Embodied-Relational
Therapy
Embodied-relational therapy focuses on
two crucial aspects of our situation as human beings: that we are
incarnate, and that we exist in relation to others.
As human beings, we are integrated
bodymindspirit; on the whole, we find this condition hard to manage.
Sometimes the problem is to 'bring spirit down' into material
expression, to commit ourselves sufficiently to the recalcitrance and
fixity of being in the world, rather than floating off in fantasy.
Sometimes the problem is to 'bring matter up' into spiritual
connection, to hold sufficient inspiration and enlightenment rather
than getting caught in the demands of practical existence. For each of
us, there is a constantly shifting balance; also for each of us, we
have certain preferences, predilections, assumptions which go to make
up our character structure. This expresses itself not only in
our habits of thought and behaviour, but also in our bodily and
energetic patterns.
What we have just called 'character
structure' can be usefully reframed as 'style of relating'. There is a
consonance between a person's style of relating to the conditions of
existence - to embodiment - and their style of relating to other human
beings. (After all, it is through interactions with other people above
all else that a baby learns what to expect from the universe and how
best to respond to it.)
The fundamental assumption of
Embodied-Relational Therapy is that we all do the best we possibly
can - the best that we know so far. Each individual has come up
with a brilliant solution to the conditions in which they have found
themselves - the optimum style of relating, the optimum balance between
body and spirit. Equally, each person is seeking, consciously or
unconsciously, to change their behavioural style in accordance
with current conditions - which may be very different from the
conditions in which we grew up. Whatever appears in a person's life as
a problem, a symptom, a conflict, can also be understood as an
incomplete attempt to change and grow.
So the core tasks of the therapist are:
-
To support all aspects of the
client's process - not just the bits we like! This is harder than it
may sound, and is probably the heart of the therapeutic project.
-
To identify and amplify that
process, especially as it expresses itself through relationship -
through the feelings each person has about the other.
-
To come back, over and over, to a
centred and open position, holding the space so as to allow the client
free expression within it, and so as to witness every aspect of the
situation including one's own responses.
You will find more thoughts about all
this in the articles under Writings, and also in
my chapter in New
Dimensions in Body Psychotherapy.
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