Introduction to the Special Issue on Advanced Gestalt Practice

The field of Gestalt therapy has long had a troubled relationship with mainstream psychotherapy. The decades long assent of cognitive-behavioral and other, more objectively oriented therapies moved Gestalt even further from common acceptance as a valid alternative for treatment. Couple’s therapy, in particular, has not commonly been seen as a natural “fit” for Gestalt practice. The author’s view is that the recent rise of integrated therapy and the need for Evidence-Based Treatment separate from issues of allegiance to a particular school of therapy has created a new opportunity to reconsider Gestalt therapy theory and practice in couple’s work. It is particularly relevant for work with couples in which one or both have been traumatized. Recent developments in Gestalt practice offers a fresh approach for such work, especially in regard to its focus on resolving underlying shame and the need for the couple to develop mutual acceptance at a deep level. Both these therapeutic tasks are vital in work with traumatized clients. These Gestalt tasks can easily be integrated with other, more mainstream models of working with trauma and working couples. An example of this integrated approach is offered to explore the ramifications of the theoretical assertion.

Gestalt practice and arts-based training has been examined and evaluated using evidence from the literature and personal experience. Gestalt practice allows the training and learning process to take into account the intrapersonal as well as the interpersonal aspects of the group and the individuals involved: the resulting knowledge and understanding can be used to the benefit of learners. Gestalt practice is in essence a highly experiential approach and, as such, provides space for active experimentation in a training or coaching session. By combining Gestalt concepts with experimentation from the arts, a significant methodology for teaching soft skills and helping learners to acquire leadership, innovation and change management skills can be developed. Insights are provided into how a combination of Gestalt practice and arts-based training can benefit organizations and individuals. Arts-based training is evaluated by using Kirkpatrick's four levels of rigour framework (reaction, learning, behaviour and results). It was observed that a paradigm shift in training and education is in progress, from what has been referred to in the literature as the ‘logico-rational Anglo-Saxon’ model to a more flexible and holistic model that encompasses emotions, feelings and the human body.

The authors propose a phenomenological/existential approach in psychotherapeutic intervention on panic attacks. From the observations in the psychotherapeutic settings emerges the tendency of the patient with a panic attack symptom not to take clear and defined positions in his emotional and professional life, the tendency to say YES rather than NO, even in situations where he is not convinced of his choice. Others do not consider him a credible interlocutor where choices have to be made, but a person who always adapts. He tends to have low self-esteem, does not believe in his abilities and does not express his opinions for fear of being judged and ridiculed. Exploring the experiences of those who suffer from panic attacks opens up the hypothesis that panic attacks, more than as a symptom related to the sphere of anxiety and fear, is a manifestation of existential/relational distress with respect to inadequate anger management. Anger becomes unexpressed and repressed (retroflexion) as a result of the accumulation of dissatisfactions, frustrations and deprivations to which the patient cannot say no. When the person is in a situation where they feel compelled to do something they don't want to do, and they don't know how to disengage, anxiety intervenes which can increase to the point of developing various symptoms of panic. In this proposed study we will look at the extent to which unexpressed anger can affect panic attacks. The assumption behind the gestalt practice is that a person experiences anger when he or she does not get what he or she wants, or when he or she is in a territorial conflict. Hence the different acts of the person in the manifestation of anger.

Technological changes have brought unprecedented challenges to our spiritual integrity. The Gestalt Model of Evolutionary Creative Process (GMECP) presented in this paper re-conceptualizes the Gestalt Cycle of Experience (COE) to support spiritual self-awareness and access to a spiritual intelligence rarely directly addressed in Gestalt practice, yet vital for meeting current challenges. Core precepts and concepts of the COE are retained, but the GMECP (1) incorporates the additional concepts of the Heart Center, Pre-Sense, and Void; and (2) re-conceptualizes the phase of Withdrawal as Pre-Closure. Using the GMECP (re) awakens people to intimate relationships with Self and with the Sacred, bringing heightened awareness of manifold ways of knowing and of resources for spiritual integrity and integrated presence.

The same foundational principles—phenomenology and “The Paradoxical Theory of Change”—underlie Gestalt practice and give rise to common ground, whether the practitioner is a coach or a therapist. The distinctions often made between the two professions are further attenuated when either coach or therapist adopts a fundamental tenet of the Gestalt International Study Center's (GISC) Cape Cod Model©—a focus on the “well-developed.” This article explores common ground shared by these practitioners and challenges the easy distinctions often made between the two professions.

Greetings from Byron Bay—what follows is a postcard version of a seven-year cycle of relational inquiry retrospectively nicknamed The Rainbow of Desire. I outline our practices, explore five basic fields in our approach to new paradigm research, and present an updated version of my seven relationships model as a heuristic for understanding and participating in relational inquiry. As a contemporary spiritual expression, with roots in the Greek-Socratic tradition of research, and informed by Gestalt practice (not psychotherapy), this account may also be of value for persons interested in further Gestalt-transpersonal inquiry, research, and learning.

Gestalt Psychotherapy and Coaching for Relationships

"Abstract: Drawing on insights from neuroscience research, particularly in respect of autonomic arousal, brain structures, and neural plasticity, this article considers the impact of recent developments in the treatment of trauma, and ways of integrating new under standing with current Gestalt methodology. Sensorimotor trauma therapy offers some new concepts through which safe and effective trauma treatment can be reconsidered. Through the use of clinical examples, the article discusses the application of three sensorimotor concepts, integrating them with Gestalt practice. There is also a brief description of the role of defensive systems in trauma work from a sensorimotor perspective. Relational aspects of this way of working are integrated into the text. Key words: trauma, sensorimotor, resources, window of tolerance, ANS arousal, defensive systems, figure formation, fixed gestalts, creative adjustment."

Gestalt therapy is a powerful tool for accessing transpersonal domains. Three Gestalt experiments are described that took place in a year-long class at Naropa University. For each of these sessions, Deborah was the teacher/facilitator and Trish was the student/client. These Gestalt experiments are presented as demonstrations of: (1) Gestalt theory in action, (2) the applicability of Gestalt therapy with special populations, and (3) ways in which Gestalt practice can lead to spiritual unfolding. We demonstrate how Gestalt is used as a transformative approach in working through issues of physical difference, including hearing impairment, that are central to the person and sensory in nature.

Gestalt therapy and Cooperative Inquiry (a method of action research) share significant roots: Martin Buber for one, and Kurt Lewin for another. They also share with Gestalt such categories as field theory, phenomenology, dialogue, and experimentation, among others. I write this paper partly as an invitation to Gestalt therapists to explore action methods such as cooperative inquiry, on the premise that when approached with intention the “between” can become the locus of a more relational spirituality. I propose that the principles of participatory or therapeutic democracy may be (as yet) underdeveloped in Gestalt practice and teaching, and tentatively suggest that Gestalt practitioners and trainees might “dip their toes” into collaborative waters as a useful training experience.

The same foundational principles—phenomenology and “The Paradoxical Theory of Change”—underlie Gestalt practice and give rise to common ground, whether the practitioner is a coach or a therapist. The distinctions often made between the two professions are further attenuated when either coach or therapist adopts a fundamental tenet of the Gestalt International Study Center's (GISC) Cape Cod Model©—a focus on the “well-developed.” This article explores common ground shared by these practitioners and challenges the easy distinctions often made between the two professions.

The theory of the Gestalt therapy which is based on the humanist attitude towards the personality is applied in the social work, education, etc. It is considered to serve as a foundation of interactive bibliotherapy. However, as the professional discourse of the experts of Gestalt has demonstrated, and as it has been proven by the lack of research of the application of bibliotherapy in Gestalt therapy, bibliotherapy is still being underused as an option in Gestalt treatment. Generally, even though the interdisciplinary field of bibliotherapy has been extensively explored, there is an incentive to share the scarce (in terms of quantity) models of the applied nature which would define how bibliotherapy could be systematically involved into various consultation practices with the objective to enhance their efficiency. The article presents one of the possible models of practical application of interactive bibliotherapy in the Gestalt practice which is based on the triple dialogue (in interaction with the therapist) and written reflection of brief fictional texts. The model is based on the grounds of aligning the paradigms of Gestalt therapy and bibliotherapy. Cases of 60 clients who were being applied bibliotherapy throughout the 7 years of operation of one practice were explored with the emphasis on the qualitative aspect. The results of the research proved the appropriateness of bibliotherapy as a secondary means to be applied in Gestalt therapy. It has been established that, under the appropriate field conditions, the properly selected fictional text as the mediator through the dialogue-based reflection with the therapist may help the client to perceive his/her unsatisfied needs and to alter in the desired direction within a shorter timeframe, i.e., it enables personality transformation. In such cases, works of fiction serve the function of the stimulants of the authentic intrapersonal communication (i.e., one’s inner experiences and their inner reflection) and the amplifying or reinforcing function of the stimulants of interpersonal communication. This corroborates the data of neurological research indicating that fiction intensively stimulates and even (trans)forms the intellectual and emotional self- and world perception of a reading individual. The presented model of the application of bibliotherapy may be beneficial not only for the practitioners of Gestalt, but also for librarians, social workers and education specialists as well as the practitioners of therapies of other types, while especially considering the lack of systematic descriptions of the application of bibliotherapy as an additional and enhancing means, which has been highlighted in the relevant literature.

Foreword: Supervision in Gestalt Practice

Foreword: Supervision in Gestalt Practice

Within the past 10 years my practice has come to include a large number of patients suffering from cancer. I have found that these patients are often so debilitated by their treatments that they require support, not only mentally and emotionally, but also spiritually and physically as well. Traditional talk therapy blended with energy work, touch, and guided imagery offers the broad band of support that seriously ill patients require. In this paper I describe how I have joined principles and practices of energy healing, touch, and imagery with a Gestalt approach to psychotherapy. I explore and describe the compatibility of healing work and Gestalt practice. I discuss treatment design and include a case study and discussion.