they are.
Janet

when I dissociated in therapy my therapist would keep a log of the date, time, who I dissociated into and what the trigger was that made me dissociate into that alter. then underneath that she wrote a description of how I was as that alter so that she could compare it to the next time I was that alter and also so she could get to know how I was when kind of thing.

I had a nightmare that my T was doing this....using a little book to write down what happened in session when I dissociated, and I didn't like it at all.

And then in the NEXT SESSION, he sort of starting DOING IT. He didn't write it down, but started comparing who is there when I lay down vs. when I sit up vs. when I sit in the other chair, etc. Blah.

I don't think I'm ready to do any mapping yet. I love the collage idea that wrapworks had, though. I think that there are parts of me that would really like that.

I didnt mind. I wasnt aware when I was an alter so I had no idea that she was doing it until it came time to work on taking care of some of my triggers. then she brought out the log and showed me the first page and we talked about that trigger and ways that I could take care of myself when I got into the same situation. it actually helps alot. my therapist had to write things down for their files, and my insurance company whether or not I was in the room when she wrote them up anyway so I saw no difference in what she was doing to help me learn about me and why those alters came to be vs for the files and insurance. in fact sometimes when she had to write things for the files and insurance I had wished what she was writing was for helping me. I liked it when I found out she keeps notes about me. that kind of told me she thinks I was important enough to remember, important enough for her to document me and my life, important enough for her to find a way to remember who I was and what I told her. kind of makes me feel cared about when she takes notes for what ever reasons its for.

That's great, amandalouise.

I just don't feel safe when I know T is observing me that closely. I don't feel safe realizing that *I'm* not always there in session.

It's really hard for me to feel safe and it doesn't take much to throw me off balance in that area.

I understand tree.

I have major issues with being "observed." I can't tell you how many times I told T not to look at me.

Your safety and well-being are very important to T.

YOU are important to T. How often does he remind you of that?

I think you should tell him about the nightmare.

It's interesting to see the different views on things. While I never know when another part is out, it makes me uncomfortable as well. Due to my childhood, my life has always been all about secrets. It's really hard work to fight through that mind and for T to write stuff down goes against the concept that my brain has to keep secrets.

For me, I'm sure it's part of the denial because I have a hard time facing things and that would make me face things, perhaps before I was ready. My T said that we deal with things as we are ready and thankfully we aren't on any specific time line. It just takes as long as it takes.

I think you're doing really well treehouse. I'd definitely talk to T about this and tell him it makes you uncomfortable. He's there to help you, not to hinder the progress. I hope we can support as well and not make you more uncomfortable.

(((((((((((((((((wanttoheal))))))))))))))))

Yes. This. Totally.

I'm just now finding the words to tell T that it makes me uncomfortable. We are at kind of a weird place in therapy where I feel like he is pushing too hard, too much, too fast. I know when I can tell him that, he will back off for sure...he believes in me, and believes that I know the best way for me to heal. I'm always so slow to understand what's triggering me, and why, and how to put it into words...but I think I am getting there with this.

Thanks for supporting me