• Psychosynthesis

As a framework for a transpersonal psychology, Psychosynthesis is especially useful during times of intense transition such as the world is currently undergoing.  While it has wide-ranging applications, I focus here on how it can help people in two particularly common situations these days:  following on from loss and trauma, and when someone is experiencing strong inner conflict.  Both types of issues can stop us acting from our strength.

In dealing with trauma and loss
Psychosynthesis counselling is unparalleled in situations where a person has had huge losses and/or trauma and needs to make sense of what has happened to him or her.  Sadly, in today’s economic climate there has been an exponential increase in the number of people whose finances and lives have been shattered, sometimes through no fault of their own, by failing finance companies, unscrupulous investment brokers, and sharply increasing redundancies.  Meaning-making is a high priority as such clients attempt to understand and grapple with radically altered lives.  

Psychosynthesis has a rich store of maps and models to aid such transitions.  As practitioners, we work with many levels – body, feelings and mind – as we help clients work out strategies to cope.  Sometimes called a “height” psychology as well as a “depth” one, Psychosynthesis can help people see what is happening to them in the context of the larger scheme of things:  their overall development, as well as the experience of the moment.  Because it embraces all of a person, Psychosynthesis is a gentle, heartful way to cope with personal change.

When there is internal conflict
Psychosynthesis also helps clients to integrate more and more of their experience into an ever-more-fully-conscious self.  That may sound like so much “psycho-babble”, but consider this.  Have you ever found yourself saying, “Well, one part of me wants _____ , but another part of me wants [just the opposite]”?  Psychosynthesis works well with dilemmas like this because it gives voice to the different parts of ourselves (sometimes called “subpersonalities”).  When we find out what the needs of our “parts” are, we get important information about where our will is, and thus, the direction of growth intended by our whole self.

Psychosynthesis founder Roberto Assagioli believed that will is what integrates all the rest of the functions of our personality (functions such as thinking, feeling, imagining, sensing, and so forth).  So a byline for Psychosynthesis practitioners might be, “We track will.”  Working from this framework, I can help you find out where your will is (it’s always present somewhere), and how it may be operating to keep you from getting what you consciously say you want.  

An example of how this works could be the person who says that they want an intimate relationship.  Their conscious mind may want a relationship so badly they can taste it, but their subconscious (the storage place for deep memories) may be busily making sure that close relationships don’t work.  Why?  This part of the unconscious may be working hard to protect the person from being hurt (or perhaps, hurt again?) as a result of getting too close to someone.  So in counselling, I would work with both the protecting part and the part that wants to get close, and help them to exist harmoniously within the same personality.  

Developing aspects of will for resilience
People often think about will as being merely strong will, but there are other aspects as well.  When we organise to work smarter rather than harder or show effectiveness in our endeavours, we are using elements of skilful will.  Then there is good will.  Clients often express a feeling of overwhelm in their lives because they show a great amount of good will for others, but not for themselves.  Thus, their work in therapy is about opening to a sense of deserving good will and loving attention – and giving it to themselves.  Obviously, the person who has managed to develop all three aspects of will stands a good chance of being highly resilient in these volatile times.

Book a Psychosynthesis counselling session
Don’t just sit on the sidelines wondering how therapy could help you.  Book a session now.  I am Auckland-based, but also conduct sessions over the telephone for those out of Auckland.