The Singapore Family Physician

Presence Work. Positive Work

A/Prof Cheong Pak Yean
Dr Ong Chooi Peng
A/Prof Goh Lee Gan
The Singapore Family Physician
19 - 21
1 January 2018
In this Unit, we describe the next 2 types of intervention arising out of the extended consultation. Presence work handles the integration of our spirituality with the state of our physical body and brain. It focuses on a consciousness of here, not somewhere else; and in the present, not in the past or the future. Presence work can involve the practice of meditation, spiritual disciplines, and meaningful involvement in life and approach. It can also involve the humanistic, existential, redintegration, and experiential work of therapy. Positive work deals with promoting positive mental health experiences. It hinges on helping our patients lead three “happy” lives — the pleasant life, the good life, and the meaningful life. We can use positive psychotherapy exercises to help our patients develop skills that promote mental resilience and health. The positive approach can also be usefully incorporated into the other three psychological approaches of problem work, pattern work, and presence work.