EXPANDING SECTIONS FOR HOMEPAGE
COUPLES COUNSELLING, INDIVIDUAL COUNSELLING AND THERAPY
Carol and Roy work with individuals and are also available to work with couples. Couples are seen with both counsellors present in the session. This ensures a gender balance is maintained and both partners are attended to.
We can send you a document which describes the way we work with couples and individuals. If you would like to read this document before deciding to make an appointment send your names and an e mail or postal address to caroy@paradise.net.nz and we will send the document to you.To make an appointment send us your names,
address(es) and phone numbers by e mail to caroy@paradise.net.nz
-Our practice phone number is (04) 2330610
Our practice hours are Tuesday to Friday.
The last appointment time is 6.30.p.m.
We do not practice on weekends.
We also suggest you read the information further down this page titled, "Guidelines for clients seeking counselling or therapy in New Zealand"
TRAINING, SUPERVISION AND MENTORING
Carol and Roy supervise counsellors, therapists, health professionals, agency managers and educators. We welcome enquiries about our supervision services.
Roy has developed a course to train health and welfare professionals in supervision. He designed and taught supervision courses when he was employed at Massey University and the Wellington Institute of Technology and his new course, 'Supervision is Reflected Relationships' takes account of insights relevant to this decade. Feedback from participants on Roy's courses can be sent to you. Establish a group of interested people and he will negotiate a training event with you in supervision, counselling or aspects of social service work.
ONLINE COUNSELLING, SUPERVISION, TRAINING, MENTORING AND ACADEMIC COACHING
See the orange button to the left of page one of this web site.
PARENTING SEMINARS AND TRAINING (In any location)
These seminars are offered to organisations, groups and agencies. Carol and Roy discover the issues people want to discuss and outline new strategies for closer relationships with children and young adults. Different family settings are discussed. We employ a conversational approach with parents, adults who are parenting alone and people wanting to make new adult relationships succeed. These highly participatory seminars also focus on the way adults can establish new relationships after separation.
Some feedback from our parenting seminars is listed on our web page
INFORMATION FOR COUNSELLORS, PSYCHOTHERAPISTS, HEALTH PROFESSIONALS, STUDENTS, AND PEOPLE INTERESTED IN A CAREER IN COUNSELLING OR THERAPY
A document can be sent to you outlining training courses in NZ, advice for intending or enrolled students, information regarding Counselling and Psychotherapy in NZ and guidelines for people wanting to access counselling or therapy in New Zealand. The document outlines training opportunties for people who wish to become counsellors or therapists in Aotearoa New Zealand. This is a guide to training and professional opportunities which reflects Roy's knowledge of the field and his views on appropriate ways to assist people. It is important to choose training which allows you to enhance your unique contribution as a professional person. Ask for this information by writing to caroy@paradise.net.nz
CELEBRANCY SERVICES FOR COUPLES AND FAMILIES
Roy is available to lead significant events including marriages, civil unions,
and occasions for the way life begins and ends. Roy was a Methodist clergyperson from 1966 to 1977.
He resigned from his role as a minister in 1977 and in 2001 registered as a celebrant. If you are getting married or joining as partners in a union he encourages you to build your own ceremony which can take place in any setting, at home, in a church, outdoors, or in places which hold significance for you. Examples of ceremonies can be sent to help you choose words, readings, vows and the format for the occasion. Roy meets with you and works with you to write the ceremony. His fees are related to the time taken to prepare and lead each occasion.
SEMINARS FOR HEALTH RELATED PROFESSIONALS, FACILITATION, MEDIATION AND TRAINING FOR STAFF IN ORGANISATIONS
Seminars, workshops, team or peer sessions which focus on training for people in the helping professions are available. Roy has taught across cultures and appreciated insights which come from close dialogue and the revision of his own training. He has innovative suggestions to re set traditional approaches to health and welfare services in Aotearoa.
Enquire about related opportunities for health and personal assistance professionals (counsellors, social workers and therapists) to work with Roy in individually focused seminar settings. The aim is to work together towards the establishment of creative relationships "in the moment". In these tailored seminars every person has their unique professional learning needs attended to. There is no attempt to persuade participants that a particular way of working is preferable and no desire to establish adherence to a structured modality.
INFORMATION & HOSPITALITY FOR COLLEAGUES FROM OVERSEAS
Carol and Roy welcome health professionals from overseas who would appreciate an introduction to the New Zealand professional environment. Colleagues are encouraged to write and enquire about short term accommodation while visiting New Zealand.
AN INTRODUCTION TO CAROL BOWDEN
Carol M. Bowden
BA, M.Couns (Dist), H.Dip Tchg,
Dip STN, MNZAC
Carol works with Roy in couples counselling and offers services from her own private practice. Carol is an experienced and qualified counsellor, a member of the NZ Association of Counsellors and has worked with couples, in groups, and in teaching situations. Her experience includes counselling in a university setting, school counselling, social work, teaching and special needs advisory services. Carol offers supervision for counsellors, trainees, school counsellors, agency managers and health and education professionals. Carol and Roy teach together in parent education seminars and seminars for professionals working with couples.
AN INTRODUCTION TO ROY BOWDEN
A. Roy Bowden
BA, MSW (Hons), Dip Soc Wk,
Dip Theol Ordn, WCPC,
MNZAP, Reg. Psychoth.
Roy is a former President of the New Zealand Association of Psychotherapists and is the Pacific-New Zealand board member on the World Council for Psychotherapy.
His professional career included appointments as the director of a family counselling centre, social worker, family court counsellor, corporate staff counsellor, mediator, social auditor and former clergyman. After ten years as a Senior Lecturer in Adult Education and in Social Work at Massey University he established the first private psychotherapy practice in Palmerston North where he practised for ten years. He was a founding tutor and then programme director for the first bachelor degree in counselling in Aotearoa, New Zealand. He trained relationship counsellors nationally and was Head of School (or faculty) in a New Zealand Institute of Technology where for fifteen years he pioneered the development of generic training for counsellors and therapists which was not dependent on preferred modalities. He still enjoys designing training for health professionals which discovers and develops the unique contribution each practitioner can make.
Note: There is a description of the way Roy practises and his approach to theory in the side box on the second page of this web site.
MANA PRACTITIONERS COLLEGE
Mana Practitioners College offers creative solutions for organisations, health professionals, therapists and counsellors in their search for effective ways to assist people. Roy proposes a new kind of training for practitioners which builds on their knowledge of themselves in their own country and their unique skills. He does not suggest a method and prefers to draw on the potential in each person. "Method misses the person. The application of someone else's ideas or the use of manipulative instruments in the helping environment prevents immediacy and authenticity in relationships”.
INTERNATIONAL SPEAKER , SUPERVISOR, EDUCATOR
Roy is available as an educator, key note speaker seminar leader, consultant and supervisor to organisations, staff groups, international forums and community groups. He presented again at the World Congress for Psychotherapy when it met in Beijing in October 2008. His paper is on the second page of this web site (see directions at the foot of this page). Feedback at the conference regarding Roy's paper suggested it points the way to the next era for psychotherapy and counselling.
GUIDELINES FOR CLIENTS SEEKING COUNSELLING OR THERAPY IN NEW ZEALAND
Being a client in New Zealand
Making a decision
Professionals in New Zealand have a good reputation through history and are highly motivated to assist you with care and sensitivity. Most accept the view that your wishes are paramount and ‘the way you want to change’ is the prime consideration.
Note: From January 2009 all professionals using the title "Psychotherapist" must be registered with the newly established Psychotherapist's Registration Board of New Zealand. See http://www.pbanz.org.nz
Counsellors are also considering applying for registration under the Health Practitioners Act.
It is advisable to make a first appointment and see whether the professional (or their approach) suits you. You may want to take a support person with you to the first appointment. There is no reason why you should not meet one or two counsellors or therapists first before deciding who establishes the most effective relationship with you.
Counsellors and psychotherapists in Aotearoa advertise their services in a variety of ways. It is important the service you receive is based on a healthy personal relationship with the professional you have consulted. Most helping professionals believe that the person and the way they view themselves comes first. The management of any difficulties is woven into therapy keeping the person in focus. Other counsellors and therapists are ‘method specific’ or ‘issue specific’ and this means you will be ‘counselled’ according to the specific training the professional has had.
Specialist services
There are specialist services available for specific difficulties. It is important to check whether the counsellor or therapist has the required training in specific arenas before working with them on an issue or problem. Issues such as violence in the home, sexual abuse, addictions, or family separation may be best managed by someone who has specific training or experience in these areas. Ask your counsellor or therapist to tell you their history with regard to training or experience for important issues. If that is not easy for you to do ask your general practitioner to question the professional you are about to see.
Individual, couple or family services
You can access counselling or therapy as an individual, a couple, or as a family. Traditionally one counsellor is available to see one or more persons. In most agencies (or private practices) resources do not stretch to having more than one counsellor present. In some family based services (particularly those which make family therapy available) two counsellors often see the family together. While couple counselling can be highly successful with one counsellor present there are real advantages in having two counsellors and often it is important to have each gender represented by the counsellors.
It is possible to ask for two counsellors to be present but bear in mind that most agencies will have difficulty providing this service due to limited financial resources.
My view is that it is preferable for a couple to have two counsellors present and when families are in therapy it is even more important for there to be more than one therapist.
In situations where culture is important more than two people may want to attend the sessions and your health professional or counsellor can provide facilities for this to happen.
Children and Young Persons
Children and young persons are often referred to counselling or therapy services. The most important question to ask before this happens is whether the child is being seen as ‘the problem’ because of their behaviour or their expressed feelings. Usually the ‘problem’ is ‘systemic’ which means the influences of the parents, siblings, school, or peers are crucial in the way the child is feeling or behaving. My view is that parents need to present for counselling first, discover more about the way they relate together and review their parenting agreements before deciding to place a child or a young person in counselling, therapy or treatment. It is seldom the case that a child or young person is the ‘cause’ of any difficulties. The causes lie in the system, the environment and the whole of life setting within which the young person lives. Make sure you obtain a variety of opinions regarding any interventions suggested for a child or young person as they may not have access to choices which can only be made when all information is to hand. Having said that, there are highly skilled child psychotherapists and counsellors who can help children and young people face changes, trauma, and challenges in ways that parents or other people cannot manage.
Counsellors who are members of the NZ Association of Counsellors or the NZ Association of Psychotherapists may assist young persons.
(See also the note above regarding registration from 2009)
Ask them to describe their training and experience in working with young people. Counsellors and social workers in schools are able to assist young people and their families within school communities and can usually access helpful agencies to refer young people or families to. For children and young persons, psychotherapists who belong to ‘The New Zealand Association of Child and Adolescent Psychotherapists’ have had specialist training, adhere to a code of ethics and have helpful links with other professional groups.
Professional Issues
For adults, counsellors and psychotherapists who are registered with NZAC or NZAP are the most appropriate to see as these professionals are bound by a code of ethics and there is a complaint system in place for clients.
http://www.nzac.org.nz or http://www.nzap.org.nz
(Complaints will soon be managed through the registration board mentioned above)
You are entitled to see copies of the codes of ethics and complaint systems. You are also entitled to have fee structures explained to you, receive receipts for any fees paid and make your own decision as to how many sessions you need. If you wish to have support persons present ask about arrangements for this to happen. If the counselling or therapy is about relationships you have with people ask whether those people (for example partners) can be seen with you and expect the focus in those sessions to be on the way the relationship functions more than a focus on specific 'problems'. Ensure each partner feels they are being given equal attention in the counselling process.
Sessions with counsellors and therapists begin with a careful listening time which allows you to tell your story in detail. Then the professional is there to explore ways ahead with you and help you make your own decisions.
Your counsellor or therapist may be trained in a ‘method’. Methods on their own do not make the difference. What makes the difference is the relationship between counsellor and client. Ask for techniques or methods to be explained and ask why the counsellor or therapist believes those techniques will make a difference to your particular situation. Before taking part in a method based approach find out exactly what you are being asked to do, whether you can have a support person present and whether you can first speak with someone who has been through a similar process. You may want to consult the internet and read different assessments of the method being used.
My belief is that each person has the potential to change and, unless there is some neurological, ‘mental’ or physically centred impairment present, people can be helped through the establishment of effective relationships with counsellors or therapists. A healing relationship will eventually help you discover your own resources for change and a new quality of life. The healing relationship that eventually moves you forward may be with a professional person. On the other hand it may be with someone you know and trust who is close to you in other ways.
Psychiatric services are available and counsellors and therapists are trained to refer you on to a mental health professional if they decide with you that your difficulties may need medication or you are at risk of harming yourself or someone else. Mental health professionals may provide therapeutic services alongside medication. When consulting mental health professionals ask for clear information about each step in the process and ask to see any records kept regarding your progress. You can also ask to see referral letters containing information about you.
Confidentiality is paramount in all services and it is important to ask for copies of referral letters and reports made about you at any stage in the helping process. Confidentiality may be put to one side if there is a risk of harm to you or another person and your counsellor or therapist will explain that process to you.
New Zealand counsellors and therapists are required to have an annual practising certificate, be in supervision with a colleague and keep up membership in their associations.
Culture
Cultural differences are in focus in Aotearoa and if your culture is different from that of your counsellor or therapist it is important you expect them to take that into consideration and be culturally appropriate and sensitive. Culturally based resources should be taken into consideration as these may be significantly helpful. Counselling or therapy from someone within your own culture may also be available if you do some research through NZAC or NZAP.
Your life
You do not need to have a specific problem or issue before consulting a counsellor or therapist. You may want someone to listen while you celebrate something in your life. You may just feel vaguely uneasy. If you do, your counsellor can help you discover more information leading to understanding feelings of confusion, stress, loss or lethargy.
If your health professional asks you to attend sessions regularly or at defined intervals (such as weekly) ask for the reasons behind such planning. You may want to attend some sessions this year or this month and some the next. Use therapy at your own pace and take charge of the way you want to be helped.
It is important you are in charge of your own healing process and your future. A. Roy Bowden
WORLD COUNCIL FOR PSYCHOTHERAPY
Roy is one of two Australasian representatives on the Board of the World Congress
for Psychotherapy. His keynote paper at a regional WCP Congress in
Canada in 2003 titled "Choosing to Cross by Sea" has been an encouragement to health professionals working cross culturally and can be downloaded by clicking
here.
NEWS FOR PRACTITIONERS FROM NEW ZEALAND, THE PACIFIC AND THE ASIAN REGION:WORLD CONGRESS EVENT, SYDNEY 2011
The World Congress for Psychotherapy will be held in Sydney, Australia in August 2011. The Congress will be jointly hosted by the New Zealand and Australian Associations of Psychotherapy. The Congress theme, 'World Dreaming' reflects an interest in the way traditional therapeutic approaches can meet with cultures in the South Pacific. News from the Congress planning committee will appear on this site from time to time.
See the conference web site http://www.wcp2011.org.
(Click on the site in the left hand column of this web page)
"A PSYCHOTHERAPIST SINGS IN AOTEAROA": A BOOK FOR HEALTH RELATED PROFESSIONALS, COUNSELLORS, THERAPISTS AND TRAINERS
“A Psychotherapist Sings in Aotearoa”, the book at the top of the web page, has been reviewed as
"The best book of its kind to come out of Aotearoa-do not miss this book" (George Sweet, New Zealand counsellor and consultant)
The book is a textbook in counsellor training programmes and contains a new perspective for therapists and other professionals.
To order Roy's book use the contact box at the top of this page.
Book price: $30.00 NZD plus postage. Published by Caroy Publications, 31 Sunset Parade, Plimmerton, Mana, New Zealand
EXPANDING SECTIONS FOR - SUPERVISION, COUNSELLING, TRAINING, MENTORING, ASSIGNMENT COACHING FOR STUDENTS AND PROFESSIONALS - ONLINE
ONLINE COUNSELLING AND THERAPY
The supervision and mentoring facility is further down this page)
There are advantages in accessing counselling online:
A relationship is established within which you can be relatively anonymous
After describing the issues you want to discuss I reply. You then have as much time as you need to consider my reply and your next response
You work with me at your own pace and maintain your privacy
You can end the relationship at any time by writing a brief reason for your decision to stop writing.
E mailed messages provide opportunities to describe your emotional responses to situations or people. The reasons for present difficulties may involve the past, the present or the future and I consider as many influences as possible.
Counselling takes the whole person into account so your thoughts, physical health, spiritual, cultural or philosophical beliefs, your emotions, and the way you sustain yourself daily are all important factors.
You may want to ask for direction, consider a new pathway for your life, discuss employment, creative work, education, opportunities or your goals.I can make practical suggestions as well as considering personal, psychological or social issues.
You may want to describe relationships you wish to enhance or are finding difficult to manage. I can discuss your personal relationships with you. (Bear in mind only one person’s view is being presented to me and that will have an impact on the way my responses are formed).
See the "getting started" box on the left of this page for ideas on how to write.
There are important matters to consider before you get started:
The best way to access counselling, psychotherapy or supervision is to make an appointment with a professional in your own community. Choose a health professional who adheres to a code of ethics in a professional association and is recommended by someone you trust. I can send you my document, ‘guidelines for clients’ if you are considering consulting a practitioner in your own area.
Online assistance is not available on this site if you are under the age of 20yrs.
Online contact is not appropriate if you are in urgent need of help, your safety is at risk or if you are in danger of harming someone else.
If you are in the care of a mental health professional who has already assessed your situation it is important to advise them before accessing help online. It is advisable to use the services already offered to you in your community if you are in an urgent crisis situation or you consider you are in need of professional mental health care. Most cities and towns have crisis telephone services, places of refuge and organisations that will respond to an urgent call. If you are physically unwell it is important to contact a medical practitioner or a hospital based service. The front pages of your telephone book will contain urgent numbers to call or you can find crisis telephone numbers on the internet.
If you are already consulting a counsellor, a therapist, culturally based assistance or a mental health professional (as a client or as a supervisee) I need to know in order to discuss the purpose of my relationship with you.
SUPERVISION AND MENTORING SERVICES
To make contact click on "contact me" in the blue box
These services are available online for counsellors, therapists, health professionals and educators.
Supervision online has a similar format to the counselling service and is especially helpful when practitioners are managing client situations and looking for suggestions as to how to work with clients. You may also wish to review your practice, ways to manage workload and discuss boundaries, stress levels, professional development goals or career opportunities.
If you are a trainee counsellor or therapist you may wish to discuss training programme expectations, review assignments or plan ways to work with clients and colleagues.
Staff in educational facilities and managers in organisations often use mentoring services to find ways through educational dilemmas, staff relationships, workload issues, teaching plans or policy formation.
Online supervision may supplement other supervision arrangements and it is important for me to to know if you are connected with another supervisor or supervisory system.
PERSONAL AND PROFESSIONAL PROFILE
In my personal life I am married and enjoy our three adult sons, their partners and three grandsons.
In professional life I am in private practice as a counsellor, psychotherapist, supervisor and consultant trainer.
I resigned in October 2005 after fifteen years as a Senior Tutor and Head of School in a degree programme which trained counsellors in the Wellington Institute of Technology. I am currently the New Zealand-Pacific representative on the Board of the World Council for Psychotherapy and was President of the New Zealand Association of Psychotherapists from 1998 to 2000. As a Senior Lecturer in the 1980's I taught trainee social workers in a degree programme at Massey University. Prior to 1980 I was a Lecturer in Psychology and Sociology in the Continuing Education Department at Massey University. I trained Marriage Guidance counsellors nationally for ten years and held positions as the Director of a Family Counselling Centre, Social Auditor and Family Court Counsellor. For nine years I practised as a consultant psychotherapist in Palmerston North and spent time as a staff counsellor in a pharmaceutical company, a mediator for organisations and a trainer and mentor for social service groups. In the early years of my career I was a Methodist clergyman, a part time prison and hospital chaplain and completed internships in school counselling and a community psychiatric clinic.
FORMAL QUALIFICATIONS
BA (University of Canterbury) MSW (Hons) (Massey Univ.)
Dip Soc Wk (Victoria Univ.) Dip Theol Ordn (Trinity Theological College).
World Council Psychotherapy Certificate (Vienna, Austria)
Member, New Zealand Association of Psychotherapists.
NZ Registered Psychotherapist.
The New Zealand Association of Psychotherapists is at: http://www.nzap.org.nz
PAPERS TO READ (Written by Roy)
A NEW PARADIGM AND SKILLS BASE FOR PSYCHOTHERAPY IN OUR MULTICULTURAL WORLD
A.Roy Bowden
New Zealand –Pacific Representative, World Council for Psychotherapy
Former President, New Zealand Association of Psychotherapists
Consultant Psychotherapist and Trainer
Abstract
In the global environment it is important to move psychotherapy from a fundamental reliance on psychological insights to a view that incorporates a radically different perspective. Psychotherapy in this context is different from psychoanalysis and treatment based modalities. By drawing on examples from the New Zealand setting, this paper proposes that psychotherapy takes more account of cultural meanings, myth and legend, influential ancestors, imagination and new ways to acknowledge the collective unconscious. The paper also outlines a new set of skills for therapists to practice.
PSYCHOTHERAPY FOR THE NEXT GENERATION
I watched my grandson Finn in the park the other day as he ran around, investigated surfaces, listened to sounds, stared at people and focused for ages on some birds in the air. He jumped into my arms, pushed me away, cried when he fell and laughed when I pulled a face at him. He was upset when another child ran away after he had reached out to her. He is building a network of images, emotions and ideas which are known only to him. I thought how easy it would be to start describing his experiences in the language of psychotherapy. I could decide he felt rejected by the other child, very sad when he fell or that his laughter indicated denial because he was afraid when I pulled faces at him. As he gazed into the sky for ages I could decide it was the birds who took his attention or perhaps he was hallucinating and seeing mythological creatures from one of his story books.
I took Finn back to his mother and realised how I can know only through my own lens what is happening for him. From my viewpoint he is happy and secure, he has parents who love him completely and he and I relate to each other with delight. I cannot know how he puts all his impressions and learning together in his mind, his body and his spirit.
If he came for therapy as an adult we might start interpreting that day for him. We might ask him if he felt rejected and whether he repressed any feelings. Words like denial, projection, transference or anxiety might be added to his narrative. We might be very curious about his relationship with his grandfather and check carefully as to whether his memory of a warm loving man was correct. We might teach him that his experience in the park was through the eyes of a child and therefore some of it might be discounted as unreliable.
I wonder what gives us the confidence to use therapeutic terminology and apply it to the experiences of clients with whom we have spent only a few hours? What leads us to apply treatment templates to someone like Finn later in life and assume they will be beneficial for a person born in 2006 in New Zealand? Can we trust Finn to understand his own life impressions and his own ‘self’? Is it ever fair to describe him using the language of psychotherapy?
In 1984 I chose psychotherapy as my profession. I was attracted to the combination of two words, ‘psyche’ and ‘therapy’. It was the profession that named and explored the unconscious and focused on intensity and depth in human relationships. Colleagues in the New Zealand Association of Psychotherapists were drawn from related disciplines with a respect for science and imagination. They were open to facets of the human condition including endeavours in art, music, literature, philosophy and spirituality. They also paid attention to disadvantaged people world wide. No other professional holds the person like we do. In the midst of unconscious images, complicated association patterns, predictable and unpredictable physiology, powerful emotional life and indomitable spirituality, the therapist holds the ambivalence which leads to growth.
I remain captured by the threads woven into psychotherapy and I am a proponent of the huge influence it could have in Aotearoa, New Zealand. For many years I have been suggesting psychotherapy in Aotearoa needs to change to make it more relevant to Maori, our indigenous first nation people.
My focus today is wider. I am proposing changes for the work we do with all our clients whatever culture they belong to.
REDISCOVERING OUR HISTORY
For the purposes of this paper the new paradigm is titled “Therapy for Connection, Unity and Possibility”. The paradigm rediscovers attunement, attachment, relationship and intuition and here is a summary of two paradigms:
A paradigm of definition focuses on the internal world of a client whereas a paradigm of change focuses on movement and influence within, around and beyond the client.
A paradigm of definition focuses on one client and one therapist whereas a paradigm of change focuses on a wider cultural and social system
A paradigm of definition focuses on psychodynamics as the main pathway to insight whereas a paradigm of change focuses on view beyond psychodynamics which create more pathways to insight.
A paradigm of definition focuses on modalities and treatment methods whereas a paradigm of change focuses on psychotherapeutic moments as opportunities for creative responses to each client
A paradigm of definition focuses on defined categories to describe client experience, function and personality whereas a paradigm of change focuses on the world within and around therapy where nothing is isolated and nothing stays the same
A paradigm of definition focuses on separate issues, events, relationships and experiences whereas a paradigm of change focuses on an interwoven universe where continuous movement shifts perspectives and each feature makes a difference
A paradigm of deifinition focuses on cause and effect, health and ill health, reality and unreality, disorder and order whereas a paradigm of change focuses on a holistic view which integrates and balances difference.
_________________________________________________________
It is the dance of connection, unity and possibility in therapy that needs reclaiming. Tom Lewis likened models of psychotherapy to religious sects. He wrote “Such models are unduly limiting. The proliferation of competing sects, each convinced of the singular truth of its dogma, promotes insularity and false certainty rather than the sharing of knowledge and discovery.” (i)
The purpose of psychotherapeutic intervention has always been towards wholeness and a desire to assist people towards integration and creativity. I suggest we revisit these foundation principles and incorporate them into what I have called a new paradigm although for many therapists it will be a familiar paradigm restated.
The essence of psychotherapy can be rediscovered to inform the present and the future.
Our intention has always been to help clients achieve wholeness but our practice has relied on theory which divides people into component parts. I am suggesting we return to what David Bohm called ‘undivided wholeness’(ii). Passavant uses the phrase “Being as multiple multiplicities”.(iii)
We have honoured interconnected systems and associative processes in theory and then proceeded to divide aspects of personality, select features for analysis and diagnose isolated causes for client distress. The skills base we find in many modalities encourages therapists to focus on cause and effect, deductive thinking and healing for the mind, emotions, behaviour, the body or the spirit.
The tendency for therapists to be definitive about client distress and behaviour needs to be replaced with the awareness that nothing exists in isolation and every facet of life is interconnected.
It may mean being less analytical about client process and less committed to structured methodology.
Currently we have a huge range of theory and practice methods using a variety of ways to make the unconscious conscious and channel discoveries and insights.
Psychotherapy has the word psyche as its foundation. Psyche originally referred to ‘soul’ or ‘breath’ or ‘the place where reason is initiated’.
Those meanings leave room for abstraction, imagination and creativity. Most psychotherapeutic methods have a template. The template is used to search for causes and cure by employing analysis, diagnosis and treatment. Once we identify unconscious processes such as repression, defence, projection, drives, or identification we name them as if they have an existence separate from all other influences in peoples’lives.
They are viewed as entities which can be frozen long enough for therapists or supervisors to analyse their make up instead of tendencies the client experiences in brief moments of time. The transferential relationship between therapist and client focuses on stages, events, influences, pathology, self development and trauma. We act as if the psyche can be divided into separate facets and examined in isolation from each other. We discover a new aspect of unconscious process and then we establish a new modality to define it. The practice of using one template and then another by employing a modality based approach leaves psychotherapy struggling to maintain its place in a world where the separation of component parts is under serious review. In spite of an acknowledgment in psychotherapeutic theory that a holistic view is preferable we have a tendency to speak of spirit, emotion, thought and action as if they operate separately within each person.
Literature from many disciplines suggests all is woven together and connection is the key.
John Searle writes,“Think of it this way: roughly speaking, consciousness is to neurons as the solidity of the pistons is to the metal molecules. Both consciousness and solidity function causally. But neither is ‘over and above’ the systems of which they are a part.” (iv)
If all is woven together we need to examine our tendency to create categories and boundaries around what we call emotional and thought processes.
Thomas Lewis again; “Therapists are sometimes tempted to catalogue and analyse the output of a patient’s volubility -an inviting but hollow detour. Take a few measures from (the Italian composer) Ottorino Respighis’ ‘Fountains of Rome’...How can its meaning be disclosed? One could dissect the notes, scrutinize the sound frequencies, chart and measure the silent intervals. But anyone wishing to receive what Respighi has to say need only listen...Another part of the brain is poised to translate emotional signals into revelations higher still. This music a therapist ignores at their peril.” (v)
REVIEWING TRAINING
Most psychotherapy training textbooks introduce theory which focuses on deficits in clients’ personalities. Students of psychotherapy are encouraged to examine pathology, disturbance and inhibitions. It is hard to find psychotherapy training which starts with client potential, highlights innate creativity or seeks out inbuilt behaviours that have served people well. Skills training for therapists is usually designed to focus on emotions clients repress, words they cannot express or patterns which have been destructive in their lives. While it is true that most enter therapy because they are disturbed or unhappy and therapists are there to take care of their distress, we are often drawn into the negatives because we are looking for pathology rather than good health.
There is a significant difference between visions for psychotherapy I hear presented in conference presentations and that which we describe as the requirements for being a psychotherapist. At our conferences in New Zealand we have papers linking therapy to the world of literature, art and theatre. Papers focusing on indigenous people in Aotearoa challenge the view that life is primarily a struggle and that the psyche refers only to a hidden emotional existence.
During annual gatherings we have often heard from the worlds of science, philosophy, spirituality, ecology and politics.Nevertheless our requirements for training and membership highlight psychodynamics as primary and wider views of human endeavour as secondary. In order to mirror conscious and unconscious process we need to expand our view.
ADDITIONS TO OUR SKILLS BASE
A skills base which incorporates foundation principles and adds more dimensions would help us meet the needs of a connected world where ideas change rapidly. We live in a world where people are influenced by powerful external factors which are not explained using psychodynamic formulations alone and a world where therapists meet with professionals whose ideas are drawn from a variety of disciplines.
If we take notice of questions asked in the sciences, philosophy, spirituality, art, and scientific research we are lead to the conclusion that separation, analysis and selective practices are against the tide of new insights.
Michael Frayn puts it this way; “There is (another) problem too, about wholly specifying the present state of even the most limited system, never mind the entire universe: the present keeps dissolving into the past....The only entirely definite and non arbitrary starting point one can conjecture in the universe is the supposed starting point of the universe itself (which is always just a moment or two out of the cosmologists range).” (vii)
John Searle writes, “We do not live in several different or even two different worlds, a mental world and a physical world, a scientific world and a world of common sense. Rather there is just one world; it is the world we all live in, and we need to account for how we exist as part of it.” (viii)
When I have this kind of unified view firmly fixed in my sights I find myself resisting any process that seeks to define, make certain, or propose definitive pathways for people. I am expanding my view from the therapist’s chair.
NOTHING IS ISOLATED OR STAYS THE SAME
If we are indeed in a quantum world then nothing moves in isolation. I do not fully understand the complexities of current scientific explanations. However, I am influenced by two discoveries that cause me to question the way we behave as psychotherapists.
Evan Harris Walker summarises the insights, “Matter is not really both particle and wave, but rather discrete packages of energy that dart from place to place in a frenzy of quantum jumps that ebb and flow in waves of chance. It is a world where nothing stays long where it should be but only stays where it could be” and, “Yet none of this is what is there. All of this motion is frozen...the quantum jumps exist only as potentialities. The jumps and darts happen when we observe and when things interact with other things.” (ix)
This is not new and the science has come a long way since the year 2000 but it is increasingly convincing and a huge challenge.
The first observation is that nothing stays still. The second is that the presence of an observer changes matter immediately. These insights underline what psychotherapists have been working with for years. Constant change, unexpected and random thoughts merging with sudden emotional responses. Inexplicable desires people have within relationships, behavioural tendencies that cannot be categorised and determinations that lead people to act in ways which seem out of character.
We know too, that the presence of the therapist as observer can alter moments in therapy and create situations neither therapist or client understand.
Our reliance on mental health categories, the separation of trauma and events into special issues and the notion that therapists gather together a set of symptoms to make an analysis of the client therefore needs review. If nothing stays still and every observer in the process changes the way elements behave we need to expand the way formulations are established. Currently we construct psychotherapeutic theory and decisions by recording our perceptions of client predicaments. We use language already prescribed by theory.
The language and perceptions clients use have been lost and the meanings in their stories have been changed.
In the new paradigm the view through the mind, emotions and imagination of the client would be paramount in order to capture the spirit of the original story. The Eurocentric tendency to separate spirit from matter, meaning from analysis and abstraction from reality would be replaced with a tukutuku panel of colour, threads and interconnection. A tukutuku panel is woven from flax and the patterns and colours carry profound meanings.
COMMUNICATION IN A MULTI CULTURAL WORLD
There is another powerful reason for our profession to revisit the templates we have been using. Most of the templates we use in New Zealand are drawn from theorists who reside in other continents and when we come to communicate with people not versed in the language of psychotherapy, conversation is difficult. Transferring psychotherapeutic method from one country to another can have a colonising effect. Indigenous people are entitled to be therapeutic using their own culturally based understanding of human development.
When we attempt a dialogue between cultures the clash of emotional and cultural understandings is often seen as paramount and I am aware traditional psychotherapeutic practice is not meeting the expectations of people who have a different world view. Traditional psychotherapy encourages a focus on the psychology of living, the effect of trauma on the individual, pathology, and interactions between thought, emotion and individual motivation. The European inclination to explain or find a cause for experience drives us towards assumption, judgement and sympathy rather than wonder, imagination and creative responses. Connected cultures around the world have a more holistic view. They focus on a network of influences and consider that which is internal alongside external forces. There is seldom one cause for any effect. The individual is woven into the group or tribal setting. It is often difficult to distinguish between the individual psyche and the psychodynamics of the cultural system.. My experience in the South Pacific and New Zealand is that there is the sound of music in waiata and song, references to community values and lessons from legend and stories from around the world. The voices of ancestors speak to us because those who have died are present with those who are still alive. Research in other places in the world where indigenous cultures explore psychotherapy points to the need for the development of new paradigms instead of attempts to reinterpret traditional psychotherapy. To give psychotherapy meaning in cultures where individuality is not primary and definitive analyses are not relevant we need to change some fundamental premises.
A DIFFERENT WAY
How might we think and act differently for all clients? In a paradigm highlighting unity no one cause would be selected in isolation. In a paradigm that focuses on connection, unity and possibility the expression of emotion would be linked to spiritual or abstract elements just as much as it is linked to trauma or past relationships. The abused, traumatised or depressed individual would be encouraged to examine all the influences surrounding their experiences.
Experiences resulting in pain would not be set in a time warp or pasted in a book of isolated events allocated to a single page. Most of us live and dream within a series of relationships that are with us all the time. None of them belong to the past or the present alone. A continuous band of players offer music which affects us whether we are awake or asleep.
We also need to revisit the idea that therapy with one person is the only path to healing. We have adopted practice built around privacy and exclusivity.
Some indigenous teachers advise us that people from the past are present in reality so who is the therapist talking to? Parents, partners and intimate friends are often viewed as shadows in the room; the client knows them well but the therapist has not met them .
This traditional way of practising is at odds with our acknowledgement of systemic influences, cultural belonging and completing the gestalt.
We continue to value ‘the psychology within’ over and above the psyche which connects with the presence of people and atmospheres around us. The openness of a paradigm of connection, unity and possibility could be practised with all clients. If we pause to consider what it would mean when practising across cultures the implications are profound.
If we were well informed about history, people’s cultures, and open to the complexity of conscious and unconscious processes we would have no trouble at all in knowing how to work across cultures. If we opened ourselves to imagery and meanings in cultures without attempting to define, explain or translate these experiences I am convinced psychotherapy would be claimed for its willingness to contemplate possibility and entertain new insights.
REVISIONING THE UNCONSCIOUS
We have consistently claimed the unconscious as the field we explore. There is a need to make significant additions to the way we describe and view conscious and unconscious arenas. Creative therapists can add to traditional formulations and establish a wider vision. In addition to noticing projections, transferences, repressions, avoidances, anger, sadness, sensuality or grief reactions, we can add new frames of reference.
The unconscious consists of wave particles and cellular movement as well as emotional confusion. We know from dream life there is music inside the mind.
Threads in our waking and sleeping dreams have dramatic and theatrical moments built in. Colour appears consciously and unconsciously and in all cultures is used to highlight meanings. Patterns in the mind are often affected by ancestral voices, the power of combined knowledge and heritage .There are values, morals and socially conditioned views weaving their way through our unconscious thoughts and feelings. Trauma within embedded memories does not affect only emotional patterns and thought processes, it travels in and out of our physiology, our ability to perceive and our energy levels.
Video-like images often appear in the mind’s eye making visual stories pass to and fro. People appear not just within relationship but as virtual reality images we have watched, smelt, touched, entered and pushed away.
To define all this by using templates based on method we freeze the ever changing movement of pathways in the mind. The pathways are, of course, not only in the mind and science is attempting to help us understand that the view from the therapist’s chair does not take enough influencing elements into account.
Just as we cannot define the unconscious we cannot dismiss the possibility that the client in front of us may, for example, be connected to a very enhancing world of consilience we have yet to understand.
I know many therapists already have an expansive view while they are attuned to clients. Unfortunately that imaginative lens is narrowed when it comes to talking about clients. We have spent many years trying to explain clients to ourselves. We have been moving around set pieces.
The templates we have been using are captured by the language of one main perspective; that which highlights the way minds speak to emotions. They also rely on our tendency to think in a dualistic manner. There are some templates we need to retain as they are important guides to the diagnosis of mental health conditions with neurological implications.
However, the way mental health categories often exist in isolation is another field to study and the idea that nothing stands alone has implications in that arena as well.
There is another perspective that needs expansion. Our traditional view is that there are two separate people in the therapy room. One is a therapist, the other a client. If we take interconnection seriously we may need to question the way we establish and name boundaries. I referred earlier to cultural situations where people are in the room that only clients can perceive. Perhaps the idea that there is one client and a therapist in the room needs challenging. The traditional view is that there are two people in the therapy room and what transpires between them has to do with transference.
Is there really an “other”? . It is possible there is no boundary at all. I have revisited the book Ken Wilber wrote in 1996 where he proposed the skin has no boundary. (x)
Perhaps therapist and client are not separate at all. Wilber’s idea ‘the skin has no boundary’ is a real challenge to the traditional view that my client has pathology I do not have. While we acknowledge there is no separation as we work, as soon as we name pathology, disturbance or illness we have created distance and denied connection. We have separated therapist from client and that destroys the power of two minds journeying one inside the other.
If there is a distinct possibility that I am connected to clients, their ancestors, experiences and history through the way matter acts and interacts then I need a world view based on connection unity and possibility. That which informed me in the past can be held in memory but when it suggests definition I must resist.
THE PARADIGM IN PRACTICE
The question arises, How would we encourage therapists to practise without focusing on separate issues, separate emotions and selective explanations for client distress?
It is not a matter of expanding our role. It is a matter of expanding our perspectives. The immediacy of a global environment presents us with many new ways to understand people. It is not only indigenous people who are teaching us to take account of important possibilities for expanding therapeutic endeavours.
We could start teaching skills such as imaginative perception, shared imagery and living with uncertainty. The potential to be visionary would be encouraged. We might speak more often of therapy based on artistry as well as formulation. In addition to teaching theory and technique those of us who teach might share insights, connections or feelings that do not require explanation or resolution.
If I had included a case study in this paper it would have been contrary to what I am proposing. The client would be frozen in time, retrospective analysis would have been debated and my own interventions seen as the way I practise all the time. Instead I will describe what happens to me as I meet with clients.
MEETING CLIENTS
Here is a summary of the way I practise:
Before clients meet me they are supplied with written information about my Code of Ethics, my professional approach and agreements regarding fees, safety, confidentiality and referrals.
I enter the therapy with room with my Code of Ethics in mind and then open myself to the following reminders:
• Psychotherapy is creative meeting which includes opportunities for all connected participants to express that which inhibits and that which enhances life being lived to the full.
• Believing that nothing should be introduced to cloud client experience I enter the therapy room with no plan, no method and no analysis in mind.
• At some point it is important to know whether there are other people and influences I might take care of within the context of interactions with this client.
• Assured that everything is connected at all levels I ready myself to be immersed in atmosphere, complexity, intensity and possibility without wanting to protect my separateness unless there is a need to take responsibility for safety.
• Knowing that a psychodynamic view is no less and no more important than other views of human existence I consider as many perspectives as I can within the context of our meeting, to see each client with fresh eyes.
• I perceive myself and the client to be moving through waves of interrelatedness. What we call ‘transference’ is viewed as continuous, fundamental and interwoven.
• Working towards unity means checking any tendency to separate mind from body, spirit from feelings, thoughts from actions or ill health from health. It means checking any tendency to select singular causes, explain psychodynamics, encourage one route to integration or focus on the past, present or future in isolation.
• Definition, decisions and diagnoses are sometimes pertinent to encourage incremental progress. They are not offered as authoritative, certain, proven or necessarily relevant to client experience and not constructed in isolation from the client.
• In each session the client wants who I am and what I have become and listens for meanings we discover within the context of our meeting.
• Knowledge discovered and proposed by other theorists and practitioners holds meaning within their own professional contexts and for their clients. It is important I pay attention to their findings, use them selectively to inform my work and then practise from my own independent perspectives.
• I cannot hold every nuance, association, event or feature in mind. Nor can I attend to all my inadequacies over time. Supervision is the place for me to review who I am with each client.
• I leave the therapy room with a subjective view of what happened and a desire to immerse myself in new learning experiences. I know the elements of our meeting have already changed so they cannot be defined. My notes of interactions with clients are presented as a story line. The only additions are references to safety, referrals or facts I need to remember.
• Discussions in supervision, with other professionals or referral sources and the way the client is reflected in established theory are all viewed as informative, yet tentative, uncertain, and unlikely to be completely aligned with what I and my client have since become.
• Nothing stays the same
LIVING WITH THE EXPERIENCE
What I aim for in therapy is to ‘make meaning out of shifts of register’. That is a phrase used by New Zealand poet Bill Manhire writing about the poetry of Ezra Pound. He continues, “(It is) the mixing of high and low language, of serious statement and comedy, of public utterance and quiet conversation”. (xi) In psychotherapy the shifts of register can be left in the moment. There is seldom a need to capture them or define them.
Over the last 16 years I have been fascinated by the creativity of improvising musicians. Jazz is a genre where musicians improvise. Improvising musician Simon Bowden, the Executive Director of the Arts Foundation of New Zealand, writes, “In live performance musicians work at a subconscious level to collectively realise music created through a mixture of chance and individual expression. They follow the music as if it has its own ability to come into being and musicians are the means for releasing it. Consciousness aside, all musicians must be tuned into the moment contributing to the whole by simultaneously being a leader and a follower. There is often a basic structure for what happens but unlike scored music it moves in unpredictable directions because it is formulated spontaneously in the moment. Instrumentalists leave the stage knowing they have been inside a vast array of meaning but it is not captured or copied into the next performance. Some say doing so would reduce meaning.
For the next performance to be a success it requires the same conditions as the first, any attempt to recreate music created in the moment will not have the same power.” (xii)
Imagine leaving the therapy room without the need to capture the music of the relationship, no need to save it onto a formatted disc of theory or refer to the next stage in a method. This way of connecting has been present in indigenous communities and in other communities for many years.
Makere Stewart-Harawira writes, “For Maori...sound has deep metaphysical and creative connotations that go beyond its use as the practical instrument of ordinary communication. The cadences of ancient songs, of ritual calls, of sacred chants, through which the world is sung into existence, the flesh is sung onto the bones, and the relationships are sung which bind all together within the Cosmos, express what Knudston and Suzuki refer to as ‘bringing a measure of harmony to the Cosmos’ and breathing ‘life into the network of subtle connections between human beings and the entire natural world.” (xiii)
It might be argued we would have nothing to guide us, nothing to use as a basis for training and nothing with which to explain ourselves to other professionals. It is more likely, however, that we would start to use language more reflective of a completed gestalt, more imagery which highlighted difference and a creative edge that suggested more insights.
Our ability to hold interconnection, encourage the unconscious to become conscious, join clients as they move through a complicated psychic existence within social, cultural and spiritual influences and risk the essence of who we are in the process is crucial in a move to deliver holistic health.
Psychotherapists are not in possession of a body of knowledge based on proof as some professions would claim but we are the most skilled in noticing the way creative ambivalence weaves its way through every aspect of life and the way health arises from connection rather than separation. No other profession is charged in the same way to risk personal vulnerability, be affected at an intense emotional level, take responsibility for it and change the world from within and around relationships. It is time we stood tall. The idea that our traditional knowledge base is sufficient and should keep on expanding within a narrow psychological framework is out of date in a world where we meet people whose experience is very different, creative, and just as valid on all levels.
Imagine psychotherapists leading the way into preventive health and rehabilitation becoming an art form. Imagine psychotherapists being seen as visionaries as well as healers. Imagine scientifically based professions turning to us for guidance in understanding the complex music of the unconscious. Imagine going back to the beginning and promoting the psyche as the soul or the breath of life, the essence of all that human beings might become.
Note: References and readings associated with this paper are available from the author if a copy of the paper is requested
A.Roy Bowden
October 2008, Beijing
State of the Art Address, World Congress for Psychotherapy
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PAPER TWO:
SKILLS FOR SPIRITUAL CONVERSATIONS-COUNSELLING AND SPIRITUALITY
Introduction
My intention in this seminar is to suggest ways in which each one of us can take part in spiritually based discussions with clients whether we are spiritually inclined, confused or unsure, or if we find spirituality an unacceptable concept in the profession.
Contemplating spirituality
I will leave the question, “does spirituality exist and how do we prove its existence?” to one side because its existence is assumed in the conference theme: “The struggle to speak of spirituality in counselling”. The word psyche has Greek origins which mean soul or breath. Counselling is traditionally based on psychology. If soul is the expression of spirituality we are speaking about psyche and not psychology. Psychology limits the psyche to proof, definition and explanation. I read the work ‘struggle’ in the title. In my view, it will only be a struggle to speak of spirituality if spirituality is tied to dogma or certainty.
Some would argue religion is the only authentic vehicle for spirituality. They argue religion is the only spiritual setting that points people beyond the universe to something outside of human experience, beyond the ego. The question is whether there is a distinction between secular spirituality and spirituality which is contained by religion.
Many counselling professionals believe spirituality is an integral part of the counselling process. On the other hand some believe spirituality should not be part of a professional counselling conversation because it relies on ideas that cannot be proven. I note you placed the word spiritual and not the word religion in the title. Many counsellors believe clients who hold spiritual beliefs suffer from delusions or are captured by the power of religion. Other counsellors are convinced spiritual conversations should only be attended to within a defined religious setting.
Is every counselling conversation a spiritual dialogue or is spirituality a distinct kind of conversation? Is spirituality a separate issue in the same way we think of sexual abuse, addiction or trauma as separate issues? It depends whether we view issues and topics as separate from the person who carries them or whether we agree that every idea is connected to another, each aspect of individuality is woven together and all influences are interdependent.
Perhaps every counselling conversation is spiritual
When clients refer specifically to spiritual influences my ethics do not allow me to ignore their requests. If we agree it is important for clients to be at the centre of the counselling process then their issues are paramount. How spirituality is defined, whether it is acknowledged and the language we use to discuss it, will vary from person to person. I believe every counselling conversation is spiritual because we are meeting with all the dimensions of the human spirit.
There have been many attempts to re-define client spirituality and give it other names such as abstraction, dissociation, wish fulfillment, psychological guilt, cultural conditioning, reality avoidance or self-nurturing.
If spirituality is named it needs to be attended to without labels and without judgement. If client spirituality is debilitating we are there to help lift the burden. If client spirituality is enhancing we are there to ensure it is experienced in a way that makes for wholeness and creativity.
If clients wish to separate spirituality from other influences in their lives then perhaps it is wise to suggest a referral to someone who will help them compartmentalise their thoughts and feelings in that way. The counselling process, on the other hand, has to do with the integration of our being.
If we refer clients to someone else to attend to their spirituality we assume there is specialised knowledge which can be used by another professional to address spirituality in ways that will be more useful to clients. The assumption may be valid. On the other hand many of us have referred people to religious professionals and realised we could have met the client’s need from our own resources by retaining the relationship we built carefully.
First steps for the counsellor
Once we decide spirituality cannot be separated from other matters which concern clients we have a professional responsibility to find ways of discussing spiritual matters. If we discuss trauma with clients we need to know what the word trauma triggers in us. If we discuss addiction or abuse with clients we need to know our own reactions to addiction or abuse. It follows we have a responsibility to know ourselves well with regard to spirituality.
Is our spirituality embedded within? Is it focused on influences outside our own being? Is it dependent on our relationship with others who are sensitive to what we know to be spiritual? Is it experienced in the natural world? Is it dependent on spiritual beings such as gods, wise advisers or chosen leaders? Is our spiritual life enhanced by ancestors, heritage or the accumulation of wisdom down through the centuries? Is it based on religious observance?
Perhaps we find spirituality in parallel worlds where there are guides, instruments of the supernatural or coincidences in life. We may be astrological, teleological or theological or philosophical.
Perhaps we do not believe there is a spiritual realm of any kind. Perhaps we prefer the scientific world, instruments of proof and experiences we can touch, observe, and change. It is also possible every category I have mentioned appeals to each one of us.
Our clients will also experience spirituality through a chosen lens. If it is not the same lens we use we need to take great care we are not tempted to persuade, judge or challenge from our own perspective.
Counselling that includes a focus on spirituality rather than religion probably demands more from the counsellor than most other counselling settings. The spiritual arena cannot be defined. The spiritual arena is an abstraction. If we try to capture it, it disappears. The spiritual arena is not a formula for life. Once we write it into some kind of behavioural code it becomes a ritualised programme. Ritual that opens the mind and feelings to possibility is pertinent to counselling. Ritual that encourages rigidity or conformity is not aligned with the ethics of our profession.
During counselling the spiritual arena does not act on people, they act within it. Once we make it into a treatment we use psychological and behavioural language which cannot translate the experience.
The search for psychic truth
The spiritually sensitive counsellor will be available to clients having examined their own ties to voices which dictate beliefs, dogma and moral imperatives. Spiritually centred relationships demand openness in a unique way. In order to be completely open in the moment we need to track the inhibitors embedded in our psyche. We are searching for the truth about us.
This is quite different from any external truth proposed by religious dogma. While we can never discover the whole truth about ourselves because it does not present in the mind’ s eye as a total picture, we can sense when we are resisting, avoiding or having an internal psychic argument.
If there is a struggle to be spiritual it lies in the struggle to accept what we know to be the truth about us. If the truth about ourselves is denied we cannot be available to our clients spiritually. Counsellors have often been told they need to resolve their own issues but it is seldom suggested they need to know the psychic truth about themselves which is quite a different matter. I use the phrase ‘psychic truth’ deliberately. The psyche claims a wider view than views found in psychological language. Psychological language depends on frameworks and summaries of the way people think, act and live together. It doesn’t address the uniqueness of individuality or unique patterns in each person’ s conscious or unconscious mind. Psychic truth permits individual insight, unproven belief, imagination, wish fulfillment and visits from ancestors. It is the stuff dreams are made of and a foundation for creativity. It is a perspective which mirrors possibility and reflects it back to the curious mind.
There are important debates in scientific and philosophical literature with regard to the conscious and unconscious mind, debates as to whether consciousness is connected to mind and whether the mind is within or without the brain. These debates point to the impossibility of defining how the psyche works, where it lies in the human system and what purpose it serves. What is common, however, is that there is something present which currently defies definition. In my view the connections between the conscious and unconscious mind contain and give expression to what we call spirituality.
If as counsellors we explore the waves of consciousness and tidal flows in our unconscious reminders we enter spiritual realms easily.
If we look for solutions, explanations, causes and cures we will remain trapped by psychology, theology or religious formulations. The task is to move beyond that which can be explained and refuse to define it.
The ‘available’ counsellor will manage uncertainty well, be at peace with questions about existence or non existence, accept there may never be any resolution to questions about living or dying and be ready to contemplate infinite possibilities in people, the universe and the creative mind.
Counsellors who have an allegiance to religious frameworks can be open in this way without relinquishing their beliefs. David Tacey writes, “Psychodynamically, this is the whole point of religion: it is a vast wealth of knowledge, paradox, and mystery which can be used to guide the individual out of the prison-house of egocentricity, toward a larger life.” And again, “Religious people must not condemn popular spirituality….Rather, the religious challenge is to dialogue with it, to relate to popular hunger, and to suggest how it may be satisfied.” (i)
Adherence to a religious pathway sometimes defines what is spiritual but most religions acknowledge that each person is at liberty to interpret spirituality in their own way. Religious behaviour may be defined by a creed but spiritual essence cannot be captured or controlled.
I remember using theological or psychologically based persuasion to influence behaviour and ideas when I spoke from the pulpit many years ago, but I could never predict the spiritual interpretations each member of the congregation would create within their own soul. The individual psyche remains a free spirit.
Empathic spiritual imagination
The counsellor who is open in the way I have described can attend to spirituality in clients in a professional manner.
We are there to honour client choice and client centred process. There is considerable skill involved in leaving questions open, following language we may not understand and allowing client association patterns to run free. Each time the client voice deviates from our own spiritual sense we are tempted to draw them back and apply our own logic.
What we need is empathic spiritual imagination. This is not found in rules that apply to counselling methods. It is not found in behavioural interventions, the discovery of historical trauma, the search for solutions or the management of narratives. It is not found in the exploration of historical emotional material and it is obscured in methods that encourage people to stand tall and live comfortably within relationships or communities. It is also not found in analysis, designed treatment and psychological theory.
Empathic spiritual imagination will be inhibited if it is tied to a religion. Clients sense our preferred frameworks easily and in my view it is unethical to use persuasion, subtle suggestion or evidence from our own religious journeys in non aligned counselling settings. If we offer counselling from a religious framework then clients need to be told they might encounter persuasion, definitive pathways to follow or evangelism.
Religious based counselling has often been extremely helpful but clients should always know before counselling begins the extent to which there is a common belief system present amongst the staff team in a religious setting.
Psychic truth, a dual search
If empathic spiritual imagination is something different from the kind of counselling practice found in textbooks, what does it entail? It is, again, the search for psychic truth. This time counsellor and client are searching together. The search is renewed in us every time we meet each new client. If we enter the room convinced we know what spirituality is, we have destroyed possibility. Client and counsellor perspectives will be mirrored one to the other as the dialogue takes place. A special kind of curiosity will operate and the counsellor will be curious about themselves and about the client. Solution seeking needs to remain on hold.
I will draw attention to detailed practical skills later in this seminar. At this point it important to stress that the skills required for spiritual conversations cannot be applied sequentially. In counselling textbooks we are advised to apply skills one by one using them like surgical instruments to seek out issues and encourage client contemplation. Some skills are used to focus on the mind, others on the emotions, the body, or the story being told by the client. We attend seminars teaching us to approach clients using a variety of methods..
The skills for spiritual conversations are unlike other skills we have been taught. They rely on an imaginative exploration of images being reflected back from two mirrors. The images create nuances, they hint at unseen influences and connect without connecting. They cannot be captured in the way that which we call reality is captured. These mirrored images are often about the large questions; “From whence did I enter the womb?” “How should I live this life?” “Is this the only life?”
They are seldom expressed in such clear terms. They lie in between association patterns in the mind, they are referred to in brief allusions, they enter the language of the mind and then they drift away. Spiritual content has form but the form changes moment by moment.
The counsellor needs to know when to reach out, when to share their own images and when to stay silent in the presence of something often called awe, numinosity or holiness.
Some may recognise all this as a kind of subtext. Psychotherapists and counsellors who have spiritual sensitivity know it well. It is not just the collective unconscious although that can be linked to a profound spirituality. It is not just neurons firing in the brain giving rise to unexpected memories or desires. It is never enough in counselling to explain it as ‘God with us’ because that hands it over to another being.
Professional counsellors are ethically bound to explore these abstractions with clients by keeping it all ‘client centred’, not ‘other (or deity) centred’.
Science and spirituality
There is a further challenge to close this introduction to our seminar. Quantum theory has introduced us to the idea that everything is interconnected. Some of the foundations of quantum theory are reminiscent of spiritual, religious or theological ideas which have been around for centuries. Think of Reiki usually translated as “Universal Life Force Energy” (ii), Christianity wherein “Father Son and Holy Spirit should be understood as three persons sharing a single divine substance” (iii), Hinduism where “Samsara is the continual process of birth and rebirth we all experience” (iv) and Daoism where “The way is the cosmic and controlling principle, according to which all nature functions” (v).
The scientific explanations are complicated and I do not pretend to understand the complexities. What I do understand from science is that matter is interwoven and separation of matter is an idea subject to intensive review. A further complication is that once matter is being observed it changes its structure. The observer influences the way things come together, the behaviour of particles, the pathways being chosen. Counsellor and client are observing each other. In addition, they are connected in ways science is just beginning to understand.
Some professionals will now want to claim quantum interconnection as a kind of spiritual union. There is a danger in claiming scientific discovery and re-labelling it to suit our own perspective. What I find important is the idea that counsellor and client are observing each other from within, through their grasp on reality, in and around the connected relationship and inside the stories from their individual histories. This is all happening in each moment without pause. We have traditionally called this transference. The idea of transference does not do justice to what is really happening. When we speak of emotional transference, sexual transference, the transference of ideas and desires they are all described as separate phenomena.Then we speak of resolving each transferential segment.
In a quantum world we cannot separate one aspect from another. We cannot separate moments and we cannot separate that which we call spiritual from any other aspect of the persons we are in each moment.
So my spirituality is interwoven with yours. Yours has a different milieu, a different colour to it, but as it meets mine it takes on the hues I have generated and nurtured within myself. Your resistance to spirituality meets every aspect of my understanding and what you have called your faith is not separate from what I am experiencing in the moments of our relationship. Lewis, Fari and Lannon write, “..mammals developed a capacity we call limbic resonance - a symphony of mutual exchange…whereby two mammals become attuned to each other’s inner states. It is limbic resonance that makes looking into the face of another emotionally responsive creature a multi -layered experience. When we look into the ocular portals (the eyes) to a limbic brain our vision goes deep; the sensations multiply, just as two mirrors placed in opposition create a shimmering ricochet of reflections whose depths recede into infinity” (vi). I will return to Thomas Lewis later in the seminar. The important message is that every part of my being is interwoven with yours in a way that has no limits, no boundaries and is full of infinite possibility.
It follows that as counselling professionals we do not need to tell our clients about our faith. The universe has taken care of that already and then there is the additional factor of everything being in flux, waves of meaning changing every nanno second and understandings being amended as soon as they are seen within the mind’s eye.
There are ways to manage this ever changing process. We are not required to put our spirituality to one side because it cannot be separated from who we are. We are not required to train others to listen to the truths we hold in high regard. They are already emerging as soon as we start building a relationship.
No struggle is required. The spiritual world is already there. What is required is what is known as sentience, or in counselling terms, empathic spiritual imagination.
Later in the seminar I will explain empathic spiritual imagination in detail. The skills dovetail and connect in fleeting moments and, in many ways, we cannot speak of separate skill sets. On the other hand, it helps to separate the fingers of each hand so that when we grasp the moving hand of the ‘other’ we both experience an ever changing spiritual union.
A. Roy Bowden
August 2007.
Presentation at the Regional Conference,
NZ Association of Counsellors,
Waikato. September 2007.
APPENDIX
SKILLS IN CONTEXT
THE NOTHING AND THE NOT NOTHING
Words cannot be relied on to convey understandings especially where spirituality is concerned.
The client is a diamond waiting to be discovered rather than talked to.
The facets of the diamond I contemplate with clients in are flash points filled with spiritual meanings.
Counselling relationships are made within the context of cultural and spiritual moments.
Spiritual connection arises out of an appreciation of the moment, permission for the client to discover their own world of meanings and a willingness to work with what both Maori and Greek insight has called ‘the nothing and the not nothing’. It has also been called sentience, numinosity and holiness.
I draw your attention to a belief which is centuries old in the indigenous culture of Aotearoa New Zealand and in Greek mythology. “The Maori traditional belief is that the whole of creation is a dynamic movement
I te kore, ki te poo, ki te ao maarama, ‘out of the nothingness, into the night, into the world of light”. (vii)
It is, in a less profound way, a description of the way I work. It involves the desire to focus on ‘the nothing and the not nothing’.
What is the nothing and the not nothing? I have been told by people willing to share with me that it can be described as ‘the void’, ‘potential’, or ‘energy’ in Maori understandings. It can be represented as ‘the void in which nothing is possessed’, ‘the void with nothing in union’, ‘the space without boundaries’. It can also be ‘the void in which nothing is felt’.
If I establish a spiritual relationship with people counselling is created in moments. The moments must begin as if there were nothing apart from the light and perhaps the darkness we both bring. As I hold the sum total of who I am in my being and wait for my ‘self’ to be met by ‘the other’ we make counselling for that spontaneous meeting. The psyche is merging with therapeutic process, the soul is surprised by relationship. Within that relationship moment every strand of knowledge I have absorbed, each conditioned aspect of my existence, every cultural icon and intangible spirit affects the foundation of my being.
I dare not allow my mind to conjure a theory of personality or a therapeutic method. If I search for explanation or method I will stifle my own creativity, I will lose my ‘self’. Recall a theory and connection is lost. Apply a method and the other person will be imprisoned.
Clients have a world wide web in their hearts and minds and pages filled with surprises which are worth downloading in the moment. They should never be saved to a file. A spiritually based counselling will rely on description rather than analysis. Once an analysis is made the spiritual truths have been colonised.
The spiritually connected counsellor will be curious and reflective without relying on formulations. Attempts at understanding are born of the desire to capture and to possess. A spiritually sensitive counselling reflects the world it senses and describes what it observes.
Grant Gillett, a New Zealand Geneticist writes, “There is no progressively refined story to tell about the human condition which leads to a single view of the nature of reality. There is, instead, a concept of truth as a mobile army of metaphors that capture our minds so we see the world in certain ways. The increasingly rational view of the world trumpeted by scientific realism is characterised as an illusion, and particularly when we try to understand human beings, a much more fluid formation is suggested.” (viii)
Another gift is, perhaps, our awareness of word meanings. Earlier I mentioned that words have been the main focus of counselling and suggested a wider perspective to include other channels for expression. Our gift is perhaps the ability to teach the importance of nuance and the tracking of pathways called associations. We know how to listen for meanings beneath the surface of the mind that are not only important in the psyche but may be important in spiritual formation.
What we are trained to listen for is what Gillett calls discursive narrative. This is story that cannot be defined only in scientific terms. He says “The human psyche is a remarkable creation born of the impingement of word on flesh, or, if you prefer, discourse on the body. This soul or psyche is a unique metaphysical species which, in itself, has given birth to both metaphysics and epistemology.”(ix)
The process is more important than the ownership of meaning. The skill lies in being able to describe and let lie. To highlight and listen for response. To give up the dords and allow them to fill moments in time.
The gift from the trained counsellor ought to be offered unwrapped. It might mean suspending knowledge.
References
(i) Tacey, David, (2002) Spirit Makes Us Human In Dialogue Australia Jnl, April 2002, p24
(ii) Partridge, Christopher, (2004) Encyclopedia of New Religions, Lion Publishing, p231
(iii) Ibid, p27
(iv) Ibid, p158
(v) Ibid, p216
(vi) Lewis, T, Amini F, Lannon R, (2000) A General Theory of Love, Vintage, pp 63,64
(vii) Shirres M P (1997) Maori Theology and Maori Knowledge In Te Tangata: The Human Person, Accent
(viii) Gillett G (1999) The Mind and Its Discontents- An Essay in Discursive Psychiatry, Oxford University
Press, p426
(ix) Gillett G (1999) The Mind and Its Discontents- An Essay in Discursive Psychiatry, Oxford University
Press, p426
Readings
Bowden A. Roy, (2001) A Psychotherapist Sings in Aotearoa, Caroy Publications, Plimmerton, NZ
Bowden A R (2002) Does Psychotherapy meet Fundamental Human Need? WCP Symposium, Wien, Austria
Broom B ((1999) The Unconscious: An Integrationist Perspective Forum (Jnl) NZ Assn Psychoth, Vol 5
Claxton G (1986) Beyond Therapy: Impact of Eastern Religions on Psychol. Theory and Practice, Prism Press
Dawkins, Richard (2006) The God Delusion, Bantam Press
Donovan Peter (1990) Religions of New Zealanders, Dunmore Press
Fazekas, T, Plaas C.A. (2004) The Need for Psychotherapy Shaker Verlag, Aachen
Gillett G (1999) The Mind and its Discontents –An Essay in Discursive Psychiatry Oxford University Press
Gazzaniga, Michael S. (1998) The Mind’s Past, University of California Press
His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Howard Cutler, (2006) The Art of Happiness, Hodder
Hora Thomas (1977) Existential Meta-Psychiatry, Seabury
Jamieson Alan, (2000) A Churchless Faith, Astra Print, Wellington, NZ
Jamieson Alan, McIntosh Jenny, Thompson, Adrienne, (2006) Five Years On:
Continuing Faith Journeys of those who left the Church Portland Trust, NZ
LeDoux J (1999) The Emotional Brain Phoenix, Orion Books, London
Lewis, T, Amini F, Lannon R, (2000) A General Theory of Love, Vintage
McGinn Colin, (1999) The Mysterious Flame: Conscious Minds in a Material World, Basic Books
Partridge, Christopher, (2004) Encyclopedia of New Religions, Lion Publishing
Patterson, ,John (1992) Exploring Maori Values, Dunmore Press
Patterson, John (2000) People of the Land: A Pacific Philosophy, Dunmore Press
Robinson, Rita and Dancing Feather, Fran (2000) Exploring Native American Wisdom, New Page
Robinson, Samuel Timoti (2005) Tohunga, Reed Publishing
Samuels, Andrew (1999) Jung and the Post Jungians, Brunner Routledge
Shirres M P (1997) Maori Theology and Maori Knowledge in Te Tangata, The Human Person,
Accent Publications Auckland New Zealand
Tacey, David, (2002) Spirit Makes Us Human In Dialogue Australia Jnl, April 2002
Tacey, David (2006) After Disbelief : Remythologising and Spiritual Renewal Paper, Sea of Faith, Marton, NZ
Thompson, Laurence G (1973) The Chinese Way in Religion, University of Southern California
Walker Evan Harris (2000) The Physics of Consciousness: the Quantum Mind, Meaning of Life, Perseus Bks
Wallis K C & Poulton J L (2001) Internalization, The Origins and Construction of Internal Reality
Open University Press Philadephia USA
Wellings N & Wilde E (eds) (2000) Transpersonal Psychotherapy Theory and Practice Continuum, London
Welwood J (2000) Toward a Psychology of Awakening Shambala Publications, Boston, Massachusetts
Wilber K (1996) A Brief History of Everything Hill of Content Publishing, Melbourne
Wilber, Ken (1977) The Spectrum of Consciousness, Quest
Published in 'Counselling Today'
NZAC National Newsletter.
December 2007
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PAPER THREE:
SUPERVISION,POWER AND EFFECTIVE RELATIONSHIPS
LEAVE THE QUESTIONS OPEN
The supervision relationship is a powerful setting. It is important to debate the way power is used in supervision and examine the implications of a powerful relationship.
Expansive power-
Models for supervision give us helpful formulae but may also inhibit what we do. Many assume we go to supervision to have our work monitored, gain new insights, attend to self care, review ethics, examine relationships within our client practice and keep up with new knowledge. There is implied agreement about all this in our associations guidelines. These helpful parameters keep us safe but they are not expansive enough to make supervision creative and powerful. When I was first trained I needed the kind of supervision outlined in models and professional standards. After practising for about five years I needed something more. I was fortunate to find it in the practice rooms of most of my supervisors over a thirty year period and up to this day. None of them have needed to be powerful over me in any way. Those in my past and those who meet with me now immerse themselves in other disciplines and interests as well as those associated with caring professions. Our broadly based conversations ‘consider the whole of life’ without making decisions about how life should be lived. There is an inherent trust in my way of working and permission to attend to professional development without trying to persuade me into a specific modality or the latest insight from a reputable author. There are suggestions without insistence, questions without answers, possibilities without expectations. Tragedies in people’s lives are discussed without any drive to analyse, ‘dig deeper’ disturb memories or initiate catharsis. There is no preference for focusing primarily on the mind, the feelings, the body, the family system, narratives, culture or the cause and effects of damaging experiences.
At times I wonder whether we cling to structure and caution in supervision so carefully that we end up actually creating power relationships that are difficult to manage. The power of effective relationship will be positive if it risks vulnerability, not knowing, less analysis and more imagining. In many ways that may be safer than a structured approach. It may pose dilemmas for professionals who rely on answers and specific direction before they move forward with a client. However, the well trained practitioner ought not to need explicit instructions or designed formulae. My supervisors are, and often have been, my friends. At my career stage that is possible without boundaries being blurred. It is different when one is starting out but it is also possible for supervisors of trainees to be firm and advisory and, at the same time, maintain a collegial atmosphere which encourages rather than finds fault.
The power of method-
I try to imagine what clients would think about our discussions. Clients are not present to check our assumptions, our insights or our planning processes. Their absence leaves us holding the balance of power and I keep that in mind. As soon as supervisee and supervisor meet they engage in planning ‘for the benefit of the client’. This leads to decisions made by two powerful practitioners. On occasions it is decided clients might benefit from a modality based approach, a specific technique or ‘treatment’. The supervisee applying ‘method’ holds persuasive power over the client. I wonder about the rationale behind those decisions and whether we pause long enough to ask why the choice was made. If both supervisor and supervisee have been trained in a similar setting or the client seems to have a similar profile to a person who apparently benefited from the same approach, ‘method’ usually becomes more important than the relationship with the client.
Client issues are often summarised and analysed in supervision. The language we use reflects our training and our preferred processes for explaining other people’s behaviour to ourselves. I often think about the powerful implications present when we categorise, fit clients’ (or supervisees’) profiles into our own theoretical frameworks and use selective research to support our views. Once client individuality has been lost in generalisations we may be in danger of exercising the power assumed certainty creates. Once the client is made to ‘fit’ therapeutic colonisation has begun. The practice of analysing supervisees using therapeutic language carries similar implications to the analysis of clients. Both processes lead to the misuse of power. It is better to keep each unique person in view and use our training tentatively, keeping the questions open.
Shared power-
When important decisions are made around safety, ethics, and boundaries the power balance in the supervisory relationship shifts. The supervisor feels ultimately responsible and the supervisee relies on the supervisor’s extra experience or training. Shared power is particularly important in these moments. Ethics, safety and boundary issues give rise to complicated emotions, the need for extra clarity and uncertainty as to how to act. In situations where colleagues and/or clients are at risk we need to make careful assessments of the consequences and benefits of sharing power in a way that protects professional integrity. We can do that if we keep asking perceptive questions of ourselves and others at every stage in the process. As each decision is made both colleagues need to engage in a plan built on their powerful respect for each other. They have power over the future of people’s lives and that is never easy to act on alone. Clear thinking is crucial when decisions are urgent and we rely on health professionals, legal advisers or managers who act within their own powerful systems. Issues that have to do with boundaries, ethics and competence are best managed in shared power relationships with other professionals. We are sometimes tempted to label related health services and practitioners in ways that limit possibilities and make us feel powerful. When we put aside our opinions and critical comparisons it is possible to establish close working relationships which benefit our clients and our profession. We can only think clearly when we treat each other as colleagues.
Language and power-
The power of therapeutic overtones in a supervisory relationship is often helpful and sometimes damaging. How easy it is to feel powerful when we discuss transference, discover embedded memories, reveal hidden regrets or uncover loss and tragedy. How easy it is to feel powerful when these discoveries are mirrored within the supervision relationship and we use terms such as ‘parallel process’. These insights, explained by using therapeutic language, can be so powerful they hide the reality of lives being lived at an entirely different level. Therapeutic complexities are available to colleagues in supervision but may be of no relevance to the client who needs clarity, hope and creativity. The power of belonging to a profession with its own language is subtle and seductive. I wonder how supervision would proceed if we used concepts and ideas that mirror the way the client thinks, feels and acts?
The power of an open mind-
Counselling and psychotherapy professions provide a supervision resource that is scarce in most communities. This means we are often supervising other professionals such as those working in health, education, justice, spiritual settings, crisis services, culturally based communities, managerial positions and ‘issue based’ services such as abuse and addiction centres. I am involved in all of these at present. As supervision becomes popular in other professions I wonder what they will have learnt from the caring professions who pioneered the role of supervisor?
It seems to me these health and education related colleagues are seeking the benefits of shared power in a safe setting. The kind of powerful intervention that releases new energy in the mind and heart of a caring practitioner or manager belongs within therapeutic paradigms based on uncertainty. Highly structured counselling or psychotherapy training will not create the ability to think outside the square or be a visionary. The supervisor who comes from training and experience that has valued vulnerability, lived with unanswered questions and designed their own way of working will create new pathways for supervisees trained in other disciplines. We can make powerful interventions based on the notion of asking searching questions, seeking a third way through dilemmas and pointing to expansive parameters, appropriate boundaries and creative possibilities. The ability to do that is something I believe should be built into every training that has to do with establishing relationships. It was in my trainings as a counsellor and therapist and I hope it does not disappear in favour of definition, strict accountabilities, favoured methods and designed practice guidelines for all to follow.
Closed systems deliver limited power while open systems encourage us to contemplate that which at the time seems impossible. We should engage supervisors who understand how to share power openly and equally in the supervision room. Perhaps the idea of leaving questions open and living with uncertainty in the supervision room may be criticized for unsettling long standing traditions. I only know it has released me to be my powerful ‘self’ and in the end, that is what the client wants me to bring into my work.
A. Roy Bowden, Psychotherapist, Counsellor and Training Consultant.
Published NZAC Newsletter, December 2007