A Toolbox of Metaphors: Applications for Psychosocial Occupational Therapy

Metaphors are figures of speech that can be used in clinical practice for simplifying complex, emotion-laden content and make it more comprehensible. Literature suggests a paucity of metaphors tailored particularly for mental health practice. This paper presents an array of metaphors rooted in everyday occupations that we found useful in our clinical practice involving individuals with mental illness. Based on their applications, we have organized them into categories such as ‘dealing with the initial phase’, ‘empowering the clients’, ‘managing negative thoughts or emotions’, ‘attributes for a successful recovery journey’, ‘keeping the faith’, and ‘a balanced life’.