Rollo May
A key element of existential counseling is that it does not place emphasis on past events like some other therapy types. The approach does take the past into consideration, and through retrospection the therapist and individual can understand the implications of past events. Instead of putting blame on events from the past however, existential counseling uses them as insight, becoming a tool to promote freedom and assertiveness. Coming to the realization that you are not defined by your history and that you are not destined to have a certain future is often a breakthrough that offers liberation during this type of therapy.
Practitioners of existential therapy say that its role is to help facilitate an individual’s own encounter with themselves and to work alongside them as they explore values, assumptions and ideals. An existential therapist will look to avoid imposing their own judgments and instead help the individual elucidate and elaborate on their own perspective.
The therapist should enter sessions with an open mind and be ready to question his or her own biases and assumptions. Bringing an almost deliberate naivety to the therapeutic relationship, the goal of the therapist is to understand the individual’s assumptions with a clarity that the individual themselves may not be able to muster.
A belief that lies at the heart of existential counseling is that even though humans are essentially alone in the world, they long to be connected with others. This belief can help to explain why certain concerns appear and may help the individual understand why they feel the way they do sometimes.
Another interesting theory is that inner conflict stems from an individual’s confrontation with the givens of existence. These givens were noted by influential psychotherapist Irvin D. Yalom, and include:
- the inevitability of death
- freedom and its attendant responsibility
- existential isolation
- meaninglessness.
These four givens (also known as ‘ultimate concerns’) are the cornerstones of existential psychotherapy and compose the framework in which the therapist identifies the individual’s issue. Once the issue has been conceptualized by the therapist, a method of treatment can be developed.
Due to the all-encompassing nature of existential therapy, it is near impossible to describe one single view when it comes to the causes for psychological upset. The therapy instead treats each person as an individual, exploring his or her experience and relating it to the experience of all mankind.
Psychotherapeutic Applications of Philosophy 