(cid:60)(cid:87)(cid:99)(cid:95)(cid:98)(cid:111)(cid:22)(cid:74)(cid:94)(cid:91)(cid:104)(cid:87)(cid:102)(cid:111) (cid:22)(cid:109)(cid:95)(cid:106)(cid:94)(cid:22) (cid:73)(cid:107)(cid:95)(cid:89)(cid:95)(cid:90)(cid:87)(cid:98)(cid:22)(cid:55)(cid:90)(cid:101)(cid:98)(cid:91)(cid:105)(cid:89)(cid:91)(cid:100)(cid:106)(cid:105) RRTT66008866XX__PPrreelliimmss..iinndddd ii 2255//0077//22000077 0099::4488::3377 RRTT66008866XX__PPrreelliimmss..iinndddd iiii 2255//0077//22000077 0099::4488::3388 (cid:60)(cid:87)(cid:99)(cid:95)(cid:98)(cid:111)(cid:22)(cid:74)(cid:94)(cid:91)(cid:104)(cid:87)(cid:102)(cid:111) (cid:22)(cid:109)(cid:95)(cid:106)(cid:94)(cid:22) (cid:73)(cid:107)(cid:95)(cid:89)(cid:95)(cid:90)(cid:87)(cid:98)(cid:22)(cid:55)(cid:90)(cid:101)(cid:98)(cid:91)(cid:105)(cid:89)(cid:91)(cid:100)(cid:106)(cid:105) (cid:55)(cid:100)(cid:106)(cid:94)(cid:101)(cid:100)(cid:111)(cid:22)(cid:70)(cid:36)(cid:22)(cid:64)(cid:107)(cid:104)(cid:95)(cid:89)(cid:94)(cid:22) New York London RRTT66008866XX__PPrreelliimmss..iinndddd iiiiii 2255//0077//22000077 0099::4488::3388 Routledge Routledge Taylor & Francis Group Taylor & Francis Group 270 Madison Avenue 2 Park Square New York, NY 10016 Milton Park, Abingdon Oxon OX14 4RN © 2008 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis Group, an Informa business Printed in the United States of America on acid-free paper 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 International Standard Book Number-13: 978-0-415-96086-1 (Hardcover) No part of this book may be reprinted, reproduced, transmitted, or utilized in any form by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying, microfilming, and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without written permission from the publishers. Trademark Notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Jurich, Anthony P. Family therapy with suicidal adolescents / Anthony P. Jurich. p. ; cm. ISBN-13: 978-0-415-96086-1 (alk. paper) ISBN-10: 0-415-96086-X (alk. paper) 1. Teenagers--Suicidal behavior--Treatment. 2. Adolescent psychotherapy. 3. Family psychotherapy. I. Title. [DNLM: 1. Suicide. 2. Adolescent. 3. Family Therapy--methods. WM 165 J95f 2007] RJ506.S9J87 2007 616.89’140835--dc22 2007007152 Visit the Taylor & Francis Web site at http://www.taylorandfrancis.com and the Routledge Web site at http://www.routledge.com RRTT66008866XX__PPrreelliimmss..iinndddd iivv 2255//0077//22000077 0099::4488::3388 To Olivia. You are my strength in the hard times and my joy in the good times. v RRTT66008866XX__PPrreelliimmss..iinndddd vv 2255//0077//22000077 0099::4488::3399 RRTT66008866XX__PPrreelliimmss..iinndddd vvii 2255//0077//22000077 0099::4488::3399 FOREWORD Working with suicidal adolescents is the bane of most therapists. Not only are therapists highly intimidated by these unpredictable and dif- fi cult to read challenging youth but mental health professionals oft en try and avoid having to work with them at all costs. Th e thought of the big liability issues and potential malpractice suits, and possibly having to fi eld crisis calls late at night or during the wee hours of the early morn- ing, instill fear in the minds of most therapists. However, there is one highly seasoned and compassionate therapist that dares to enter and has worked therapeutic wonders in the unpredictable world of suicidal adolescents and their families, and his name is Anthony P. Jurich. Aft er many years of encouragement and nudging to put in print his clinical wisdom and artistry, Jurich has provided the mental health and family therapy fi elds with a gift , Family Th erapy with Suicidal Adolescents. To my knowledge, Family Th erapy with Suicidal Adolescents is the fi rst family therapy handbook devoted entirely to the family treatment of suicidal adolescents. Jurich provides us with a comprehensive grand tour of the research on suicidal adolescents, including his cutting edge and scholarly clinical research. In a clear and practitioner-friendly way, he presents in this well-written book his advanced strategic family ther- apy approach that targets interventions at the adolescent, family, peer group, and larger systems levels. His book is fi lled with challenging case examples which nicely illustrate his therapeutic approach in action, some of which read like on the edge of your seat suspense mysteries. What comes out the most from reading Jurich’s case examples, is his high level of compassion, empathy, and commitment that he provides to these troubled youth and their overwhelmed parents. Jurich shows ix RRTT66008866XX__CC000000..iinndddd iixx 77//2255//0077 88::4444::4433 AAMM x • Foreword us that therapeutic fl exibility, humor, being able to thrive in chaos, how not to get therapeutically paralyzed by adolescents’ self-destructive ten- dencies, and improvise at any given moment is a must in working with these adolescents and their families. Finally, Jurich clearly drives home the message that despite the intimidating nature of adolescents’ sui- cidal thoughts or previous attempts to take their lives, we as clinicians need to not lose sight of and utilize their multitude of strengths and resources to empower and co-create with them and their families more preferred workable realities. Matthew D. Selekman, MSW RRTT66008866XX__CC000000..iinndddd xx 77//2255//0077 88::4444::4455 AAMM PREFACE As he stood at the threshold of the fulfi llment of his quest, from the depths below there arose a beast, terrible to behold, who blocked his path and threatened his life. He drew his sword from his belt and prepared to commence battle. Th e stakes were life or death. Although the above paragraph is not connected to any specifi c story or legend, the scene is familiar to anyone who has read a classic heroic tale. From Th e Odyssey to the Lord of the Rings to Star Wars to Spider- man, the hero has had to overcome some beast to accomplish his or her quest. Th e battle is epic in proportion and the price of failure is death. Th is is not only a tale which appears in books and movies but is also a story which gets acted out daily by suicidal adolescents. Th e beast is not external, although there are external manifestations of its pres- ence in the form of abusive parents or harshly critical peers. Th e beast is internal to the adolescent. It is all of the monsters and demons that can be summoned by the heart and mind to well up inside of the child journeying through the adolescent years. Th erapy with suicidal adolescents embodies that epic struggle with the beast within. Th e epic hero may face the beast alone in battle. How- ever, he or she most oft en has the help of the gods or the magic of some special weapon. Th e therapist is one of the gods from whom he or she seeks help. I would pose that family therapy enlists the aid of other gods who are powerful in the adolescent’s life—his or her family. As good as the therapist may be in helping the young hero with his or her fi ght against the beast, the therapist cannot duplicate the power of the family, summoned to assist and validate the hero who is their child or xi RRTT66008866XX__CC000000..iinndddd xxii 77//2255//0077 88::4444::4455 AAMM