Therapy approach
Narrative Therapy
For when a problem has become 'who you are' — separating the story you've been told, or been telling yourself, from your actual identity.
1980s
origins, developed by Michael White and David Epston
Non-manualised
individualised approach
Widely used
in family therapy and identity-focused work
Qualitative
evidence base predominates over large trials
Understanding it
About Narrative Therapy
Narrative therapy works from the idea that people are not their problems: the stories we tell about our lives shape our identity, and when a problem-saturated story dominates — 'I'm an anxious person', 'I'm a failure', 'I'm the difficult one in the family' — it can crowd out other, equally true, parts of the story. Narrative therapy helps people externalise the problem, examine the story that's grown up around it, and deliberately re-author a fuller, more accurate account of who they are.
Narrative therapy starts from a specific stance: the person is never the problem, the problem is the problem. Externalising language — talking about 'the anxiety' or 'the perfectionism' rather than 'you being anxious' or 'your perfectionism' — creates useful distance, making it possible to examine how the problem operates, what it tells you, and when it has less influence, without that examination being an attack on your character.
Central to the approach is the idea that dominant stories are shaped by culture, family and circumstance as much as by objective fact, and that they usually leave out significant 'unique outcomes' — moments when the problem didn't dictate the outcome, when you resisted it, coped with it, or acted from values it doesn't represent. Narrative therapists actively look for these exceptions, treating them as evidence for an alternative story that's just as real as the dominant one.
Over the course of therapy, these exceptions are woven into a thicker, more complex counter-narrative — one that includes your values, skills and preferred way of being, not just the problem's version of events. This isn't about denying real difficulty, but about ensuring the problem's account isn't the only one in the room, and that it doesn't get the final word on your identity.
How it shows up
You might recognise some of this
Nobody has all of it. Most people recognise a handful — and that's enough to start.
Best suited to
- A problem that has become fused with identity — 'I am' rather than 'I have'
- Strong internalised labels: failure, broken, difficult, not good enough
- Situations shaped by cultural, family or societal narratives that feel imposed rather than chosen
- A wish to reconnect with values and strengths that a dominant problem story has obscured
What sessions involve
- Externalising conversations, naming and describing the problem as separate from you
- Mapping the effects of the problem across different areas of life
- Actively searching for 'unique outcomes' — times the problem had less influence
- Building a richer alternative story that includes these moments
- Sometimes involving supportive others as witnesses to the emerging new story
What changes
- Talking about a difficulty without it defining your whole sense of self
- Recognition of existing skills and values previously overshadowed by the problem
- A more flexible, less totalising relationship with old labels
- A stronger, self-authored account of who you are
Signals
When this helps
- Identities fused with a diagnosis or label
- Shame connected to a problem or past behaviour
- Family conflict involving fixed roles or stories about a person
- Difficulty seeing strengths obscured by a dominant problem
The work
How therapy helps here
Separates identity from the problem through externalising language
Actively surfaces overlooked moments of strength and choice
Builds a fuller, self-authored account of who you are
The evidence
What the research actually says
Plain-English summaries of the guidance our therapists work from.
An established, values-based therapeutic model
Narrative therapy is a recognised and widely taught approach within counselling and family therapy training, with a strong theoretical and clinical tradition, particularly regarding identity and self-story.
Evidence concentrated in qualitative and applied research
Much of the research support for narrative therapy comes from qualitative studies and specific applied contexts, such as chronic illness and family therapy, rather than large randomised trials, reflecting its individualised, non-manualised nature.
Valued for culturally sensitive and identity-focused work
Narrative therapy is particularly noted in research and practice literature for its suitability with issues shaped by culture, marginalisation or stigma, where externalising language can reduce shame.
What to expect
How a course of therapy usually unfolds
A guide, not a script — your therapist shapes this around you.
- 1
Naming the problem
Early sessions work together to name and describe the problem in the person's own words, separate from their identity.
- 2
Mapping its influence
You explore how the problem has affected different areas of your life, relationships and sense of self.
- 3
Finding unique outcomes
Your therapist actively looks with you for times the problem had less power, or when you acted against its influence.
- 4
Thickening the alternative story
These moments are developed into a fuller counter-narrative, including your values, skills and preferences.
- 5
Sharing and sustaining the new story
Later work may involve documenting the new story or involving trusted others, to help it hold beyond the therapy room.
Worth saying
Common worries, honestly answered
“Narrative therapy is just positive thinking.”
It doesn't deny real difficulty; it deliberately looks for a fuller, more accurate story that includes both struggle and strength.
“Externalising the problem means avoiding responsibility.”
The aim is to separate identity from the problem so it can be examined honestly, not to excuse behaviour that needs to change.
“It's only useful for straightforward, mild issues.”
It has been applied to complex family difficulties, chronic illness and trauma, particularly where identity and shame are central.
Between sessions
Small things that genuinely help
None of these replace therapy — but they're a gentle place to begin today.
- Try naming a difficulty as separate from you — 'the anxiety' rather than 'my anxiety being me'
- List moments, however small, where the problem didn't get the final say
- Notice which of your values were present in those moments
- Ask what story you'd want a close friend to tell about you
- Write a brief account of a time you acted in line with your values despite a difficult label
FAQs
Frequently asked
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