Spiritual Assessment Detail Page – “AROUND”

This Page Not Intended to Stand Alone – See Main S.H.I.P. Page  For Overview

About the Methodology: This process is offered in the conviction that a holistic approach – one that considers the whole person and life setting – will capture important clues to wellness and wholeness that are helpful to the healing professional.  The S.H.I.P. areas of inquiry can be thought of in three pairings: in/on/around, above/beneath, and behind/before. These pairings are easy to remember: simply consider the space around your own body.  First, the space spiraling out from within you to on you and then around you. Then, a line that stretches from behind you and continues on to the horizon in front of you. Finally, a line stretching from the stars above you down to your roots beneath your feet. The seven prepositions we use –  in ~ on ~ around  // above ~ below  //  behind ~ before  – relate to the following life areas: mind-body wellness, external role,  connectedness // spirituality, roots // self-narrative, and outlook.   This page focuses on the third of the seven assessment areas: AROUND.

– AREA DETAIL PAGE: AROUND –
ASSESSMENT AREA	IDEAL	TOO LITTLE (!)	TOO MUCH (!)
AROUND: Connectedness. Sense of community. Social competence and support.	Harmonious balance between  independence and belonging (social competence). Social support. Sense of connectedness to others,   investment in community, compassion. Sense of being supported / supporting others in community. Social capital.	Alienation. Loneliness. Disconnectedness. Isolation. Abandonment. Pain arising from experience of shunning. Awkwardness around others. Social anxiety.	Overly concerned with approval-seeking and acceptance. Overwhelming need to please others. Valuing status of social relationships disproportionately above other S.H.I.P. areas (e.g., confusing relationships with self-identity).
Excerpt copyright NHM Ministrants. All Rights Reserved.

Questions inquiring about …

• Is there someone you can count on, when the going gets rough? (Who? Tell me more…)
• Who is in your close circle? Would you describe them as supportive, or not? (Why? Tell me more…)
• How would you describe your friends (Would you describe yourself as having a lot of friends, a few close friends, or…)
• Have you ever experienced peer pressure? (What happened? Tell me more…)
• Are you satisfied with the number of friends you have?

Kinesthetic Exercises (Dance or Drama Therapy)

• Brainstorm ways that you might express closeness or distance, friend or foe. How would you dance it out, or act it out?
• Brainstorm ways you might express the experience of peer pressure. What outcome will you show, and how will you convey all of this information to your audience?
• Create a scene (in drama or dance) about one person’s relationship wtih others. How does that look and feel? Discuss.
• Create a scene where someone is surrounded by friends and well supported and uplifted. How does that feel?
• Express (in dance or drama) a story about you and your relationship with those around you.

Other Notes for the Practitioner

Consider a person’s social competence and social capital, and balance between independence and belonging. Does this person show an ability to maintain a healthy connection with others? Are there others in the person’s life on whom the person relies, and with whom the person experiences love?  Does the subject feel a sense of belonging? Or, does the subject express fears of abandonment, or a history of confusion of love with pity, or the painful need to succumb to peer pressure in order to obtain approval? Is the individual experiencing a relationship crisis (e.g., bereavement), and if so, can the individual identify other individuals who can provide support? Ideally, individuals are able to give and to receive love in a healthy and life-affirming way, while still holding true to themselves.