Sample Process Recording –Columbia University

Narrative / Gut Level Feelings / Analysis / Supervisor'sComments
Krystaland I are seated onmyofficefloor,making ajournal. Inthisjournal,Krystal can record herfeelingsaboutherfrequenttemper tantrums,whattriggersthem,andhow
shefeelsafter.
J: So,Krystalhow wasschooltoday?
K:OK. I learnedwhythekids tease me. / I feelbadfor Krystal--nochild should have to beteased.
J: Why? / Howstupid! I learned inclass "how" is better than"why." / I keep usingopen-ended questions.
K:Becausetheyarejealous of me. I heardthem talkingduring lunchabout me.
J: What did they sayaboutyou?
K:Theysaidthattheydidn't like me because I
wastheteacher'spet. / Krystalisvery maturetohave realized that children
oftenteaseothersbecauseof jealousyand their own
insecurities.
J: What kindof things doyoudothatwouldmakethemfeelthatway?
K: I helptheteachercleanup the classroomandwash the board
sometimes.
J:Butthatisa verygoodthing to do. Doyou thinkyou might stop helping theteacher because ofwhat
the kids say?
K: No-I feel betterabout
going to school now that Iknow why I getteased.
J: I amgladyouaremore
comfortablewith going toschool. I amveryproudofyou for realizing thatsometimes kids teaseout
ofjealousy.
K:Theyalsoteasemeabout my clothes.
J: How does that makeyoufeel?
K: Sad. I can't help it if Ihave bad clothes.I don'thave money to spendon
clothes.
J: Do you wish you hadmoremoneyforclothesandotherthingsyouwant?
K: Sometimes. I reallywish I had enough moneyfor a kitten. Ireallylovecats!
J:SodoI. Whatdoyoulikebestaboutthem--theyarefriendly,soft,whatisit?
K:Theyarecuddlyand
cute.
J: Have youever had akittenbefore?
K: Yes, but we had to giveher away becausethelandlord said we couldn'tkeep her. But, my dad
said when we lived on47Avenue in
that Icould get
anotheroneif I behaved. / Oh my God! Hasn't thisgirl had enough
disappointment in her life?
J:Yousaidyoudon'thavea kitten now, does thatmeanyourdadthinksyou
aren't behaving?
He isa liar.He almostnever does what hesays.
J: When yourdad lies toyou, it mustmake yousoangry. Is that true? / I hope I am not puttingideasintothis child'sheadabout howshe should befeeling
K: Sometimes it makes memoresad. Imean I amtrying to behave but hestill won't letme get akitten. It justmakes mefeellikenotbehaving.He / Dad and K's relationshipisnotverygood. / Dadneedstobetalkedto.Heisa veryimportantfigureinK'slife and needs tosupporther.
doesn'tnotice anyway.
J:Krystal,don'tyoufeelproud of yourself whenyour mom commentson
howyou'rebehaving? / Good-Iamtryingtoget Kto look at the positives inher life.
K:Yes-mommyhas beentalking to mea lot morebut a lotof times sheignoresmeforStephanie. / Mom possibly favorsStephaniewhich leadsK tohave tempertantrums to get some
attention*attention
seeking behavior
J:WellStephanieisa lotyoungersosheneedstobe watched a lot morethanyou,K.I knowyoumustfeellikeyourmomfavors your little sister butthat's not true.When youwere little, you probablyneeded a lotof attention,
too. / Here I goagainputtingideasintothechild'shead!Stupid. And I used thewordMUST--that'sastrongword.
K: I guess you're right, butsometimes itdoesn't feelthat way. / Jeez--doesanyone payattentionto this child? / K feels neglectedsometimes by mom,
too.
J: What way?
K: Like she doesn't loveme.Itismyfaultmyparents’ fight you know.
J:Whydoyoufeelthatway?
K: Because usually whentheyfightit'sbecause I didsomething bad. My
tempertantrumsmakeeveryonemad. / Wow! It's good this childrealizesthat heremotionscan affectothers in herfamily / K is mature beyond heryears andis observant
J: K, whatever is betweenyour mom and dad isbetweenthem.It has
nothingtodo withyou.It's not yourfault.
K: What do you mean? / I'm glad Krystal is notafraidto ask questionswhen thingsare unclear
J:Like,whenyoufightwithStephanie.That'snotyour mom and dad's fault,right? / I thinkusinganexamplethechildcouldrelatetoisa good wayto get the idea
across.
K: No.
J:Well,whenyoufightsometimeswithStephanieyour parentssometimesgetupset,right?
K:Yes.Seeitsjustlikethat with your mom anddad exceptwhen theyfight, they may take it our
onyou.
J: I see. It makessensenow.
K:Can I stay a littlelonger. I likebeinghere.
J:Sure. I dohavetostopin 10 minutes because I
haveanotherclient. / Makingitsound as if she'snot as important as other
clients! / K is feeling engaged intherapy and isenjoying
it. / Q
K: OK. Do you like myjournal? / I can't waitto analyze it inmy art therapist"way."
J:Itsbeautiful! / Verycreativegirl.
K: Will you talk to my dadabout gettinga kitten?
J: I can't promise you Ican get you a kitten but I / I hope not getting a kittendoesn't ruinour
cantalktohimabouthislying and how it makesyou feel. Is that what youwant? / establishedrelationship
K: Yes.Thankyou.