This handout utilizes metaphors like the 'spiral staircase' and 'snakes and ladders' to illustrate common trajectories of progress in therapy.
Offers theory, guidance, and prompts for mental health professionals. Downloads are in Fillable PDF format where appropriate.
Includes client-friendly guidance. Downloads are in Fillable PDF format where appropriate.
Everyone's experience of therapy is unique. Setbacks during therapy are common but can nevertheless be dispiriting. It can be helpful to remind clients about common trajectories of progress in therapy. Helpful metaphors for paths of progress include ‘snakes and ladders’ and the ‘spiral staircase’. The Progress In Therapy information handout graphically illustrates both of these metaphors.
Progress in therapy is often non-linear, and setbacks, crises, lapses, or relapses are not uncommon. This resource helps clients by:
Clients struggling with persistent low mood.
Individuals who experience a return of anxiety symptoms.
Clients who lapse or relapse in disordered eating.
Use as a psychoeducation tool to explain progress trajectories.
Initiate conversations with clients about their beliefs and expectations about change.
Reinforce the idea that therapy as a journey with ups and downs, not a linear path.
Clients sometimes have unrealistic expectations of improvement in therapy. This handout employs the 'snakes and ladders' and 'spiral staircase' metaphors to communicate the observation that therapy is rarely a linear process. These metaphors help clients appreciate gradual progress, normalize setbacks, and encourage persistence.
