The Art of Self-Supervision by Laurie Ponsford-Hill

At last, the field of relational therapy has a technique for the art of self-supervision.

Welcome to one of the April 22nd stops on the blog tour for The Art of Self-Supervision by Laurie Ponsford-Hill with Goddess Fish Promotions. Be sure to follow the rest of the tour for spotlights, reviews, and a giveaway! More on that at the end of this post.

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About the Book

The Art of Self-Supervision
Studying the Link Between Self-Reflection and Self-Care
by Laurie Ponsford-Hill

Published 30 January 2019
Tellwell Talent

Genre: Non-Fiction, Self-Help
Page Count: 258
Add it to your Goodreads TBR!

At last, the field of relational therapy has a technique for the art of self-supervision. Everyone agrees that supervision is essential, however the ultimate goal of supervision is to provide a tool beyond supervision for self-supervision. This book captures the primary ingredients of self-supervision and proves the link between self-reflection and self-care. No matter where you are on your journey as a professional, The Art of Self-Supervision: Studying the link between self-reflection and self-care will lead you to a process to tune into your own expert guidance and a greater capacity to help yourself.

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Excerpt

The term self-reflection may be understood, as the experience of gazing within, and describing the individual’s ability to introspectively engage with the self. It is believed that the practice of self-reflection can enable the individual to: increase self-knowledge; be more aware of their way of being in the world; understand how others perceive them; and use self-knowledge effectively for themselves and with others. It involves: making meaning of past, present and/ or future events; questioning and observing self to learn and grow; increasing understanding of insights and feelings; and determining future directions. Self-reflection requires commitment and ritual practice. For purposes of this work, self-reflection occurs through art and journaling.

Jensen (2004) links the description of creation in Genesis with repetition to ritualistic practice, and with the repetition implicated in living a spiritual and creative life. She contends that participation in artistic practice teaches the individual to discover and celebrate the artistic activity for itself, and for no other reason than to delight in the discoveries that propel him/her forward. She observes,

By making their ideas visible, artists actually see them in a new way . . . and if these images or ideas are kept inside, rattling around in our brains . . ., we would become terribly anxious or profoundly depressed. Once we begin to externalize them, we see things we had missed or overlooked – and so the clamour starts all over again, and we realize there is still more to know, to learn, to express. The work of Creation is never done. (p. 18)

Steindle-Rast (1999) agrees with Jensen, observing that, “wakeful attention makes us aware of facts we had overlooked in a more superficial contact with reality; the fact for instance that in a real sense we become that to which we give ourselves, all our senses” (p. 42). B. L. Moon (1995) contends that, for meaning to be found within relationship, the individual must suffer the risk of being known, and makes the important observation that purpose can be realized only within the process of self-reflection. She (1995) believes that because the self-reflecting artist is aware of their power to make choices, they can choose to leave issues as they are revealed, accept them for what they are, or rework them into what they long for.

About the Author

Like many therapists, Laurie Ponsford-Hill began as a newly graduated therapist feeling like she could provide her services all day, every day. She realized at a certain point in her career that this was simply not true, and this fueled her determination to understand everything about the need to maintain balance in her life.

Laurie earned a Master of Divinity degree, and directed her work towards pastoral care, later earning a Master of Counselling Psychology degree and furthering her Registrations to that of Psychotherapist, Marriage and Family Therapist, Social Worker, and Art Therapist. Her career led her to a greater understanding about herself and her relationships. Laurie continued to broaden her education and went on to complete a doctoral program in Human Relationships at Wilfrid Laurier University, Waterloo Lutheran Seminary.

Laurie feels fortunate to have attained balance in her work and home life and empathizes with many others engaged in their own personal struggles to attain balance. She has dedicated her career towards helping others on that journey, designing the Self-Supervision program, which was meticulously tested in this clinical research study. The Art of Self-Supervision: Studying the link between self-supervision and self-care chronicles the remarkable findings of this study: that professionals can overcome burnout and improve their health and life balance by focusing on their self-portrait.

Laurie is currently the Clinical Director and Supervisor at The Counselling House, in both London and Woodstock, Ontario, an agency that focuses on the supervision of counselling interns and newly graduated therapists, and their development of self-supervision. Laurie maintains a private consulting practice specializing in the development of maintaining healthy relationships with self, work, home, others, God, and the world.

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Giveaway Alert!

Laurie Ponsford-Hill will be awarding a $15 Amazon or B&N gift card to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.

Disclaimer: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.