Mark Anthony V. Salacup Tau Gamma Phi C-4 Claveria Cagayan Chapter

1. Gestalt therapy
By: Mark Anthony V. Salacup

2.  Gestalt therapy refers to a form of
psychotherapy that derives from the gestalt
school of thought. It was developed in the late
1940s by Fritz Perls and is guided by the
relational theory principle that every
individual is a whole (mind, body and soul),
and that they are best understood in relation
to their current situation as he or she
experiences it.

3.  The approach combines this relational theory with
present state - focusing strongly on self-
awareness and the 'here and now' (what is
happening from one moment to the next). In
gestalt therapy, self-awareness is key to personal
growth and developing full potential. The
approach recognises that sometimes this self-
awareness can become blocked by negative
thought patterns and behaviour that can leave
people feeling dissatisfied and unhappy.

4.  It is the aim of a gestalt therapist to promote a
non-judgemental self-awareness that enables
clients to develop a unique perspective on life. By
helping an individual to become more aware of
how they think, feel and act in the present
moment, gestalt therapy provides insight into
ways in which he or she can alleviate their
current issues and distress in order to aspire to
their maximum potential.

5. Key concepts of gestalt therapy
 Gestalt therapy works through the
interconnection of key concepts. These
offer insight into the processes involved in
therapy sessions between the therapist and
client(s).

6.  Person-centred awareness - Focusing on
the present, and imagining it divorced from
the future and past is considered essential.
The process follows an individual's
experience in a way that does not involve
seeking out the unconscious, but staying
with what is present and aware.

7.  Respect - Clients, whether an individual,
group or family, are treated with profound
respect by a gestalt therapist. Providing a
balance of support and challenge is key to
helping those taking part to feel
comfortable about opening up and
acknowledging areas of resistance.

8.  Emphasis on experience - The gestalt
approach focuses on experience in terms of
an individual's emotions, perceptions,
behaviours, body sensations, ideas and
memories. A therapist encourages the
client to 'experience' in all of these ways,
vividly in the here and now.

9. Creative experiment and discovery -
There is a range of experimental
methodology used by therapists to test
their client's experience. These involve
highly creative and flexible techniques
to help them open up and
acknowledge hidden feelings.

10.  Social responsibility - The gestalt approach
recognises that humans have a social
responsibility for self and for others. It
demands respect for all people and
acknowledges that everyone is different.
Ultimately it encourages individuals to
adopt an egalitarian approach to social life.

11.  Relationship - Relating is considered central to
human experience and gestalt therapy considers
individuals as 'whole' when they have a good
relationship with themselves and others around
them. The interpersonal relationship between the
individual and therapist that is developed and
nurtured in sessions is a key guiding process if
therapy.

12. How does gestalt
therapy work?

13.  Fundamentally, gestalt therapy works by teaching clients
how to define what is truly being experienced rather than
what is merely an interpretation of the events. Those
undertaking gestalt therapy will explore all of their
thoughts, feelings, behaviours, beliefs and values to
develop awareness of how they present themselves and
respond to events in their environment. This gives them
the opportunity to identify choices, patterns of behaviour
and obstacles that are impacting their health and well-
being, and preventing them from reaching their full
potential.

14.  The unfolding of this therapeutic process
will typically involve a range of expressive
techniques and creative experiments
developed collaboratively between
therapist and client. These will be
appropriate for the client and their specific
problems. Below are some of the most
common methods used:

15. Role-play
The 'open chair' technique
Dialogue
Discussing dreams
Attention to body language

16. Role- play
Role-play can help individuals to
experience different feelings and
emotions and better understand
how they present and organise
themselves.

17. The 'open chair' technique
The open chair technique involves two chairs and
role-play, and can give rise to emotional scenes.
The client sits opposite an empty chair and must
imagine someone (usually himself/herself or parts
of him or her) in it. They then communicate with
this imaginary being - asking questions and engaging
with what they represent. Next, they must switch
chairs so they are physically sitting in the once
empty chair.

18.  The conversation continues, but the client has
reversed roles - speaking on behalf of the
imagined part of his or her problem. This
technique aims to enable participants to locate a
specific feeling or a side of their personalities
they had 'disowned' or tried to ignore. This helps
them to accept polarities and acknowledge that
conflicts exist in everyone.

19. Dialogue
A gestalt therapist will need to engage
the client in meaningful and authentic
dialogue in order to guide them into a
particular way of behaving or thinking.
This may move beyond simple discussion
to more creative forms of expression
such as dancing, singing or laughing.

20. Discussing dreams
Dreams play an important role in gestalt
therapy, as they can help individuals to
understand spontaneous aspects of
themselves. Fritz Perls frequently asked
clients to relive his or her dreams by playing
different objects and people in the dream.
During this they would be asked questions
like: "What are you aware of now?" to
sharpen self-awareness.

21. Attention to body language
Throughout therapy, a gestalt therapist will
concentrate on body language, which is considered
a subtle indicator of intense emotions. When
specific body language is noticed, the therapist may
ask the client to exaggerate these movements or
behaviours. This is thought to intensify the emotion
attached to the behaviour and highlight an inner
meaning. For example, a client may be showing
signs of clenched fists or frowning, to which the
therapist may ask something along the lines of:
"What are you saying with this movement?"

22. Who can benefit?
 Ultimately, gestalt therapy is considered to help
individuals gain a better understanding of how
their emotional and physical needs are
connected. They will learn that being aware of
their internal self is key to understanding why
they react and behave in certain ways. This
journey of self-discovery makes the approach
beneficial for individuals who can be guarded
when it comes to their emotions, and find it
difficult to process why they feel and act the way
they do.

23.  Gestalt therapy is considered particularly
valuable for helping to treat a wide range of
psychological issues - especially as it can be
applied as a long-term therapy or as a brief and
focused approach. It has been found effective for
managing tension, anxiety, addiction, post-
traumatic stress, depression and other
psychological problems that can prevent people
from living life to the full. Overall, people who
participate in gestalt therapy tend to feel more
self-confident, calm and at peace with
themselves.

24. Principles of Gestalt Therapy
 At the core of gestalt therapy is the holistic view
that people are intricately linked to and
influenced by their environments and that all
people strive toward growth and balance. Gestalt
therapy is similar to person-centered therapy in
this way, as well as in its emphasis on the
therapist’s use of empathy, understanding,
and unconditional acceptance of the client to
enhance therapeutic outcomes.

25.  According to gestalt therapy, context affects
experience, and a person cannot be fully
understood without understanding his or her
context. With this in mind, gestalt psychotherapy
recognizes that no one can be purely objective—
including therapists whose experiences and
perspectives are also influenced by their own
contexts—and practitioners accept the validity
and truth of their clients’ experiences. client to
enhance therapeutic outcomes.

26. Working with a Gestalt Therapist
 Gestalt therapy sessions do not follow specific
guidelines, in fact, therapists are encouraged to
use creativity in their approaches, depending on
context and each person's personality. What is
consistent is the emphasis on direct contact
between therapist and client, direct experience
and experimentation, and the focus on the “what
and how”—what the client is doing and how he or
she is doing it—and the “here and now.”

27. Gestalt Therapy draws from all these
influences and traditions:
 Early Gestalt psychology (Wertheimer, Kohler, & Koffka)
 Kurt Goldstein's "Organismic Psychology" (a gestalt-
physiological approach
 Kurt Lewin's analysis of tension systems
 Psychoanalysis from Freud to Fenichel
 Somatically-oriented psychoanalysis (Reich); Alexander
technique, Feldenkreis
 The neo-Freudian social analytic tradition (primarily Karen
Horney)
 Carl Jung's Analytical Psychology, mediated through Otto
Rank

28.  European Existentialism
 Phenomenology
 Theatre
 Psychodrama
 Modern Dance
 Zen (and possibly Gurdjieff)
 L. Ron Hubbard's Dianetics
 and California counterculture of the late 1960s
and 1970s.

29. COMPARISON OF GESTALT THERAPY
WITH EARLY GESTALT PSYCHOLOGY
 Doctrinaire Gestalt Psychologists who claim that Gestalt
Therapy is not "real Gestalt" are right and wrong. They are
right because it draws together many other influences
with the old Gestalt psychology. They are wrong because
the Gestalt view of reality genuinely is the centering point
that holds all the rest of the influences together. Gestalt
theory is extended into becoming a dynamic process of
personal growth and development, just as Goldstein
extended it into the physiological realm and Lewin
extended it into the social realm. We may note that were
it not for Perls and Gestalt Therapy, instead of being
alive, well, and influential today, Gestalt theory would be
a chapter in the history books and that would be the end
of it.

30. Thank you 