Introduction
NTU is a pluralistic therapy approach that allows the therapist to conduct a process-oriented intervention that empowers the client’s systems. This is especially relevant to people of color since it is based on an African worldview that considers African people’s views, processes, and learning styles (Williams, 2021). It emphasizes that therapists have a responsibility to help strengthen clients in their cultural context (Soto et al., 2018). Its emphasis on process let the client system to determine what constitutes a family and community itself. NTU practice is a strategy for trying to improve life by comprehending life problems, experiences, and solutions (Gregory & Phillips, 2018). These stages are necessary for a person to create healthy connections with themselves and others in their lives. The ultimate purpose of NTU psychotherapy is to restore harmony, authenticity, and connectivity through raising awareness of emotions and feelings (Williams, 2021). The chosen client has a phobia, has experienced trauma, and has low self-esteem, and the NTU method will be used to identify the components of each of these aspects and to design a successful program.
Conceptualization of Presenting Problems
John is the offspring of a Somalian first-generation family. After his father’s financial difficulties during the 2008 financial crisis, he began drinking regularly and verbally and physically attacked his wife and kid. John began to struggle with marijuana and juvenile court difficulties because of these circumstances, and he dropped out of school. In this case, it is crucial to get a psychological assessment of John, assess the trauma level, and understand his cultural tendencies. He currently resides alone in a Florida mobile home park with his dog. Part-time work and freelance activities are John’s primary sources of income. John refuses to finish high school and find a respectable career, despite his father’s best efforts. John suffers from social anxiety and lacks self-confidence since he is constantly looking for weaknesses in himself. John was raised in Islamic surroundings and regularly attends Friday prayers at local mosques. He likes listening to various sheikhs’ lectures online. Islam seemed to have aided him in dealing with his father’s actions. John, on the other hand, continues to suffer from despair since he is closed to everyone and does not attend Friday prayers.
John is unsure of where he wants to go with the counseling and begins to complain about himself and his position. It is clear that he prefers folks to come to him first and fix his problems rather than accepting responsibility for their own. This sounds appropriate for John’s age since he needs to be more conscious of his abilities and objectives. Because he is not completely cooperative, the best approach is to ask more open-ended questions that will lead to a more profound dialogue about what John wants to receive out of the meetings. The next step is to create coping techniques to assist John in dealing with his psychological distress and figure out what causes it. One of the key challenges John is struggling with is his marijuana addiction, as well as the trauma of his father’s past actions, which has harmed their connection. These are John’s primary concerns, which must be addressed in order to help him develop self-confidence and a good connection with his father and others.
Use of NTU Stages of Psychotherapy
In John’s session, the first part of the NTU phase is to build harmony in his life and relationships. It was established early on that John feels that if he is dissatisfied with himself, he cannot be happy without strong connections with his father. He is not forceful in discussion or seeks to be honest with his family. He was initially indecisive, but over time he became more attentive and receptive, which led to the awareness stage. John originally did not comprehend the causes of his conduct and did not feel comfortable discussing it with a social worker, which changed over the course of time. John was able to think about these topics and his position after additional conversations utilizing open-ended inquiries. As a result, it became evident what fundamental requirements and restrictions he would require in order to progress. During the alignment phase, John was able to provide the first specifics of his anxiousness and the reasons that produced it. He began to approach his difficulties in a more balanced and complimentary manner. In other words, John was able to establish an internal congruence of ideas, feelings, and conduct.
The actualization phase was an area where he needed to develop, including motivation and accountability to keep working toward his objectives. To prepare John for his meeting with his father, the social worker and John resorted to practicing and trying new attitudes and actions in real-life settings. In this stage, John showed his willingness not to hurry up things and move gradually since the traumatic experiences of the past are still fresh in his mind. In terms of the synthesis phase, religion appeared to be significant to John and may be included in his self-esteem growth through his faith. In the context of what he is going through and will continue to go through, John evaluated the efficacy of what he has gone through. In this context, his affiliation with Islam proved to be a binding mechanism that only benefited John.
Use of NTU Principles of Psychotherapy
W: John, would you like to talk about how things have been going since we met this morning? (Balance)
J: I was thinking about what we discussed and our objectives. During a break, I emailed my father about having supper with him over the weekend.
W: How did you start a dialogue about meeting him? When you asked him directly, how did you feel?
J: I was concerned about the response and paused before asking. In the end, I am pleased I went through with it. I’m tempted to tell him that I am single and lonely and that I would like to visit and talk to the family on occasion. (Harmony)
S: What was his reaction when you told him about your feelings?
Jay: He told me that I wasn’t bothering him and that I’d always have time to speak with him. (Connectivity/Interconnectedness)
W: Do you not want him to accompany you to Friday prayers? (Cultural Awareness)
J: Yes, but not straight now. I believe I am still struggling with feelings.
W: How does preaching affect your daily life, and how do you put their teachings into practice? (Authenticity)
J: I have only recently been aware of their positive sentiments, which fit with my current situation. They did, in fact, alter my perspective and cause me to calm down.
W: During the next meeting, you can reflect on your experiences and we can discuss them.
Summary of Progress and Next Steps
According to what has been observed, John is making progress, as evidenced by his willingness to approach his father openly and be candid about his thoughts during the session. Despite the earlier tragedies in their connection, John realized that his father didn’t recognize how alone he felt since he could not seek counsel from him. Despite his unwillingness to address anything, John appears to acquire confidence during the session, as evidenced by the scheduled appointment with his father. At the same time, John wants to take things slowly, which is arguably the ideal strategy for him because he believes it is the only way he can succeed.
The next step was for John to recognize the value of faith, which he seemed to be ashamed of at first. He refused to discuss his faith in the early hours, yet he subsequently revealed how important Islam was to him. John’s religious views appear to guide him in the right way and provide him the assurance he requires to make adjustments. Going to church and engaging with other Muslims can help him identify other community members who can help him cope with his social anxiety. In offering direction and support to John, the church community’s assistance will be crucial.
The trauma John had while coping with an abusive relationship is still a problem that has to be handled and considered as he moves forward. John appears to prioritize reuniting with his family, but only after gaining trust that the previous wounds inflicted by his father have healed and that the circumstance would never occur again. In general, John’s desire to be more open will aid him in coping with the trauma, while religion can aid in the resolution of social concerns and the cessation of marijuana addiction.
References
Gregory, S. D., & Phillips, F. B. (2018). “Of Mind, Body, and Spirit”: Therapeutic Foster Care—An Innovative Approach to Healing from an NTU Perspective. In Serving African American Children (pp. 125-140). Routledge.
Soto, A., Smith, T. B., Griner, D., Domenech Rodríguez, M., & Bernal, G. (2018). Cultural adaptations and therapist multicultural competence: Two meta‐analytic reviews. Journal of clinical psychology, 74(11), 1907-1923.
Williams, K. M. (2021). Centering Mindfulness in an Afrocentric Worldview: African American Women, Social Support and Health When Creating Culturally Relevant Mindfulness Techniques Connected to African American Families. Western Journal of Communication, 1-9.