Group Retreat Weekend
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The intensive nature of the retreat weekend brought out everything that is best about the processes of this group. Reflection and self-disclosure operated in an atmosphere of trust that, looking back to the beginning, did not seem like it would come to be as intensive as it has. At first, the idea that "relations among members and their communication styles and patterns" could be as significant as they have become seemed unlikely (USSBC 522). I had assumed, however, that since everyone was starting from much the same place in terms of the specialized, professionally oriented nature of this group, that communication would be relatively easy and that trust would be taken for granted to a certain extent. This, of course, proved to be a serious prejudice. A little reflection soon demonstrated that the kinds of issues one had to deal with in this group -- developing greater awareness, identifying behavior patterns, and developing authenticity in dealing with others -- were serious issues whose roots were deeply personal in nature. The manner in which the give and take of the group assisted in identifying and focusing on one's own issues was a revelation in itself. By the time of the retreat at Seneca River there had been a qualitative change in the process of self-exposure that reflected most positively the manner in which a group identity had been forged. Formerly, revelations of personal anguish, conflict, or general troubles seemed to be offered as tokens of people's
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y of the issues raised here essentially have to do with self-esteem the total acceptance in the confines of the group obviate some of the principle barriers to communication and, subsequently and most importantly, to self-communication. In having tried to deal with (or ignore or rationalize away) certain issues prior to involvement in the group process, I can say that the group made me realize that I had been locked away with the one person whose esteem for me was too low in these instances to be very constructive. The acceptance found within the group reflected an individual -- a version of myself, so to speak -- who could be positive about such issues. That revamped person has, accordingly, spent a great deal of time reflecting not just on, for example, the bad habits I had developed in my somewhat misformulated detached view of clients but helped me look at assumptions about myself from which these mistaken ideas developed.
At times this total, unconditional acceptance within the group has seemed liked something one has struggled to give and receive all one's life. Yet it has none of the unreal, fantasized quality of such a dream. Instead the group makes people work. It does not provide absolution, forgiveness, or even
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Some common words found in the essay are:
Seneca River, Dr Freen, , NOTE CLIENT, Sent Client, one's self, david's death, own issues, superficially related,
Approximate Word count = 1297
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page)
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