Even though our bodies cannot be in the same place, focussing on body process is helpful in video mediated psychotherapy

Abstract

ABSTRACT This article is concerned with embodied process and the need to attend to evoked emotion in order to support the transference relationship. I look briefly at Lakoff and Johnson’s work on linguistic metaphor and the way, through embodied cognition, it shapes our conceptual world. Through the use of clinical vignettes, I illustrate how some of my clients use a combination of technology and embodied process to evoke strong emotional and physiological countertransference responses in me. One of the advantages of working online is that, given the chance, our clients use their whole environment to communicate. They access software and use hardware, including furniture, to let us know about their embodied experience. Some of what they use might not be so accessible during face-to-face sessions. I have found that paying attention to what they bring and the emotions aroused enhances our communication and the transference relationship.