When Transgressing Standard Therapeutic Frames Leads to Progressive Change, Not Ethical Violations

Abstract

The author uses Eric Berne’s metaphor of secret gardens to explore therapeutic relationships that allow for a fuller immersion in the client’s private internal world. Garden work requires a level of therapeutic intimacy that matches the depth of this private space and also, perhaps, adjustments to the therapeutic frame that are specific to the client’s unique issues and needs. This way of working and relating can create fears and vulnerabilities for both client and therapist, and, at times, the changes may feel transgressive. The author defines transgressive in therapy as work with a specific client that violates family protocols or traditional therapeutic frames but is not unethical. He describes how the transgressive functions as a bridge of exploration between regressive work and movement toward more progressive ways of relating and being. Throughout the article, the author reflects on his own personal garden work to help connect theory with practice.