Conference Agenda
Overview and details of the sessions of this conference. Please select a date or location to show only sessions at that day or location. Please select a single session for detailed view (with abstracts and downloads if available).
Please note that all times are shown in the time zone of the conference. The current conference time is: 15th Sept 2026, 12:30:49pm EEST
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Daily Overview |
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Oral Session 3: Health, Illness and Embodied Experience Location: Amphitheatre I (KEDEA) Session Chair: Dr. Athena Androutsopoulou, 'Logo Psychis'- Training and Research Institute for Systemic Psychotherapy | |
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Favorite Fiction Stories and the Voices of Women with Mayer-Rokitansky-Küster-Hauser Syndrome: A Group Intervention in Narrative-dialogical-informed Medical Care 1: 1st Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, 'Alexandra' General Hospital, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Greece; 2: 39;Logo Psychis'- Training and Research Institute for Systemic Psychotherapy, Greece 'Narrative medicine' recognizes that patient stories need to be heard to co-construct a healing story. Medical staff are trained to listen in empathic ways by familiarizing themselves with literature and art. A broader 'narrative-dialogical-informed medical care' hosts the idea that patient stories are told from many different positions; interventions need to allow for their stories to be told using various means and voices. The present paper presents the process of a narrative-dialogical intervention on a group of 13 women with Mayer-Rokitansky-Küster-Hauser Syndrome (MRKH), a congenital condition characterized by absence of the uterus, cervix and upper two thirds of the vagina often associated with additional renal anomalies, in individuals assigned female at birth. The group was coordinated by two psychologists and a medical doctor, with the collaboration of the head of the 1st department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the 'Alexandra' General Hospital, University of Athens, where participants received medical care. The intervention followed three steps: (I) Use of the “Fiction Tool” (Androutsopoulou, 2001, 2015) required participants to retell a favorite story from literature, name three heroes, their feelings, and future prospects. Heroes are seen as outer and inner positions of the self; (II) Discussion was extended from fictional stories to personal issues. The participants expressed a variety of concerns regarding their health, their relationships, fertility, and social stigma. They also made suggestions for optimal care. (III) Participants were psycho-educated in recognizing a variety of inner voices or positions of self and navigating their inner dialogue toward empowerment. The participants spoke of the intervention in positive words, emphasizing the importance of a safe space for telling stories of physical and psychological distress. They also thought that the group provided a much-needed social support network. Follow-ups were scheduled to monitor the long-term impact of this intervention. | |