Some humanistic therapies that can change your life, focus on therapeutic approaches that are more philosophical than technical, based on phenomenological and existential perspectives, which place people in a context where behavior is observed from a general human condition, which gives importance to human capacities, motivating them to assume responsibility Of their acts; of their successes and their experiences.
These existential humanistic therapies use dialogue to identify prejudices and ways of proceeding in life.; so the therapist appears with all the disposition to understand the particular situation of the patient and the way of experiencing his life; focusing on the conflicts and problems that originate when facing the environment where he operates, and in which he must fulfill roles in the family, social, work, religious, among others.
In this way, through humanistic therapies that focus on the existential orientation process, no emphasis on past events, as is the case with other types of therapy. However, this type of humanistic therapy considers the person’s past, to carry out a retrospective process that facilitates the understanding of the implications of certain events that occurred in past stages that have an impact on the present.
In this context, if you come to existential therapy, you will notice that the therapist will not blame past events, instead they will use them as a tool to promote assertiveness and decision-making for well-being. emotional and mental; being yourself the one who decides the course that your life will take, since an existential therapist will always avoid imposing his own judgments; and it will only guide the person so that he recognizes his own potentialities and overcomes his existential problems.
There are other approaches to existentialist theory, which are based on the internal conflict derived from the confrontation that each person faces in relation to the principles of existence, and which the psychotherapist Irvin D. Yalom classified as follows: inevitability of death, freedom and its consequent responsibility, existential isolation and meaninglessness of existence; which are raised as fundamental concerns within the framework on which the therapist is based to achieve the identification of the problems of their patients.
Hence, within the context of humanistic therapies, therapists who work in existentialist methods consider the basic principles of this current of thought, starting from the premise that the human being is elective, therefore, capable of choosing his own destiny; he is free to set his own life goals; and is responsible for his own choices.
Another of the well-known humanistic therapies is Gestalt Therapy., which is a form of psychotherapy derived from Gestalt thought; developed in the late 1940s by Fritz Perls and is guided by the principle that each person is a whole, made up of mind, body and soul; from a self-awareness and “here and now” perspective. Therefore, in this type of humanistic therapies; the conscience of each individual is the fundamental base to achieve personal growth and the development of his potentiality.
But, often that growth and potential are limited by states of dissatisfaction of individuals, which originate when consciousness is blocked by negative thought patterns and behaviors; caused by internal and/or external factors that affect the behavior and attitudes of each individual.
In this sense, the goal of a Gestalt therapist is to try to develop in the people receiving therapy a non-judgmental self-awareness and that allows them to develop a unique perspective in life; guiding them and providing them with the resources and mechanisms to make them more aware of everything they think and feel; and therefore of their actions; so that they can value themselves and develop their potential to the fullest.
Within the methods applied in Gestalt therapy; lies the role play, through which it is sought that individuals experience different sensations and emotions, during the process of understanding, identifying and organizing their environment. It is undoubtedly a very useful tool within the context of humanistic therapies.
On the other hand, dialogues are one of the methods applied by Gestalt therapists to promote meaningful and authentic experiences; that allow people to be guided in relation to their particular way of thinking and acting; focusing on creative forms of expression, such as dance, song or laughter.
Another method of this type of humanistic therapy is the discussion of dreams; since, through its interpretation with the help of the therapist, people are guided in relation to self-knowledge and understanding of the internal aspects of their personality.
Finally, we have attention to body languageas one of the methods used by Gestalt therapy to investigate the intense emotions of people, making them exaggerate gestures, movements or attitudes, to intensify each emotion and highlight their internal meaning, with the purpose of guiding individuals in relation to their self-knowledge, the reason for their reactions and behaviors, and the corrective measures that must be taken to achieve a state of well-being.
Gestalt therapy is one of the most effective humanistic therapies, helping individuals understand how their physical and emotional needs are connected; learning to be aware of their inner self, as a fundamental aspect to understand why they think, react, act and behave in a certain way.
For these reasons, Gestalt Therapy is very valuable for the treatment of certain psychological problems, including some addictions, anxiety, post-traumatic stress, depression and other psychological problems that do not allow a state of comprehensive well-being.