I am deeply committed to opening to awake awareness and work daily with mindfulness practices and glimpse practices. I attempt to ‘hold’ my clients in this compassionate space whether they have a wish to use these practices directly or not.
I see awareness as key in all types of psychotherapy and, with this focus on awareness, use an integrative approach which means that I draw on several different therapeutic approaches. I draw on psychoanalytic theories, interpersonal theories, existentialism, cognitive-behavioural frameworks, and transpersonal psychology.
BUT, having said all that, I value the statement ‘Therapy should not be theory-driven, but relationship driven.’ made by Yalom in The gift of therapy (2001, p xviii)
And in my view the most valuable tool the therapist has to offer in therapy is the self. For the purpose of honing this tool I have engaged with my own journey of therapy and practices from the range of theories mentioned above. I am also constantly aware of bringing alert, non-judgemental attentiveness to my own thoughts, feelings and actions and value an ever deepening compassion for myself and others in this complex endeavour of human experience.
