Existential psychotherapy and psychology
Do you have a good life but still feel that something is missing? Do you experience anxiety, problems in your relationships, low self-esteem, or confusion about your identity, perhaps with no evident cause? Have you lost yourself in your work? Are you trying to make sense of life following a trauma or bereavement? Have you had persistent or severe difficulties despite accessing help? Have you recently received a diagnosis and are struggling to understand what this means for you?
Existential psychotherapy is a holistic approach to understanding yourself in the context of your environment and lifespan and becoming free to live a richer, more meaningful life. In our work together we will consider past relationships and events, your beliefs about the future, and the particulars of your present situation. I believe that every thought, feeling, and behaviour, no matter how confusing or distressing, holds clues about who you are, what you have been through, and what you require to fully live.
Whether you would like to function better in your existing life or change your life to better suit you, our work together will support you in gaining a better understanding of who you are, what is causing you difficulties, and how you can move forward into greater freedom.
My Approach
My primary aim is to gain an understanding of your specific experience, needs, and goals; my approach is open and collaborative. Depending on your preference, we can work in a goal-oriented way to address specific symptoms or take a broader approach to more fully make sense of you and your life.
The existential approach forms the bedrock of my practice and I draw on two additional therapeutic methods: cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), a structured, goal-oriented approach; and psychodynamic psychotherapy, which focuses on relational patterns you might have learned in very early life. I incorporate aspects of these approaches as appropriate to each client's difficulties, goals, and needs.
I am committed to working respectfully with every human being, regardless of age, gender identity, sexual orientation, race, religious identity, or disability. At the same time, I appreciate that these characteristics are likely to have formed an important part of your life experience.
In our sessions, I will be interested in every detail of what it is like to be you: how you feel about sharing your thoughts with me, how your body feels when you discuss a certain memory, whether you think in images or words. Sometimes, the smallest thing can be a clue to a previously ignored aspect of experience!
