FACILITATING TRANSFORMATION IN PRESENCE-CENTRED COUNSELLING Written by Ronald L. Johnson, MFA, CADC, ERYT Paradoxica: Journal of Nondual Psychology, Vol.

. 5: Spring 2013 Summary In this paper I discuss the notion of presence and its meaning for the counselling process. This includes answering basic questions related to human nature, behaviour change, the clientcounsellor relationship, and other critical aspects of therapy as pertaining to a theoretical framework of Presence-Centred Counselling (PCC). The paper provides a substantial examination of research in Nondual Psychology as it relates to presence and the contributions of non-academic teachers to nondualism. It also incorporates significant findings from mindfulness into the general topic. The paper explores the humanistic roots of PCC, addresses correlations between presence and being, and infers that mental health issues are forms of contraction of being that individuals cling to for various reasons. It concludes with a case example of how the use of presence by a therapist and family member helped to open up a long-term schizophrenia patient and relieve him of recurrent obsessive thoughts and delusional conversational motifs.

Ronald L. Johnson, MFA, CADC, ERYT is a graduate in psychology and religious studies
from UC Santa Cruz, in creative writing from University of Oregon, in addictions counselling from Oregon Health Sciences University, and in yoga instruction from Corepower Yoga. He currently sees people for addictions through Wise Counsel and Comfort in his hometown of Portland, Oregon, teaches yoga at Eastside Athletic Club and West Coast Fitness, and was published in the recent issue of The Yoga of Poetry under his yoga name Bodhiron. He is slowly advancing toward becoming a licensed professional counsellor through classes at Walden University, where he was named a Commitment to Social Change Scholar last year for his previous work with juveniles. In spite of all this, he believes wholeness and the ultimate satisfaction of ones being lies in going beyond identification with the personal self.

2 FACILITATING TRANSFORMATION IN PRESENCE-CENTRED COUNSELLING Welwood (2000) defines presence-centred counselling as a theoretical and formal counselling situation where both client and therapist are involved in a practice of presence (p. 134). He implies there is a healing power innate to this structure, which involves learning to acknowledge, allow, open to, and inquire into our experience as it is (p. 134). In his view, humans are generally consumed in mental processes related to some experience other than the one going on in the present moment. For the reader right now, that would mean allowing the mind to flit around to other matters, or to withholding complete attention until the mind decides to read this whole paper. For the author, it might mean worrying or jumping to the next topic in the paper, rather than trusting that pertinent words and ideas will emerge or bubble up right now that provide substance and meaning and satisfy the requirements of scholarly work. John Welwood is an excellent writer, but if I read it correctly, he does formulate the caveat that his presence-centred counselling is psychological work in a spiritual context (Welwood 2000, p. 134). I wonder if this slight but distinct separation is necessary? At least one other writer, Mattern (2009) has been troubled by the separation. She calls spiritual teachings and psychology two wonderful parents that came together to create a love child completely different from Mom and Pop (p. 59). This might be true for her personally, but Mattern does not name the child, and to me, the gestation period is not completely over for counselling in general. Plenty of workers and researchers in the field still think a clear-cut distinction exists between psychology and spirituality that has not yet been bridged. So, I have borrowed with gratitude Welwoods term presence-centred, which seems to be only now becoming more current in the literature, and I will try with trepidation to advance some understanding of how it might help to cross this chasm. Presence and the Essence of Human Nature Luckily, presence is an excellent term to account for the felt experience that unifies the interconnected mind, body and spirit into a whole, and can account for the oceanic feeling of being part of a greater universal gestalt. Each human being reading this can feel very present right now, that is, organized, whole and undistracted, and attentive to their inner world. At the same time, each can be focused on the immediate outer world of objects (computers) and relationships, and to some extent also experience their self as part of the bigger picture. It starts with the inner experience. But Welwood (2000) goes on to say the counterfoil to the healing power of unconditional presence (p. 137) is that human beings are unfortunately not aligned with this state much of the time, even though we apparently could be. He no doubt correctly writes, we are engaged in a continual struggle with our experience; we have a hard time letting it be as it is (p. 137). That is, we are unconsciously battling it out with life rather than honouring the beauty and perfection as it is, so as humans we dont often feel complete and whole, unless we have undertaken some practice to become more conscious.

3 The struggle also comes from trying to hang onto that external experience rather than letting it flow. Wada and Park (2007) verify this, finding that human suffering stems from ones desire to view his or her world as permanent and static (p. 659). Usually, this takes the form of trying to continue what we feel is good and reject what seems less good. So, one way or the other, human nature is that we try to hang on to a world that is constantly shifting and changing. But when we tune into what I am calling presence, the struggle ends, no matter what form it has taken. Awakening, transformation and self-realization might be other nouns that indicate this shift. Despite human genius, we remain often confused and ignorant about this fundamental truth, whatever terminology is utilized. Some of us are able to function sufficiently well to survive despite our ignorance; others must seek attention. Humanistic Approaches and Behaviour Change Humanistic or person-centred theoreticians like Maslow (1968) suggest the desirability of peak-experiences and believe that presence or being, a term preferred by Maslow, can be fully understood at these moments (p. 71). Humanistic co-founder Rogers (1980) wrote that, in forming communities, transcendence, or spirituality is always an important component, and transcendence is the equivalent of presence or being (p. 196). This might imply that the transcendent internal experience does precede external community building, or at least coexists with it. Rogers is reluctant to use these types of words, presumably as a scientist and psychologist, but the sense of the existence of something greater he has had seems to call for such terms (p. 196). But, should it be the case that we can only experience wholeness at certain peak moments? Possibly, but these two were masters in that they wanted to help people become fully functioning and healthy human beings to the greatest extent possible, and maybe some humans have experienced a more or less permanent state of high-functioning presence, although it is rare (p. 73). In addition, Carl Rogers stated a basic premise regarding behaviour that would fit in well with the ideas behind presence-centred counselling. For him there is in every organism, at whatever level, an underlying flow of movement toward constructive fulfillment of its inherent possibilities (p. 117). That is fantastic. This he calls the actualizing tendency. He does not exactly say some part of the organism is struggling against that flow, that is, against itself, though it might be inferred. In the presence-centred perspective, much of the resistance to this flow comes from within rather than without. Rogers does say the tendency to become exists, but he does not go so far as to say it is existence itself, which is a bold statement, and yet one a presence-centred theorist might make. That is, the flow and movement toward fulfillment are existence. Following up on this idea and expanding a bit on the humanistic theories, one might well say that it is the force of life itself that provides the impetus toward growth and health, and again, this is a force that might be called presence. Kabat-Zinn (2012) supports this notion when he writes, The richness of present-moment experience is the richness of life itself (loc. 1026). If this is the case, we are certainly suffused with it all the time, but are not sufficiently aware of it that the comfort of it is prevalent in our daily experience or our behavior. Anxiety, fear and worse symptoms arise in the absence of this inner knowledge or sense of fulfillment that stems from being connected to the richness of life. According to presence-centred

4 counselling as I understand it, fulfillment is always present, but not always part of consciousness. What could be greater than being fully alive and fully conscious in this present moment? Probably nothing. Conversely, struggling with or non-acceptance of the present is a negation of what is. On this topic, existential writer Tillich (1952) says, Nonbeing is dependent on the being it negates (p. 40). Nonbeing is a bit of a parasite, in this context. In other words, negative thoughts and negative emotions like anxiety are taking a bite out of the fuller experience of being that is possible for a person. Essentially, all unhealthy, self-destructive or even externally destructive behaviour stems from this negation of being (p. 40), and I would say again being here is synonymous with presence. Mindful and Nondual Trends Closely related to and generally enhancing the understanding the area of PresenceCentred Counselling are the fields of mindfulness inquiry and Nondual Psychology. Dryden and Still (2006) argue that the ideas of unconditional positive regard and non-judgmental acceptance of people and symptoms espoused by the humanistic theoreticians helped prepare the ground for the successful introduction of mindfulness into the lexicon of psychology by Jon Kabat-Zinn (p. 3). Mindfulness, as Kabat-Zinn (1994) says, means paying attention in a particular way: on purpose, in the present moment, and nonjudgmentally (p. 4). Dryden and Still are enthusiastic about Kabat-Zinns stress-reduction clinic and its impact throughout the world, and consider its success to be outstanding (p. 5). Kabat-Zinn stays a bit on the psychology side rather than the spiritual, although he admits the word spiritual is derived from the root spirare, Latin meaning to breathe, and following the breath is an important technique in his mindfulness work. Also on the academic side he prefers the term consciousness discipline to spiritual practice for meditation (p. 264). He likes present-moment awareness but the word presence is more difficult to find in his writings. Mindfulness and Presence Still, presence is there in its Buddhist roots. Interestingly, the translation of the Pali word sati that appears in the original Buddhist manuscripts that Kabat-Zinn drew from was subject to debate. Eventually it became synonymous with mindfulness, but one early translation was presence of mind (Dryden & Still, p. 18). This suggests mindfulness really is presence; however, presence is a word that can connote either immanence or transcendence, hence it may have a wider or more universal applicability insofar as unification of psychology and spirituality might go. A goal of presence-centred therapy might be to move toward presence in both of these modes, since they cannot be separated anyhow, except through the conceptual limitations of taxonomy. The contribution made by Kabat-Zinn, according to Dryden and Still, dramatic in its impact, was to isolate mindfulness from its context in Buddhist practice (p. 6). Because of this standalone quality, it could be adopted into existing established therapies like Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), where it helped people with borderline personality disorder to step back from habitual powerful thoughts and feelings that were otherwise destabilizing (p. 6).

5 Later, mindfulness was adapted to Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) and used for the effective treatment of depression (Teasdale, Segal, Williams, Ridgeway, Soulsby & Lau, 2000). Likewise, here peoples thoughts carry them off far from the experience of the present moment into negative and disturbing territory, and the resultant emotions elicited by these thoughts produce chronic and painful states. So again, in this perspective, the therapist functions as a mindful person who can stay in presence even if the client begins to wander off. Dryden and Still also cite Ellen Langers use of the term mindfulness in the context of classic psychology experiments that showed how set or habit in problem-solving can lead to a failure (p. 4), basically suggesting that fixed habits or compulsions lead to repetitive unconscious attempts at solving a problem, or mindlessness basically, and hence less effectiveness. Mindlessness could also be called nonbeing, perhaps even literally. In this context, the paper cites a study of nursing home patients where fewer than half the residents trained in mindfulness passed away over the period of the study, as compared to the number of residents who died in the control group (p. 4). That is quite amazing. Mindfulness also would then be the equivalent of being or presence but also seems to indicate some connection to sustaining life or longevity in the everyday sense. Nondual Psychology Dreyden and Still think the popularity of mindfulness studies is part of a general movement in scientifically based psychotherapy toward this middle ground between spirituality and psychology (p.8). I agree. Another tendril reaching out for a connection, proposed by Prendergast, Fenner and Krystal (2003) is Nondual Psychology. Their term nondual is gaining considerable traction and goes quite some distance toward resolving the discrepancies between psychology and spirituality. It is drawn from the Hindu Advaita tradition, the Sanskrit term that literally means not two, a tradition that has a deep literature in the spirituality of India. More aligned with the present discussion, Prendergast et al. say a therapist in this method could deeply attune with and embody the ground of Being and would have qualities of unpretentiousness, lucidity, transparency, joy, and ease of being (p.3). Those sound like excellent qualities. The ground of being is a also a great phrase that implies a bottom line to human experience and is understandable to minds trained in spirituality or psychology. In a second volume of articles on the topic, Prendergast and Bradford (2007) address the issue of the nameless child when they ask, Do we focus our attention on spiritual awakening or psychological transformation? Again, these seem to be two different things, when maybe they are two ways of saying the same thing (p. 9). Neurologist Oliver Sachs (1973) famously uses awakening to denote a dramatic shift in alertness in his sleeping-sickness patients that was triggered by medication. Spiritual awakening is often more gradual but also more permanent, even though one might have to keep up a spiritual practice. Kabat-Zinn (2012) says even mindfulness requires a total commitment (loc. 1254). However, psychology in general seems to prefer transformation as a word to describe the shift to deeper awareness as in Tedeshi and Calhouns (1995) Trauma and Transformation, so it is also used in the title of this article. Welwood (2000) uses both awakening and spiritual transformation in titling his book.

This issue around nomenclature plays out in other ways in professional life. For example, maybe spiritual teachers become awakened, but they dont have the requisite credentials to bill insurance companies. Maybe counsellors have processed sufficient coursework and passed national exams to enable them to help suffering people, but without having had to penetrate to the heart of suffering. It certainly couldnt hurt. Mindfulness Competencies (Stauffer & Pehrsson, 2012) have recently been compiled, in fact, and empirically validated, so perhaps Enlightenment Competencies are not far behind. Probably seekers have a burning desire to awaken, whereas counsellors want to make a career, but no doubt many want both. We may just be on the cusp of awakening becoming an accepted aspect of counsellor training, albeit an elective course. One doubts it will become a prerequisite, due to the level of difficulty, but it doesnt really have to. Probably it will remain a noble but distant goal to most, worthy of contemplation and consideration, with actual practice left to individual taste. Fenner (2007) has produced other lucid academic writing on the nondual state or the state of presence, which he identifies as unconditioned awareness (p. 9). He describes it accurately when he writes that it is an experience where there are no problems or solutions, because nothing is missing. That sense of wholeness is really a primary feature. But a description of the experience might be different from the experience itself, which in true nonduality, obviously cannot be the case. The true nondual teacher induces the experience in the listener as they speak about it, or helps the listener to tune in. Theoretically this would be the case with a nondual counsellor as well, attempting to evoke a sense of wholeness in their client during a session. Fenner agrees, and the ideal he states for the book is to awaken unconditioned awareness in the here and now. This is probably a more difficult task in a book than when in conversation, but it is not impossible in written work (Fenner 2007, p. 7). I explored the uses of creative writing in arousing pure consciousness (Johnson, 2002) which has a long history, albeit somewhat outside the mainstream or even mystical. But, this same effort is a significant step for an academic work and a tall order if a noble one. Fenner seems to realize it is somewhat elusive when he says, we will at least be preparing our minds for future moments when we will be able to have this experience. Non-academic Nondualists The nondual trend is not limited to science or scientific writing. Numerous leaders and teachers from outside the scientific tradition are having a significant impact on the public and social awareness at large regarding these topics are having an influence on scholar-practitioners as well. Among these teachers are the Dalai Lama, Thich Nhat Hanh, Eckhart Tolle, and Dr. Wayne Dyer. I might also mention my own nondual teacher, Catherine Ingram, in this regard. Prendergast et al. (2003) bring Eckhart Tolle into the conversation as an expert, even though he is generally an outspoken nonacademic. Tolle worked as a spiritual counsellor for a while, and has produced material designed for health care practitioners (Tolle, 2003). He believes some therapists might be able to ignite the fire of consciousness in their clients provided they have gone beyond the level of mind and can create and sustain a state of intense conscious presence

7 while they are working with you (i.e., the client) (Tolle, 1999, cited in Prendergast et al., 2003). Tolle no doubt succeeds in maintaining and conveying a strong sense of presence in his writing, accounting for the popularity of his works, which sell in the millions. This is only cited to evidence the general public interest in the topic of consciousness and spiritual awakening, with an eye to its potential value for counselling. When Tolle speaks directly to the therapeutic situation and his take on it from the perspective of presence, he speaks with authority, and perhaps such non-academic but deeply experiential evidence can be utilized when the area of overlap is so clear. The Crucial Value of the Client-Counsellor Relationship Tolle hints at a traditional means that counsellors can use to awaken a sense of consciousness or presence in clients. Carl Rogers, of course, called his approach clientcentred or person-centred which is not far from presence-centred but just far enough to require a shift in usages (1980, p. 114). Rogers used these terms to indicate a departure from the medical model of psychoanalysis where the doctor is the center of the interaction. So, the first part is that the client can change, grow and become more present, but the counsellor still has the role of creating a climate that is growth promoting. The necessary conditions he famously outlined for this are genuineness, empathy, and unconditional positive regard for the client (p. 117, 118). I would suggest if a therapist adopts these attributes, and when the attention is focused on self-development and experiencing of these qualities, he or she does become fully present in the moment and expresses the quality of presence. Rogers says under these conditions, therapeutic movement or change is more likely to occur (p. 116). I believe this is because the counsellor, through this act of concentration, has aligned him or herself with the universal presence that is existence itself, another bold statement, I realize. The more the counsellor becomes aligned or present, the stronger signal that is emitted about this location, and the easier for a client or troubled person to pick up on that and progress toward alignment. Meditative states that indicate higher levels of consciousness have been studied for at least fifty years. These states are produced by practicing various means to focus and direct the attention such as noticing the breath (Cahn & Polich, 2008), and these studies repeatedly have shown that brain waves change to deeper frequencies or alpha states, which might be available to the perception of another individual. A study on this possible transmission, alluded to in spiritual texts, would be extremely productive for counselling. This transmission, which is currently anecdotal, can probably best be done in a relationship, or at least most naturally. The power of the therapeutic alliance is testament to the potential existence of neurological activity that could be detected. In this case, the client is catching health as it were, almost as illness can be caught. In Maslows (1968) study of healthy, self-actualizing people, whom counsellors can certainly emulate, one characteristic he found in particular was the total attention or focus these people were able to marshal (p. 74). Through this, the subjects he studied found the means to become aware of and embody their higher nature, or a deeper state of being. He called this a psychology of being and one might say by some measure the individuals he found were able to let go of nonbeing. Maslow goes so far as to suggest that a psychology that

8 embraces mans higher nature simply be called psychology (1968, p. 189). Maybe this will happen, but meanwhile perhaps presence-cenered is sufficient. In a more direct, closely related use of the term, Berdondini, Elliot and Shearer (2012) in their discussion of experiential therapies, which have some overlap (in which presencecentred must be included) also found that a therapist, to create a collaboration with a client, needs to be presence-centred, meaning fully aware of self and actively expressing self in the here and now (p. 160). The Ultimate Goal of Therapy The apposition of mindfulness to mindlessness as conceived by Langer is very instructive related to therapy, on a par with the concept of being present as opposed to being scattered or distracted. This has been found to pertain to what is known about certain mental illnesses as mentioned previously, that is, borderline and depression. Addictions might be used as another example, in that the organism is taken over by habitual, automatic and usually destructive responses to external and internal stimuli, and this could be characterized as a state of mindlessness. Bowen, Chawla and Marlatt (2011) suggest use of mindful techniques to recognize triggers to addiction behaviours, writing that cravings experienced by addicts (and others) may mask another emotional state that is unconscious to the individual. Close attention might reveal the source of underlying discomfort (p. 62). Kabat-Zinn (2012) says mindfulness is a way of looking deeply into oneself in the spirit of self-inquiry and self-understanding (loc. 653). He writes that people in his stress reduction clinic are practicing being or stopping all the doing in their lives and relaxing into the present (loc. 745). This is no doubt excellent, in that by reducing their driven-ness to behave in habitual ways, a deeper state of being or presence emerges. People experience a reduction in stress through meditation and other techniques, that is, where they sit quietly and watch their thoughts without recourse to doing anything. In these moments the mind has a chance to quiet and becomes less excited, and the individual finds himself as an observer or witness separate from his thoughts. Thought emergence actually diminishes as the mind becomes quieter and more at peace. The mind may be experienced as having a sense of fullness, but the thought-stream itself is reduced or stops, leaving just spaciousness or presence. Ideally, clients would become calmer through treatment and less reactive to thoughts and external conditions, and would be able to recognize when their thoughts were taking them into reactive states. This higher level of awareness can be present during therapy, at unusually stressful moments, and to enhance everyday life. Useful Techniques Many of the understandings and techniques from the humanistic, existential and mindfulness traditions as well as the empirical work from CBT related to catastrophizing and minimizing, for example, could be utilized by a presence-centred counsellor to bring about deeper connectivity to his or her own deeper self and to assist development of this tendency in clients. Basic talk therapy is important in this context, but certain other practices probably cannot be left out. Techniques of meditation, including guided imagery and breathing

9 exercises, could be introduced, along with body-scanning, which is a way of becoming more aware of sensations and emotions within the body. Yoga poses and stretches could well be incorporated. Although it is harder to see how this might be part of a session, except maybe seated yoga, some therapists are bringing yoga into the office. Weintraub (2012) believes that yoga can be a complement to psychotherapy based on its goals of self-acceptance and selfawareness which are similar to presence-centred goals (p. 5, 9). Conclusion: Presence and Its Relation to Doing Still, the awareness the counsellor brings into the office is foremost. It is not so much a situation of trying to get the client to change, but staying present while with a client and allowing the natural change process to take place. The awareness of the counsellor eventually connects with the client. Mattern (2009), who is a therapist and a student of spiritual models, worried for a long time about the slow pace of change in counselling and psychology and the long gestation period in adopting a sense of presence as a technique. She felt in fact, that psychology was slouching toward Bethlehem at a snails pace in its incorporation of spiritual practices as therapeutic tools (p. 60). This came to a head when she raged at her schizophrenic brothers social worker for the lack of presence-centred methods in psychiatric care, just before realizing she was far from that state of presence herself. She offers a moving story about a profound transformation that occurred on a later home visit with her brother, who had been involuntarily committed to a hospital for treatment of his condition for thirty years. On the drive from the hospital, her brother began to launch into his typical, repetitive, delusional and paranoid disclosures of the secret bank accounts Jimmy Carter bequeathed to him, his plan to cure Alzheimers using dolphin fin and milk of magnesia, and his obsession with the Greek gods. As usual, she at first began to dismiss his claims, argue against their validity, and manipulate him to change the subject. These were the topics and knee-jerk responses that is, habitual and unconscious ones, that had dominated 95 percent of their conversations for years. But this time, remembering her realization with the social worker, she quit the manipulation, and miraculously, as she had been able to do with clients occasionally in the past, was able to fall into what she calls the loving presence of my higher nature. Maybe love is not a very scientific word, but at that moment she felt she intimately understood his illness, she really experienced his reality, and actually became curious about the weird fascinations he liked to talk about. Perhaps she just began actually listening, but of course, it is difficult to listen to speech that does not conform to our models of correctness. Amazingly, stereotypes of all kinds have been found to be stumbling blocks to effective communication (Timm & Schroeder, 2000, p. 109). As Mattern emptied herself of her own agenda, she continued to experience the situation more deeply. She remained in that open space while her brother babbled on, when suddenly he did something he hadnt done in three decades. That is, he began to cry.

10 Further, he began recounting traumatic events from his childhood spontaneously, events that had obviously left him deeply scarred. Each time he dropped back into his repetitive unconscious behavior, Mattern consciously returned to loving and nonjudgmental presence. For the next 24 hours of his home visit, he remained completely non-delusional (p. 61). He also showered Mattern with uncustomary gratitude, tenderness, and affection as he was free of the rigid thoughts that previously possessed him, and was able to more completely express himself. On the way back to the hospital they sang Motown hits together, and Mattern felt she had her brother back. So, in this case, the therapists alignment with a state of presence, (or the nondual state, or deep attunement with their own being), did allow significant healing to take place, which was tangible, observable and verifiable. No doubt it is important for counselling and psychology at large to remain open to the possibilities of these approaches, and maybe even to move in this direction as Maslow foresaw. It is probably also essential that individual workers who resonate with this perspective adopt, employ and trust their own personal transformative practice, with all the growth and uncertainties that such a practice implies, in order to successfully employ presence-centred models, methods and techniques with their clients. Ronald L. Johnson may be contacted at bodhiron@gmail.com.

11 References Berdondini, L., Elliot, R., & Shearer, J. (2012). Collaboration in experiential therapy. Journal of Clinical Psychology: In Session. Vol. 68(2), 159-167. Bowen, S., Chawla, N., Marlatt, G.A. (2011). Mindfulness-based relapse prevention for addictive behaviors: A clinicians guide. New York: Guilford Press. Dryden, W. & Still, A. (2006). Historical aspects of mindfulness and self-acceptance in psychotherapy. Journal of Rational-Emotive & Cognitive-Behavior Therapy, Vol. 24, No. 1. Fenner, P. (2007). Radiant mind: Awakening unconditioned awareness. Boulder, CA: Sounds True. Johnson, R.L. (2002). The poetics of emptiness. Journal of Consciousness Studies, 9:7. Kabat-Zinn, Jon (2012). Full catastrophe living: Using the wisdom of your body and mind to face stress, pain, and illness. Kindle Edition: Amazon. Maslow, A.H. (1968). Toward a psychology of being. New York: D. Van Nostrand. Mattern, R. (2009). To be or not to be transpersonal. Hakomi Forum, Issue 22. Prendergast, J.J., Fenner, P., Krystal, S. (2003). The sacred mirror: Nondual wisdom & psychotherapy. St. Paul, MN: Paragon House. Prendergast, J.J. & Bradford, G.K. (2007). Listening from the Heart of Silence: Nondual wisdom and psychotherapy volume 2. St. Paul, MN: Paragon House. Rogers, C.R. (1980). A way of being. New York: Houghton-Mifflin. Stauffer, M.D. & Pehrsson, D-E. (2012). Mindfulness competencies for counselors and psychotherapists. Journal of Mental Health Counseling, Vol. 34, No. 3. Teasdale, J.D., Segal, Z.V., Williams, M.G., Ridgeway, V.A., Soulsby, J.M., & Lau, M.A. (2000). Prevention of relapse, recurrence in major depression by mindfulness-based cognitive therapy. Journal of Counseling and Clinical Psychology, Vol. 68, No. 4. Tedeschi, R.G. & Calhoun, L.G. (1995) Trauma and Transformation: Growing in the aftermath of suffering. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications. Tillich, P. (1952). The courage to be. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press. Timm, S. & Schroeder, B.L. (2000). Listening/Nonverbal communication training. International Journal of Listening, 14:1.

12

Tolle, E. (2003). Practicing presence: A guide for the spiritual teacher and health practitioner. [DVD] Vancouver, BC: Eckhart Teachings. Wada, K. & Park, J. (2009). Integrating Buddhist psychology into grief counseling. Death Studies, 33: 657-683. Welwood, J. (2000). Toward a psychology of awakening. Boston: Shambhala Publications. Weintraub, A. (2012). Yoga skills for therapists: Effective practices for mood management. New York: W.W. Norton.