Review, “Dreams: Strolling the Royal Road”, E. Greenleaf PhD, February 20, 2015, Reviewed by: John Gladfelter, Ph.D., Dallas, Texas

There are many approaches to dream work with clients. Greenleaf, in Dreams; Strolling the Royal Road presented at the 2001 Ericksonian Congress, is effective and one that recommends itself very highly. With a gentle straightforward presence, Greenleaf invites the volunteer to tell about her dream. He then uses the natural imagery of the volunteer to enter into a dialogue, which becomes personal work.

By staying with her images, he enables her to enter a light trance state. They begin to examine the experiences of her dream in a very naturalistic way. Anyone familiar with Ericksonian approaches would find this method typical–it is smooth, gentle and very clearly centered around the images, which the client discovers. Using the dream as a vehicle for entering light trance work is a very creative and productive way to engage dream material for therapists and is a skill that often develops from training in Erickson’s approach to therapy. Greenleaf allows the subject to set her own pace. He follows, very carefully, her voice, her demeanor and her use of images.

The effectiveness of this approach is well demonstrated by the completion of the work and the way in which the subject talks about her experience in the trance. It is very clear that the content and resolution of much of it remains with the subject and is not brought into direct interpretation.

This reviewer believes that this is one of the strengths of this kind of work. This presentation beautifully supports the effectiveness of not interpreting symbols. The “resolution” of the meaning of the dream is both respected and nicely protected for the volunteer.

At the end of the demonstration, Greenleaf assists the volunteer to continue to utilize the work she has completed while out of the trance. A question and answer period followed giving a good framework for this method. It also assisted viewers of the tape to understand the approach even if they do not have an Ericksonian orientation. Greenleaf’s analogy of his work being likened to bodywork is another valuable way of helping the audience understand.

Unfortunately, the remote microphone was not used for some of the questions. Additionally, a low level hum at the beginning of the tape is slightly unsettling; it diminishes over time and does not interfere with the overall audio quality. The video quality is up to the standard, which is a part of the Erickson Foundation quality control.

As a teaching tape Dreams: Strolling The Royal Road is excellent for trainers of Erickson’s methods as well as for anyone looking for better ways of doing dream work and exploring the use of trance work in psychotherapy. Greenleaf’s laid-back and supportive way of working with people offers a fine demonstration of a master therapist.