Mini-Education Session
This exercise explains that denial is a normal and natural part
of the human condition that is related to our need to search for the truth about
what is happening to us in spite of our tendency to make mistakes and lie to
ourselves about our mistakes in order to avoid pain.
Once we convince ourselves that our lies that our are in fact true, we
start believing our own lies. Then
we tend to become deceptive and can start lying to others whether we mean to or
not. To avoid this. we need to develop personal and social systems
for finding the truth while protecting ourselves from self-deception and the
lies of others. Denial management
is a personal system for finding the truth while protecting themselves from
self-deception.
Focusing Questions
This information is integrated by using active listening to
process the following questions:
(1)
Do you want to know the truth about what is happening in your life?
Tell me about that.
(2)
Have you spent time trying to answer questions like:
Who Am I? Why
am I here? How do I fit in?
What is my place in the world? What
does the world require of me in order to survive and thrive?
Why are these things happening to me?
What should I do?
(3)
Have things happened in your life that have caused you to ask “What
is wrong with me?” What’s wrong
with what I’m doing?”
(4)
Are you interested in figuring out what you must do in order to identify
and solve your problems, stop your pain and suffering, and live a life that is
meaningful you.
These basic concepts
are reinforced in a series of related exercises:
Exercise 1-2: The
Tendency To Make Mistakes
Exercise 1-3:
The Tendency To Lie To Ourselves
Exercise 1-4: The
Tendency To Lie To Others:
Exercise 1-5: Denial As A Normal Defense Against Pain,
Guilt, & Shame