CASE STUDY
Using the Lifeline Technique as part of Narrative Exposure Therapy for Adolescent Victim of Child Sexual Abuse
Nina Vaaranen-Valkonen M.Soc.S
Trauma-focused cognitive psychotherapist
This article is a compilation of my case study: Using the Lifeline Technique in Narrative Exposure Therapy for Adolescent Victim of Child Sexual Violence, which is my thesis of child and adolescent psychotherapy connected to psychotherapy training at the University of Helsinki. The therapy was conducted as part of psychotherapy training. The aim of the study was to investigate the use of the lifeline technique as part of manualized short term therapy method, NET for a 19-year-old girl who had fallen victim to intrafamilial child sexual abuse in her childhood. The article examines what the adolescent brought to the trauma narrative after having been asked open ended questions like "What happened then?" while processing the sexual abuse. I investigated whether the lifeline technique helped the victim of sexual violence talk about and process the difficult and traumatic childhood experiences. I also investigated whether going through the details of the abuse brought changes in what the adolescent thought about the responsibility, guilt and shame related to the abuse.
My goal was to provide psychotherapists and other professionals with insights into intrafamilial abuse from the victim's perspective. Recognizing that the voices and wisdom of individuals who have lived through such experiences are crucial, as emphasized by Laapio (2005), the study aimed to contribute valuable knowledge to prevent violence and re-victimization.
