Holistic Psychotherapy

By Randi Fredricks

Have you ever felt that traditional talk therapy is productive to a point, but doesn't always help you resolve blocks which keep you from achieving your goals? Or while your spiritual practice is fulfilling, it can't seem to solve your relationship problems?

We are made up of many parts, specifically, mind, body and spiritual aspects. Like pieces of a puzzle, each part must be paid attention to and fit together in order to see the whole picture more clearly.

The more willing you are to embrace what makes you most uncomfortable, the closer you get to your edge. If you can embrace yourself at the edge where you feel most raw, least in control and rest at this point, everything starts to shift.

Staying in your "head" with only talk, can leave you feeling disconnected or empty. Focusing too much on the heavy body emotions like grief or anger, can be exhausting. And concentrating entirely on a spiritual practice for personal growth can lead to an ungrounded approach to problem solving.

With holistic psychotherapy, as the name implies, you become aware of a more fully realized sense of the Total Self. By paying attention to all three realms of mind, body and spirit, we work together to reintegrate and bring them, that is, you - into balance.

In holistic psychotherapy, we believe that you are whole at the outset of the work. We won't try to "fix what's broken" because we don't believe you are broken at all - but we'll work together to rediscover the natural springs of vitality that have been covered over from years of distress.

To do so, we'll draw on a variety of techniques that are appropriate both to the moment and to your goals. These include a balance of talk, dream and Gestalt therapy, Jungian shadow work, inner child work, guided visualization, bioenergetic exercises, meditation, breathing exercises and spiritual practice development.

My job is to witness your unique story. Listening deeply, we'll walk under the ocean together, so to speak, so you can discover your own buried treasure. What is this buried treasure?

Learning to listen more to your own intuition. Connecting with your core experiences and emotions. And recapturing your inborn self-healing skills (many of which you knew as a child!), and maybe learn a few new ones, which will re-energize you from the inside out.

Relaxation and understanding opens your spirit and allows the truth of your life to come through. This is less likely to happen if you try to force the issue by an exercise of the will. Each of us has to learn how to turn life's circumstances over to our spiritual self and permit our spirit to give us direction! To put it another way: The spiritual path contains a recognition that there are things we don’t know how to accomplish, handle or understand. That is just the way it is. If you accept this as true, become more adept at "non-doing," let go of control and turn the mystery over to spirit, what will emerge is greater clarity and understanding.

This rekindled vitality will help you to more readily take charge of your vision of a fulfilling life, one filled with joy, peace of mind and goals achieved.





Randi Fredricks has a Doctorate in Naturopathy and a Masters in Psychology. She runs her own natural health business, All Things Well, and counsels clients at Recovery Connections in San Jose, California. You can reach her at 800-957-5655 or contact her online. This article is taken partially or in whole from Randi Fredricks' book Healing & Wholeness: Complementary and Alternative Therapies for Mental Health. Copyright © 2008. All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems.



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This site does not provide medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Randi Fredricks is a Marriage Family Therapist Intern IMF 56610 supervised by Mary Crocker Cook MFC 24835. Randi Fredricks is not licensed with the
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