ACA’s 2023 national conference centred on the theme of ‘Resilience’. The three -day event in Sydney gathered over 400 attendees who engaged in presentations, workshops and research papers delivered by 40 local and international experts to industry leaders. CA compiled this snapshot of cutting-edge thinking to help inspire our broader community.

Dr Peter Richard-Herbert

Director, Macquarie Street Therapy, NSWa

Counselling application

The application of Metaphoric Symbolised Imagery (MSI) in counselling is resolving unconscious issues relating to personality parts or ‘behavioural states’.

This psychodynamic technique uses the unconscious process of archetypal symbolism and applied association presented within a series of imagery transitions to resolve and develop everyday patient coping capabilities. The multidisciplinary process of MSI repairs, resolves and integrates underlying conflicted, unsupported or traumatised behavioural states on a deep therapeutic level, promoting patient resilience and future coping techniques.

Learning outcomes of the workshop

The MSI presentation:

■ give therapists a new, effective method to unlock and change maladaptive personality parts on a deep unconscious level;

■ promote a useful working ‘tool’ to use at call and assist patient life coping capabilities;

■ pass on the knowledge gained from research that has culminated in this viable, applicable technique; and

■ demonstrate how to identify and give ‘voice’ to personality states that hold pain, trauma, anger and frustration, thereby facilitating change, release, comfort and empowerment of the ‘self’.

What is Metaphoric Symbolised Imagery?

MSI is the process of generating a metaphoric dream for the client within the psyche, with the therapist directing the content and structure of the imagery for the purpose of remediation. Dr Richard-Herbert terms this process as using ‘sub-linguistic’ language. Because MSI uses metaphor, this technique could be compared to Freud’s Free Association in reverse.

MSI allows the therapist to communicate with the client through affect-based, non-cognitive pathways. Many clients struggle to verbally identify or articulate the unconscious causation of their symptoms or life issues.

Remediation of such concerns is achieved using ‘non-transparent therapy’ that bypasses the clients’ defence mechanisms, remediating symptoms.

MSI provides a methodology to circumvent resistance often manifested in talking cognitivebased therapies. Therapeutic insight is achieved from within, rather than requiring patients to work from uncomfortable, interrogatory, question-based methods.

MSI is a psychodynamic therapy. Resolution and healing are achieved from within the client’s unconscious rather than being imposed on from outside by the therapist. MSI is not a mechanised technique that can be manualised into a ‘tick and flick’ therapy modality. Instead, MSI is a therapy that applies a unique, individualised therapy methodology to a client rather than fitting a client to a ‘one size fits all’ treatment.

Although the theory of Behavioural State Analysis (BSA) encompasses Composite Personality Theory, it varies from Parts Theory because it analyses and identifies the predominant states of personality that make up and ‘run’ a person’s life. In BSA, the counsellor learns to work directly with the state (or part) that can best benefit from change rather than merely working with a cognitive, surface-based, talkative state. A therapist/counsellor using BSA can analyse and identify parts of a client’s personality and determine the predominate behavioural states or self-states frequently used as adaptive or maladaptive behaviours that affect others. 

Dr Peter Richard-Herbert

Director, Macquarie Street Therapy; senior lecturer in counselling at ACAP Prof. Doc. Psych. (CQU), M.A. Psych. (UWS), Grad. Dipl. Mediation (Bond), Dipl. Psych (UK), Grad. Cert. Applied Coaching (ACAP), Dipl. H.P., Dipl. C. Hyp.

Dr Peter Richard-Herbert is a psychological analyst, counsellor, psychotherapist, coach and mental health practitioner with four decades of full-time clinical practice. He has over 75,000 face-to-face clinical hours with clients. Dr Richard-Herbert is senior lecturer in counselling at ACAP, Sydney Campus, lecturing in psychodynamic psychotherapy, neuroscience and advanced counselling theories to master’s level students. He is passionate about offering students the benefit of his many years of experience in full-time practice as a therapist. He also has his own private practice in Bowral, NSW, after having practices in Sydney’s Lower North Shore and Macquarie Street, Sydney.

Dr Richard-Herbert has authored and developed new theories in Behavioural State Analysis, Analytical Counselling and Ego State (Parts) Theory and has published on Metaphoric Symbolised Imagery, Advanced Ego State Therapy, Hypnosis, Gestalt Therapy, Transactional Analysis and Behavioural State Analysis. In addition to his psychotherapy and counselling practice, Dr Richard-Herbert has worked as a consultant to corporations where he has conducted executive leadership, profiling, coaching and self-development sessions. He has delivered training courses and workshops, and has developed psychometric tests to enhance corporate effectiveness.

Dr Richard-Herbert knows about resilience firsthand. In the mid-2000’s, with a successful Sydney practice and family life, he was hospitalised with three life threatening illnesses within a short time, the final one being throat cancer, which necessitated surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy with follow-up treatment and monitoring. The potential impact of this on a counsellor who relies on the ‘talking therapy’ for work with clients was daunting. He has been cancerfree for over 12 years.

Dr Richard-Herbert trained originally in Freudian/ Jungian Psychoanalysis and Analytical Psychotherapy at the National College of Psychotherapy in London. He was awarded a Graduate Certificate and Diploma in Clinical Hypnotherapy and Psychology in London, followed by a Diploma in Clinical Hypnotherapy in Australia. Dr Richard-Herbert received his Master of Psychology – Narrative Therapy (UWS) in 2003. He followed this with a Doctor of Psychology – Personality Analysis (CQU) in 2017, which incorporated Advanced Ego State Theory. Dr Richard-Herbert has presented his theories at workshops and congresses worldwide since 2012.

Affiliations

■ Macquarie Street Therapy, director

■ Australian College of Applied Professions (ACAP), senior lecturer, counselling discipline, 2020–present

■ Macquarie Street Therapy, consultant analytical psychotherapist and managing director, 2013–present

■ North Shore Therapy Centre, consultant analytical psychotherapist, owner, 1983–2012

■ ACA level 4 member, 2008–present.

■ Clinical member and supervisor PACFA, ACA, AHA (fellow), AESTA, ISH, NCIP (fellow), ESTI, RTI

Education

■ Central Queensland Unversity: Doctor of Professional Studies, Higher Research Degree, Personality Analysis, Psychometrics, 2008–18;

■ University of Western Sydney: Master of Cultural Psychology (Narrative Therapy)

■ Australian College of Applied Professions: Gradraduate Certificate of Applied Coaching

■ Bond University: Graduate Diploma of Mediation (Family Disputes Resolution)

■ National College of Psychotherapy (UK): Graduate Diploma Psychotherapy and Counselling

■ Diploma of Hypnotherapy and Psychotherapy

■ Diploma of Clinical Hypnosis (government registered, Australia)

■ Cert IV, Training and Assessment (Australia)