Constructing a Solutions Timeline: Creating Possibilities in Counseling

Generating helpful ways to approach relational difficulties is a main focus when providing counseling services to couples and families. This article describes a technique that may prove beneficial when working with clients who are stuck in repetitive, nonproductive cycles of interaction. The Solution Timeline allows clients to process their current difficulty from more global perspectives as it focuses on examining past significant life events in an attempt to rediscover solutions previously used. By exploring past coping skills, the therapist can assist clients in identifying and then mobilizing resources to deal with the current problematic situations. The construction of a Solution Timeline may thus be useful in facilitating more functional action.