Reading C

Gehart, D. R. (2018). Solution-based therapies. In Mastering competencies in family therapy: A practical approach to theories and clinical case documentation (3rd ed.) (pp. 387-389). Cengage.

The original solution-generating question, the miracle question serves to both: (a) con-ceptualize and assess and (b) set goals in solution-based counseling. Legend (and good authority) has it that Insoo Kim Berg developed the miracle question based on a client's desperate and exasperated claim to Insoo that "maybe only a miracle will help." So, Insoo, using the clients' language and worldview, played with the idea and had clients describe how life would be if there were a miracle (de Shazer, 1988; de Shazer et al., 2007). The intervention was so successful that it was crafted into a hallmark intervention that is frequently used early in treatment to identify the focus. Since then, several variations have been developed, including the crystal ball technique (de Shazer, 1985), magic wand questions (Selekman, 1997), and the time machine (Bertolino & O'Hanlon, 2002). When successfully delivered, these questions help clients envision a future without the problem, generating hope, motivation, and goals.

Successfully delivering one of these solution-generating questions is far more difficult than it appears. As you can imagine, if done poorly, these hit the floor like a lead balloon. To avoid such humiliation, solution-focused experts have several suggestions for successfully delivering the miracle question (Bertolino, 2010; Bertolino & O’Hanlon, 2002; De Jong & Berg, 2002; de Shazer, 1988; de Shazer et al., 2007). In addition, I suggest you think of asking the miracle question as having three specific phases:

• Phase 1: Setup for the miracle
• Phase 2: Delivery of the miracle question
• Phase 3: Facilitation of the answer

Phase 1: Setup for the Miracle—Three Steps with Three Nods

1. Phase 1, Step 1: Obtain Client Agreement and Wait for Nod 1: The first and most critical step is to prepare clients by changing their state of mind so that they are will-ing to engage in an atypical conversation. By asking, "May I ask an unusual ques-tion?" or "Would you be willing to play along if I ask a somewhat odd question?" The counselor signals clients to change their frame of mind so that they are better able to enter a more fanciful, creative conversation. The counselor waits for the client to say "okay" or nod in agreement.
2. Phase 1, Step 2: Custom Tailor Initial Setup and Wait for Nod 2: After the client agrees to the odd question, begin delivering the question but customize it to include numerous little details from the client's everyday life to get him or her fully engaged in the story and to enable him or her to better visualize the miracle. For example, you might say, "Let's imagine that after we are done talking here, you get in your car and drive home; you make dinner for the family like you usually do; you clean up dishes like you usually do; and check the kids' homework like you usually do." Continue describing the typical day and evening until the client starts to nod.
3. Phase 1, Step 3: Setup for Miracle and Wait for Nod 3: Once the client nods, continue with, "Then you get the kids to bed, maybe do some minor chores or watch television, and then you finally get to bed and fall asleep." Up to this point, you have only asked the client to imagine a regular day, but this is very important. The goal is to have the client psychologically leave the session and vividly envision being at home, where the miracle is to occur. Pause and wait for the nod or verbal affirmation before moving on to the miracle; don't move on to the miracle without such confirmation.

Phase 2: Deliver the Miracle Question—Four Steps with Three Pauses and a Snap

• Phase 2, Step 1: Introduce the Miracle with Pause 1: "Then, during the night ... while you are sleeping ... a miracle happens" (de Shazer et al., 2007, p. 42). Pause and wait for a reaction that signals surprise or that the client is thinking: a smirk, laugh, tilt of the head, raised eyebrow, or funny look. Insoo reportedly looked intently at the client and smiled; Steve warned that if the pause is too long, the client is likely to respond with, "I don't believe in miracles"; so keep moving.
• Phase 2, Step 2: Specifically Define the Terms of the Miracle with Optional Snap: "And it's not just any miracle. This miracle makes the problems that brought you here today disappear ... just like that" (de Shazer et al., 2007, p. 43; emphasis in source). Snapping your fingers at this point is optional but adds flair (you might need extra practice with that part). If you forget to include the "problems that brought you here" part of the question, you most likely will get a wish list appropriate for a genie in a lantern, which is not the answer we want for this question. Without this limit on the miracle, clients will spend a lot of time exploring vague and unrelated goals, and the counselor will spend more time with follow-up questions to get a useful answer.
• Phase 2, Step 3: Add Mystery with Pause 2: "However, because you were sleeping, you don't know that the miracle has happened" (De Jong & Berg, 2002, p. 85; emphasis in source). If delivered well, most clients start bobbing their heads at this point, stare off into space, or otherwise begin to behave as if they were thinking about the proposition.
• Phase 2, Step 4: Ask What Is Different, with Pause 3: "So, you wake up in the morning after the miracle happens during the night. All the problems that brought you here

Phase 3: Facilitating the Description of the Miracle: 2 Steps with one List

• Phase 3, Step 1: Focus Client on Behavior Changes in Positive Language: Those new to this intervention often imagine their work is done once the question has been asked. For the miracle question to be useful in case conceptualization, the counselor needs to skillfully facilitate the description of the miracle—not just any miracle will do. Once the client begins to describe what is different, the counselor helps focus the answer by asking about observable behavioral changes in the client and others. In typical solution-focused style, the counselor is interested not in what the client is not doing but instead in what the client is doing. For example, if the client says, "I will not be depressed any more," the counselor responds with, "What will you be doing instead?"
• Phase 3, Step 2: Continue Until You Have Enough to Identify Clear Goals: Once the client identifies one new behavior, the counselor asks for more: "What else would be different?" The counselor continues until several (three or more) concrete miracle behaviors are identified that can be useful for developing goals and a clear direction for change. In the case study at the end of this chapter, the therapist uses the miracle question with Suzie and Jorge to identify what a satisfying relationship would look like for each.