The term ‘transpersonal’ can be defined as transcending the personal or going beyond ones personal identity.
Transpersonal Counselling is one of a number of approaches that falls under the larger umbrella of Holistic Counselling, melding spirituality and a holistic mind-body-soul approach to facilitate a client’s therapeutic journey. A 1992 article from the Journal of Transpersonal Psychotherapy defined this modality as ‘concerned with the study of humanity’s highest potential, and with the recognition, understanding, and realization of intuitive, spiritual, and transcendent states of consciousness.’ This suggests, the transpersonal counsellor is mindful of the many aspects, which comprise a client’s psyche.
Together, counsellor and client will embark on an inner journey.
Together, they will explore and define the underlying emotional blocks and areas of pain that may be preventing the client from experiencing the wellbeing they desire.
The client will be encouraged by the counsellor to become self-empowered and connected to their own internal resources, based on the notion that our species is programed to return to a state of homeostasis. Integration of a deeper experience of consciousness and mindfulness in every-day life may be a rewarding outcome for the client. The client may notice increased levels of empathy, resilience, wellbeing, contentedness, as well as a deeper meaning and direction in their life.
In 1965, Abraham Maslow (1908-1970) founded the Humanistic Psychology Association.
Maslow studied people who were ‘Self-Actualizers’. By 1969 he had further developed and expanded his philosophies and founded the Transpersonal Psychological Association.
The transpersonal model takes into account the many aspects thought to comprise a person’s psyche. Such as social background, cultural background, life history, past events, physical health, belief systems and spirituality. Deep exploration to identify the fundamental roots of a client’s concerns, rather than focusing exclusively on symptoms is an important feature. There is a focus on self-empowerment and healing by connecting the client to their own internal resources via traditional talk therapy, rituals, life mapping, affirmations, meditation, mindfulness, journaling, Gestalt focusing techniques, art therapy and working with altered states of consciousness.
Transpersonal counselling aims to see the client transcend beyond their everyday self-conscious ego state. The client may be interested in exploring the underlying meaning in their experiences and encouraged to integrate a sense of wholeness to all aspect of their self and how they relate to their life. The client can expect to be emotionally met by the therapist at the current stage they are at on their life journey, free from judgment or criticism.
Looking at the origins of transpersonal counselling will lead us to the American founder of psychology, William James.
He coined the phrase ‘Transpersonal’ and believed a client’s human experience related to their psychology and was interested in understanding the function of our consciousness. James believed a client had the ability to self-heal if shown how to access the various inbuilt potentials that lay within. James wrote,
‘our normal consciousness…is but one special type of consciousness, whilst all around it, parted by the flimsiest screens, there lie potential forms of consciousness entirely different. We may go through life without ever suspecting their existence; but apply the required stimulus, and at a touch they are there in their completeness, definite types of mentality which probably somewhere have their field of application. No account of the universe in its totality can be final which leaves these other forms of consciousness quite disregarded.’
James recognized the unconscious aspects and drives of the psyche and his suggestions remind me of the empowering potential our clients have to bring their unconscious concerns to light within the safety of the therapeutic process.
Carl Jung (1875-1961) was a psychoanalyst, whom also had a transpersonal outlook.
‘we are mythological beings who dwell in the realm of symbols of meaning and not just sensory existence…(we) are capable of engaging and utilizing a vast range of states of consciousness in the service of human development, self-realization and healing…the transpersonal is as much the seat of our sense of ourselves and our place in the world, as is science itself for it gives us a sense that we may at any time reach beyond the established boundaries of experience through which we navigate in our daily lives to find new inspiration, new guidance and new direction…’ Jung believed we all have an inbuilt potential to self-heal and to seek a meaningful existence.
Some contemporary examples of transpersonal thinkers.
Eckhart Tolle, suggests we ‘let go of physiological time’ and live in the ‘now’. He says,
‘learn to use time in the practical aspects of your life-we may call this “clock time”-but immediately return to present-moment awareness when those practical matters have been dealt with. In this way, there will be no build up of “psychological time”, which is identification with the past and continuous compulsive projection into the future. Otherwise, your life’s journey is no longer an adventure, just an obsessive need to arrive, to attain, to “make it”, You no longer see or smell the flowers by the wayside…nor are you aware of the beauty and miracle of life that unfolds all around you…’
Tolle suggests we benefit by becoming more grounded in our here and now experiences because ‘in the normal, mind-identified or unenlightened state of consciousness, the power and infinite creative potential that lie concealed in the ‘now’ are completely obscured by psychological time. Your life then loses its vibrancy, its freshness, its sense of wonder…the mind then creates an obsession with the future as a escape from the unsatisfactory present.’ With the guidance of a counsellor, the client can equip themselves with very effective psychological tools that will assist them to remain grounded in the their present moment experience.
Tolle says ‘it is essential to bring more consciousness into your life in ordinary situations…in this way you grow in presence power. It generates an energy field in you and around you of a high vibrational frequency….you learn to be the witness of your thoughts and emotions.’ When the client learns to witness their thoughts, they can create increased mental space and a new perspective about their situation.
Louise Hay supports a metaphysical theory that ‘what we give out, we get back.’ She writes, ‘what we think about ourselves becomes the truth for us.’ Her advice is for us to take responsibility for our thoughts because ‘the thoughts we think and the words we speak create our experiences.’ The constant mental chatter produced by our mind can create a ‘story’ within us that is not necessarily true and can be very destructive to our wellbeing.
Hay says, ‘our subconscious mind accepts whatever we choose to believe…what you choose to think and believe about yourself and about life becomes true for you. And we have unlimited choices about what we can think.’ Hay believes ‘the only thing we are ever dealing with is a thought, and a thought can be changed…no matter what the problem is, our experiences are just outer effects of inner thoughts’. These thoughts and ‘stories’ often only have an element of truth to them, if any at all, and tend to feed of our insecurities and anxiety about the past or the future, neither of which we have any control over anyway.
The transpersonal model recognises the importance of resonating with the client.
Richard Gerber says, ‘the concept of the body as a complex energetic system is part of a new scientific worldview gradually gaining acceptance in the eyes of modern medicine.’ The mindfulness movement is gaining in popularity in recent years and uses the breath and the body to combat anxiety and depression with impressive results.
Transpersonal Therapy incorporates Eastern philosophies, including meditation.
Former Western Australian Premier, Geoff Gallop publicly announced, in 2006 that he suffered depression. Meditation was a healing tool for Gallop. He said,
‘we need to take on board within our systems some of the wisdom of the East…the wisdom of the East contains centuries and centuries of deep understanding of the human mind and I think we ignore that at our own peril. And I’m convinced that emotional intelligence is now recognized as a very important asset in being able to work and be productive. Also, at a deeper level, I think it is a part of a solution to this depression epidemic we have.’
Thankfully, more people like Gallop are coming forward with their personal experience of depression and anxiety to start an informative discourse aimed at de-stigmatizing and shining a light on the growing mental health issues of the modern world.
Thomas Moore talks about ‘loss of soul’.
Moore says, ‘when soul is neglected, it doesn’t just go away; it appears symptomatically in obsessions, addictions, violence and loss of meaning.’
Moore’s therapeutic approach recommends:
- Remain in the ‘present’
- Don’t ‘look to the future for an ideal, trouble free existence’
- Embrace a spiritual life
- Release the desire to ‘cure’, ‘fix’, ‘change’ or ‘perfect’
Moore says, ‘tradition teaches us that soul lies midway between understanding and unconsciousness, and that its instrument is neither the mind nor the body, but imagination. I understand therapy as nothing more than bringing imagination to areas that are devoid of it, which then must express themselves by becoming symptomatic.’ Our body provides us with a direct line of communication to our soul if we are taught to listen to what it is trying to tell us. Art, music and Gestalt therapy are wonderful therapeutic conduits to channel our imagination.
Karen Horney says in Yalom’s ‘The Gift Of Therapy’, ‘the human being has a inbuilt propensity towards self-realization. If obstacles are removed…the individual will develop into a mature, fully realized adult, just as an acorn will develop into an oak tree.’ I like the mental image of the oak tree metaphor, however I tend to ascribe more to Russ Harris’ (2007) Acceptance and Commitment Therapy philosophies that pain and suffering are an inevitable and unavoidable part of the human experience and it is unrealistic to expect a pain-free existence.
Harris suggests we don’t try to ‘get rid of’ or ‘remove’ our painful thoughts or feeling because such strategies ultimately lead to experiential avoidance and increased suffering, manifesting as anxiety and depression. Instead, Harris suggests we use mindfulness to create a better relationship with our suffering so that we have the mental space and emotional capacity to accommodate the unexpected and often unwanted happening that life serves up to us. This doesn’t mean an acceptance of intolerable or unacceptable circumstances in a disempowered or passive state. Rather, a letting go of trying to control our thoughts to only accept ‘positive’ emotions and instead learn how it is possible to make room for ‘negative’ emotions so that we don’t expend our precious time and energy in a fight or flight response to them.
Today’s society can be demanding and stressful on many levels.
Economic, social, political, environmental, psychological, relationship, global and spiritual aspects frame our life experiences.
I believe a person who is well equipped to process and balance these stress triggers will have a manageable outcome. However, I feel this may not be the case for the individual who is genetically pre-disposed to sensitivity, lacks self-confidence, has a traumatic past, does not have a supportive network or has a poorly developed sense of self. This individual is at risk of not being able to place an external trigger into context or meaning and there is the potential for a descent into crisis.
The transpersonal model includes case management.
When the client’s experience is understood and managed effectively in the early phase, their wellbeing and way forward may be greatly enhanced.
The medical model may label this client as a ‘psychiatric patient’ and may medicate them for the rest of their lives. Whereas, the transpersonal model may support and monitor the client’s unique response to their circumstance and assist them to process the emotions that have emerged.
The transpersonal model aims to support the client to reconstruct and re-integrate themselves back into living. The transpersonal counsellor would attempt to aid the client to find the deeper meaning of their experience and explore their core wounding because often the presenting issue is just one aspect of a complex situation. Medication would always be a consideration if it were deemed necessary for the preservation of the client’s wellbeing and considered advantageous to the healing outcome.
The transpersonal model aims to provide the client with time, space and support to fully immerse into their emotional state. The client has an opportunity to re-frame and emerge healed, enlightened and more able to cope with the complexities of their life.
The Transpersonal counsellor will listen closely to what the client is saying, remaining alert to their blind spots and emotions, which may reside just under the surface of the client’s awareness. Regular reviews will be conducted to assess the therapeutic progress and identify desired goals as they emerge.
The transpersonal counsellor aims to be skillful and discerning in the use of appropriate therapy tools for each client, conscious that they present with a unique life experience and issues. Together, the client and counsellor will form a treatment plan and goals for therapy.
A Holistic counsellor will aim to have a flexible and inclusive approach to the therapeutic journey they embark upon with their client. Any of the modalities mentioned in this article would be considered. Every client presents to therapy with a unique experience and it is vital to unearth their personal story in order to find the right therapeutic tools to aid in the client’s journey to wholeness.
If you would like to experience the benefits of transpersonal counselling, call Jackie on 0405 313 876