Existential Therapy

Having a background in philosophy in my undergrad, existentialism was an immediate interest of mine. As I moved through grad school, every free moment was filled with the works of Irvin Yalom and Viktor Frankl. I will sit with you and we together can explore the 4 tenants of existentialism and how the way you interact with them may be affecting your day-to-day life and relationships with others and yourself.

I have an existential focus in my practice that presumes that all individuals seek meaning, purpose, and self-actualization. I believe that anxiety and depression are symptoms that derive from a lack of meaning and purpose. I like to focus on issues fundamental to the core human condition such as anxiety, meaning making, purpose, freedom, responsibility, self-actualization, self-worth, guilt and acceptance.

Existential therapy asks deep questions about the nature of being human. Why am I here? What do I want from life? What gives me purpose? What matters to me? It simultaneously asks us to consider our unique experience in this world while also helping us to see that everything we're going through is also connected to a universal human experience.

I offer existential psychotherapy. Understanding your past and how it effects your present allows you to slowly bring change to your current world.

Existential therapy is a humanistic approach that focuses on the here and now. Emotions and feelings are a part of life and are a natural part of the human experience. In this approach, we aim to explore various forms of existential anxieties including meaninglessness, isolation, freedom of choice, death/dying in order to build a life worth living for. We may also explore how the way we relate to these existential concerns may keep us from living our life to it's fullest and how to change this.

"What is the meaning of life?" is an eternally joked about question, but when we do not have our own personal answer to this question based on our values and beliefs, it often leads to mental health challenges such as depression, anxiety, and interpersonal conflict. I support clients to ask the deep questions, seek and understand their core values, and find meaning in their life as a way to reduce negative symptoms and bring about positive mental health.

I am intensely interested in creating meaning in life. It is that meaning that creates joy and deep satisfaction.

Where do you find meaning? What is important to you? What does happiness look like to you? Who or what are you living for? The idea that only we can define or determine our own purpose and path is daunting and overwhelming, but can also be liberating and life-affirming.

What is it all for? Existential therapy tackles the deep, powerful questions that reside in each of us, to unlock the purpose and meaning that defines our life. Often feelings of sadness, loneliness, "stuck"ness & fear come from a place of living out of alignment with what we truly want and desire. Human concerns such as mortality, responsibility & freedom also impact how we move through the world, and existential therapy aims to explore these powerful concerns to unlock a happier life.

I hold the question "what are you doing here?" both in my office and on the earth as we meet keeping in mind whether you are living out your purpose. There are four "givens" of existence that e must grapple with: Death - it can be terrifying or freeing/motivating Isolation - we are born for/die for only ourselves Freedom - we have the freedom /responsibility for our life Meaning - we are meaning-making beings Sometimes symptoms point us to larger questions and we need help working through them.

I use tenets of Gestalt and Existential therapy in my work, as I believe that we all gravitate naturally towards self-determination and holistic congruence. Self-examination and self-awareness are key steps for this - supported in therapy. I use tenets of Gestalt therapy in association with existential therapy: such as immediacy, the therapeutic relationship, and individual responsibility.

I have a background in existential philosophy and psychology. Discovering deeper meaning by confronting the difficult questions that arise from the unique nature of the human condition. What does it mean to be alive? How do my choices define me? How can I live a life committed to action and purpose? How can I embrace my failures and celebrate my success?

I am very interested in how things are interpreted and what meaning we give to things, events, relationships, and life experiences. I believe everyone is different and are just looking for where they fit in their lives and in the universe. The meaning we give to these things influences how we behave and interact with ourselves and others.

Life is about finding your individual meaning, purpose, and direction. This is the only defense we have against the random horrible things that happen to us. Perhaps the best way to describe this type of therapy is to give you the name of two books to read: "Man's Search for Meaning" by Viktor Frankl and "The Gift of Therapy: An Open Letter to a New Generation of Therapists and Their Patients" by Irvin D. Yalom.

Existential psychotherapy is deeply life affirming and is rooted in the belief that change is always possible. It is aimed to assist with issues that arise from being human—or, simply “existing”, to which no one is immune. Goals include to increase self-awareness, take responsibility of life, relate better to others, self-acceptance, and to live authentically. Existential therapists are curious, genuine and conversational. Therapeutic work includes dialogue, creativity, dream work and more.

Underneath it all I see myself as a human- one who struggles and has struggled with the same fears that all humans have struggled with- mortality, isolation, our freedom to make choices, and our ultimate meaninglessness in a universe that is indifferent. I believe then that it is critical as a therapist to support people in finding their own meaning and purpose; and that they can trust themselves to make that decision.

My first love was philosophy. I believe that we all struggle with the existential conundrums of the human condition, whether we know it or not, and one or more of them is behind all mental and emotional angst.

Life's bigger questions are frequently underlying day to day issues and addressing them in therapy can promote deep healing and change.