The Hero’s Journey: Navigating The Emotional and Psychological Challenges of Chronic Illness

Sandra Block is a clinical psychologist with 30 years of working with adults, teens, and elders. In her doctoral program, she met her first love in psychology: psycho-dynamic therapy. She was so smitten that she even had a picture of Freud on the door of her student room!

Sometime later she was seduced by the clean simplicity and helpfulness of cognitive behavioral theory; this was her 'home base' as a therapist for many years.

But her current study of myth, fairy tales, folklore, and Jungian thought has merged happily with her principles and practices of psychotherapy and gives her a new perspective on the power of storytelling in healing. When she is done with writing or research for the day she can be found with her partner, David, and the family cat, Turbo, viewing old movies and eating popcorn.

Presentation Preview:

Explore the Hero's Journey as a powerful tool to help individuals with chronic illnesses face and overcome their emotional and psychological challenges. By drawing inspiration from the narrative structures of myths, fairy tales, folklore, and biblical stories, patients can identify their path through chronic illness and find hope in the stories of fictional characters who have overcome seemingly insurmountable obstacles and achieved impossible goals. This presentation investigates how these characters solved problems such as the initial devastation of receiving a chronic illness diagnosis (leaving home) or finding the right medical team or support group (finding a mentor). 

With the insights gained from this presentation, participants will learn different ways to support people facing the challenges of chronic illness. 

Participants will recognize the importance of embracing a life of meaning and fulfillment.