Gestalt therapy

Today the news is difficult – the one year anniversary of the Capitol Riots, ongoing fallout from Omicron, and controversy about the CDC and White House’s COVID missteps. But I don’t want to write about any of that today. Instead, I plan to discuss Gestalt therapy.

What is Gestalt therapy, you might ask? And why am I writing about it? Well, my neighbor here in Boston, Alan, is a retired Gestalt therapist, and he has told me about it over the years.

Gestalt therapy is a form of psychotherapy which emphasizes personal responsibility and focuses on the individual’s experience in the present moment, the therapist–client relationship, and the environmental and social contexts of a person’s life. This method was developed in the 1940s by Fritz and Laura Perls, German Jews who fled the Nazis to South Africa.

I think Gestalt therapy could be a major benefit to people suffering from stress and anxiety during the COVID pandemic.

I’m still trying to understand how Gestalt therapy differs from cognitive behavioral therapy and Freudian / Lacanian psychoanalysis. My sense is there is some overlap, but Gestalt therapy is more focused on awareness and action.

Have you received any of these types of therapy? If you are aware of any research comparing these different approaches, please let me know. We need much better access to therapy, across the board. It shouldn’t just be for the wealthy.

That’s all I have for today. If you have any comments, please feel free to leave them below. And remember, my blog is entirely free. Thanks, Phil