Gestalt Therapy Paper

Buddha, a man who devoted himself to years of contemplation and self-denial, once said “do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment”. Thinking too much about times gone by typically keeps your mind stuck in neutral. Existing in an earlier life could result in revisiting feelings of anger, guilt, resentment, sorrow, or shame. Obsessing about the people and events precipitating such negative feelings can lead to endless rethinking. Becoming increasingly lifeless, or infatuated, thinking really cannot progress toward any resolution. Ultimately, it is pointless to employ memory to hold onto what may have been lost many years ago. As a result of not letting go of the past, it is possible to be robbed of present opportunities. Often, in many novels the characters are still dwelling on their past in the present. In The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, the author demonstrates how George Wilson and Jay Gatsby are held hostage by their pasts with little hope for their futures.

This paper will carry out a comparative analysis of the two most important psychological therapies, the Adlerian Therapy and the Gestalt Therapy.

Gestalt therapy is a therapeutic approach in psychology that helped foster the humanistic theories of the 1950s and 1960s and that was, in turn, influenced by them. In Gestalt philosophy, the patient is seen as having better insight into himself or herself than the therapist does. Thus, the therapist guides the person on a self-directed path to awareness and refrains from interpreting the patient’s behaviors. Awareness comprises recognition of one’s responsibility for choices, self-knowledge, and ability to solve problems.

identifying the causes of the client feeling. Gestalts therapy focus on the here and now of the

“When people find it easy to imagine an event, they overestimate the likelihood that it will actually occur” (Gilbert, 2006, p.19.) Gilbert explains that this causes us to be overoptimistic about our futures and thus changes what we do in order to be happy. Young people imagine traveling the world, starting a successful business or becoming a star. Later on in one’s life they may realize that they do not have the funds to travel the world, the talent to become a star, or even the desire to start their own business. Perhaps they come to the conclusion that they would be happier starting a family or writing a book. Humans have an undeniable want to control. The reason somebody imagines the future is so they can do something about it (Gilbert, 2006, p. 21.) We imagine a future better than today so we can take the actions necessary to get to the better tomorrow. I imagined college being a whole lot better than high school. The freedom and the separation from my parents was something I wanted. So in order to get here I studied hard in high school, strove for a good ACT score, and applied to universities. The actions I took in high school were in order to control the future. Gilbert answers the question of “Why should we want to control our futures?” “It feels good to do so-period. Impact is rewarding. Mattering makes us happy. The act of steering one’s boat down the river of time is a source of pleasure, regardless of one’s port of call” (Gilbert,

Past, Present, Future During the 20’s, money ruled the desires of all men and encouraged indulgences, spending, and the theme of life was to live it to the fullest. Thus, it wasn’t abnormal to see those spending the money try to forget and lose interest in their past and future. But it’s crucial for a human being to reflect on their past and also keep a look out for their future because the present is not only a time to enjoy life but also a time to prepare for the rest of it. Not learning from your mistakes guarantees that you will repeat them and not expecting the future will leave you unprepared for the changes it brings.

Psychologists at NPR’s Health News channel say that “When memories never fade, the past can poison the present...”. Not only is it unhealthy to live in the past, it’s impossible, as evident in The Great Gatsby. “...his life had been confused and disorderly since then, but if he could return once more to that certain starting place, he could figure it all out...” (Fitzgerald, pg 71). What’s done is done, what’s gone is gone. We have only the present to take hold of, and the future to dream in.

Gestalt is a fascinating approach to therapy with many unique techniques, interventions and goals that set it apart from other approaches. "Self-acceptance, knowledge of the environment, responsibility for choices, and the ability to make contact...are important awareness processes and goals, all of which are based on a here-and-now experiencing that is always changing" (Corey, 2009, p. 200).

Imagine that your best friend in the entire world had been seeming dejected or sad. He/she doesn’t seem to want to come out of the house, hang out, or anything that they used to like, they don’t like anymore. These are two of many signs that they are dealing with depression. Should depression continue to be treated with medication and therapy, or should depression not be treated with medication and therapy? Depression should be treated with medication and therapy for the following reasons, medication can balance out their serotonin levels and help them feel more relaxed, talk therapy can help them to open up and possibly find the good from every situation, as well as medication and therapy can help “cure” the depressive symptoms.

Past, present and future are all important to keep in perspective. Looking back and not having regrets is extremely satisfying. Your current situation and your contentment with it are also very important, and having goals and milestones to work toward in the future keeps you motivated and keeps life interesting and challenging.

I try to figure out why that is, and I do something called shadow work. Shadow work is breaking down a statement, a question or just thoughts and truly seeing how I feel about them, and finding out where these thoughts and feelings are coming from. Are they coming from a mindset of fear, nervousness, doubt or any other negative emotion that could come out, when I am doing shadow work. When I am breaking down my thoughts and feelings, I start by checking my life history (experience) and I sometimes realize, these negative emotions come from, what has happened to me in the past and over time these negative thoughts, have created negative emotions and these negative emotions have become a part of my belief system; Which hinders me from making that right decision. To over come this, I accept the past as the past, knowing that I can and I have learned and grown from the past. Which allows me to move on and make the best possible decision for the present moment. I am also grateful for the past because it has given me beautiful and wonderful memories, that I can cherish for a lifetime and use to help me make important decisions in my life. I know without the past, I would not be at this evolutionary point in my

Therapy is the treatment of people who are suffering from the psychological problem and that situation, the therapist works in collaboration with the patient, to determine the cause. This paper seeks to explore the two types of therapy which person-centered therapy and gestalt therapy. The paper will also go into details by comparing and contrasting the two therapies and how they work.

Gestalt therapy can help shed light on suppressed feelings by helping us to focus our awareness on our feelings in the “here and now.” Once recognized, resolution of uncomfortable feelings, correction of habitual negative behavior patterns, and recognizing and changing negative thought processes can become a part of the therapeutic work. Through this form of therapeutic process, individuals

According to Blom, (2006) “The integration of polarities is a prerequisite for a dynamic and healthy life process.” Therefore, all techniques and modalities from gestalt theory focus on direct experience and experimentation. From this perspective, direct experience is the only way that learning can take place. The therapist should avoid counseling and interpretation during therapy and focus on creating an atmosphere where the client can discover what is important and they can react to the information as it is important to them. The therapist is primarily a catalyst in the process of therapy. Oaklander (1994) posits that any interpretation by the therapist must be verified with the child.

Gestalt psychology is based upon the idea that we experience things as unified wholes. This approach to psychology began in Germany and Austria during the late 19th century in response to the molecular approach of structuralism. Rather that breaking down thoughts and behavior to their smallest element, the gestalt psychologist believed that you must look at the whole of experience. The problem that gestalt theory confronts is that of an extended event, whether an action,