What is Contemplative Psychotherapy?
“Peace is not something you can force on anything or anyone... much less upon one's own mind. It is like trying to quiet the ocean by pressing upon the waves. Sanity lies in somehow opening to the chaos, allowing anxiety, moving deeply into the tumult, diving into the waves, where underneath, within, peace simply is.” - Gerald May
Rooted in Buddhist Psychology, Contemplative Psychotherapy engages the dynamic, authentic, and therefore unpredictable relationship between client and counselor to invite healing, sometimes referred to as psychodynamic therapy. Confidence in the innate goodness and wisdom of ourselves and our clients (Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche called this “brilliant sanity”) creates spacious welcoming of whatever arises in the present moment, knowing that the client holds within themselves the keys to their own freedom. Unconditional acceptance and positive regard of self and other create an environment of love and safety where curiosity and the pursuit of wholeness can thrive. Radical inclusion of the wide spectrum of human experience creates a paradigm that does not depend on diagnosis and pathology.
Research has shown that the most important predicter of success in counseling is the relationship between the clinician and their client. We use the dynamics of our work together to discover who you are deeply meant to be and how that might conflict with how you actually show up in the world. As you explore your story and courageously tell the truth of your life experience we discover not only insights but also your transcendent glory.
In a radical departure from a societal view of suffering, Contemplative Psychotherapy views suffering as caused by the many ways we reject the direct experience of the lives we are living. The primary effort of the Contemplative Psychotherapist is not the dispensing of sage advice or removal of unpleasant circumstances, but discovering the lens with which clients view reality, and considering ways in which they might choose to relate differently. As the ability to feel our emotions, and attend to our thoughts, patterns, impulses and bodily sensations is cultivated, there is a growing access to clarity and compassion. What may have seemed solid and insurmountable softens, and access to infinite potential and new perspectives becomes available; even experiences of joy and peace in the midst of suffering.
