Storytelling – An Act of Caring

“Caring, “ as defined by Kristen M. Swanson PhD, RN in her nursing Theory of Caring, “is a nurturing way of relating to a valued other toward whom one feels a personal sense of commitment and responsibility”.  Swanson’s model of caring describes the following processes experienced by one who feels cared for: knowing, being with, doing for, enabling and maintaining belief.

Knowing: Striving to understand an event as it has meaning in the life of the other.

Being With: Being emotionally present to the other.

Doing For: Doing for the other what he or she would do for the self if it were at all possible.

Enabling: Facilitating the other’s passage through life transitions and unfamiliar events.

Maintaining Belief: Sustaining faith in the other’s capacity to get through an event or transition and face the future with meaning.

When a storyteller embraces these processes in a therapeutic setting, storytelling becomes an act of caring.

Knowing: Stories that promote respect and understanding for one another’s differences.

 

Being With: Stories that encourage the quality of patience with others.

 

Doing For: Stories that promote the spirit of generosity and giving to another.

 

Enabling: Stories that model helping others when they are in need.

 

Maintaining Belief: Stories that nurture the belief in one’s ability to persevere in the midst of a life challenge.