Pipouette – The companion of emotions and more
Every day Pipouette sits on the library of my psychologist's office, accessible to the little hands of children and adults alike. According to the appointments, his emotions evolve and welcome the next patient differently, even if most often, when a little patient leaves, it is joy that is displayed on Pipouette.
Psychologist specializing in EMDR , I welcome children, adolescents, adults and families who have experienced trauma in my practice. With their unique stories, on which it is sometimes difficult to put words, Pipouette becomes a support for emotions but also for feelings.
Pipouette is my/my co-therapist. It is not gendered and therefore leaves room for the subjectivity of the person who appropriates it. Both emotional support such as a comforter and support for the expression of emotions (by changing faces) or bodily feelings (by pointing to Pipouette where the bodily feeling linked to emotion, anxiety, stress or still the pain), Pipouette is a real reassuring presence for young and old alike .
Jean*, 8 years old, doesn't want to talk about what happened to him, as soon as we talk about his trauma he withdraws and becomes mute. Over the course of the sessions, he gets to know Pipouette. As soon as he enters the cabinet, he goes to look for him/her and presents his emotion of the day by changing faces . It becomes a ritual, a reassuring passage in this space which welcomes his emotions and accompanies him in this difficult moment of his life. Jean learns to know me, to trust me. He now uses Pipouette as a mediator in the exchanges we may have.
When he finds himself in difficulty to account for his ailments in words, he sends it to me via Pipouette: “Pipouette tells me that it hurts my stomach a lot when we talk about that”, “Pipouette is very sad! [And how could we help her, what does she (Jean* chose the feminine for Pipouette) need?] A hug! (Jean* then gives him a hug)”. It is thanks to Pipouette that Jean* comes to talk about what happened to him. We can then together reprocess the traumatic experiences that prevented him from flourishing on a daily basis.
Lucie* is 4 years old, she fully experiences her emotions, a little too much according to her parents. The latter describe that when Lucie gets angry , she expresses it very strongly by shouting, hitting the walls or even banging her head on the ground. They then find themselves distraught and wondering how to react. When they arrive in my office, the parents tend to bully Lucie*'s emotions, to forbid her from feeling angry (while getting angry). This is where Pipouette comes in, this time used as an experimentation game around emotions for the whole family! And yes, Lucie*'s tantrums are the lot of young children who have an immature brain at this age and it is therefore up to the parents to support them in their expression and understanding. During several sessions, we will create together games around emotions with Pipouette: mimic the emotions according to the choices of face , quote a moment when we felt this emotion, make guess Pipouette's face which is hidden behind the armchair...
All these games and experiences allow the family to discuss emotions, to apprehend them as a whole. Here, parents also rediscover their emotions , how to express them and address them to others... It is by knowing how to identify and express our emotions and the need that may lie behind that we become able to support our children.
Finally Pipouette can accompany both young and old !
*The child's first name has been changed
