Module III Existential Therapy

• Viewpoint, goals, techniques and limitations

ANNA VARGHESE, MACLP – 4, HUMANISTIC NOTES

FOUNDERS/DEVELOPERS.

Existential therapy owes its genesis to the European philosophers Martin

Heidegger (1889–1976), Soren Kierkegaard (1813–55) and Jean-Paul Sartre
(1905–80)
Rollo May (1909–1994) and Viktor Frankl (1905–1997) are two of the most
influential professionals in the field of existential counseling. May dealt
extensively with anxiety, especially in regard to his life and death struggle with
tuberculosis, whereas Frankl, who was interred in Nazi concentration camps during
World War II, focused on the meaning of life even under the most horrendous
death camp conditions.
Victor, Rollo and Irvin Yalom had an extreme situation in their life which rendered
them opportunity to test some perpetual questions that pervades human lives
questions pertaining to meaning in life, existence of God, death, self, etc. All of
them in common were interested in issues of freedom, meaning of life, anxiety,
search for values, responsibility, isolation and death.

VIEW OF HUMAN NATURE

We can discover life’s meaning in three ways:
• by doing a deed, that is, by achieving or accomplishing something
• by experiencing a value, such as a work of nature, culture, or love
• by suffering, that is, by finding a proper attitude toward unalterable fate.
Some basic dimensions of human nature according to the existential approach
are:
● Self-awareness: Humans have the distinct capacity for becoming self aware.
Awareness leads to freedom; freedom implies choice and choice comes with
responsibility. Acknowledging the freedom to be as well as recognizing the
contextual and social constraints and negotiating the two constitutes life. Choosing
to expand one’s awareness implies growth.
● Choice and responsibility: Humans have the responsibility of shaping their own
destiny. They are the masters of their own selves and have the necessary freedom
to choose among different life paths and take action. The ones who exercise their
choice and take responsibility are authentic.
● Humans have the basic need to maintain their uniqueness and individuality as
well as are motivated by relational and social needs. The paradox of creating one’s
distinct identity, of having the courage to be our true self and of establishing
meaningful relationships with others describes life.
● There is an ongoing search for meaning, purpose, values and goals in our lives.
When we experience meaninglessness or emptiness in our lives, we are motivated
to create a new life with purpose.
● Humans experience anxiety in their efforts to become their authentic self. This
anxiety, called existential anxiety, is inevitable. It results when we come face to
face with death or loss, pain and suffering, meaninglessness and existential
vacuum, isolation and uncertainty in life.
● Death is inevitable and rather than avoiding it, awareness of its inevitability
makes life significant and helps us appreciate the present. Acknowledging the
impermanence of life can serve as a motivation, or act as a wake-up call to enjoy
the beauty of the present moment.

Goals
The main therapeutic goal of existential therapy is to help the client become self-
aware and embrace their authentic self. This includes inviting clients to come to
terms with their problems, supporting them to come up with the alternatives to
reclaim and re-own their lives with authenticity. The specific goals include helping
clients be fully present to themselves and in relationships, motivating them to take
charge of their lives with responsibility, and to broaden their perspectives of
looking at themselves and the world. The task is to assist clients in exploring their
lives further, by learning lessons from the past and creating something valuable in
the present.
 Or
1. To enable people to become more truthful to themselves.
2. To help the clint to reflect upon and understand their existence
3. To increase self-awareness and authentic living
4. To take responsibility for decisions
5. To encourage clint find own meaning and Truth
6. To help people examine the roots of some of their anxiety and learn how
to better cope with them.
7. To get the person to believe in experience and to live fully in each
moment.

Techniques
“Existential theory does not limit the counselor to specific techniques and
interventions.
“Approaching human beings merely in terms of techniques necessarily implies
manipulating them,” and manipulation is opposed to what existentialists espouse
(Frankl, 1967, p. 139)
describing, understanding and exploring the client’s subjective reality like a
“fellow traveler” or “philosophical companion”.
1. Relationship between clint and counselor
It is an authentic relationship an encounter between “I and thou
- There is True dialogue
- interaction being direct and mutual between two individuals
- mutual journey of self-discovery for both the counselor and client
- attitude of the therapist that counts, Therapist’s honesty, integrity,
courage and authentic ways of being influences the client also to be
progressively authentic.
- therapeutic relationship is marked by respect and faith in clients’
potential to change towards an authentic existence, genuine concern and
empathy for client’s inner experiences.
- Presence implies attunement of the therapist to the client’s subjectivity, a
sense of connection and companionship, and not just a focus on the
content of the client’s sharing.

2. Confrontation
 - Clients are confronted with the idea that everyone is responsible for his
or her own life
- Existential counselors borrow some techniques from other models of
counseling such as the employment of awareness exercises, imagery,
paradox, deflection, and goal-setting activities. They are free to use
techniques as widely diversified as desensitization and free association or
to disassociate themselves from these practices entirely.
- E.g. : For instance, Southwick, Gilmartin, Mcdonough, and Morrissey
(2006) used logotherapy as part of a group educational treatment in
working with chronic combat-related PTSD veterans by having those in
the group focus on meaning combined with having them perform
community service such as tutoring children and delivering Meals-on
Wheels. The result for the majority of the participants was an increase in
selfless acts and more motivation for intentional living.
- Leading Clint to right direction
- Imagination – visualizing your desired life

Limitation - More of a Philosophical approach

▪ The approach has not produced a fully developed model of counseling.
Professionals who stress developmental stages of counseling are
particularly vehement in this criticism.
▪ The approach lacks educational and training programs. Each
practitioner is unique. Although uniqueness is valued, it prohibits the
systematic teaching of theory.
▪ The approach is difficult to implement beyond an individual level
because of its subjective nature. Existentialism lacks the type of
methodology and validation processes prevalent in most other approaches.
In short, it lacks the uniformity that beginning counselors can readily
understand.
▪ The approach is closer to existential philosophy than to other theories of
counseling. This distinction limits its usefulness in some cases.

PTO
Other point
STRENGTHS AND CONTRIBUTIONS.

The existential approach to counseling has a number of strengths:

• The approach emphasizes the uniqueness of each individual and the importance of meaningfulness in
their lives. It is a very humanistic way of working with others (Alex Vesley, June 3, 2011, personal
communication).

• The approach recognizes that anxiety is not necessarily a negative condition. Anxiety is a part of human
life and can motivate some individuals to make healthy and productive decisions (Fernando, 2007).

• The approach gives counselors access to a tremendous amount of philosophy and literature that is both
informative and enlightening about human nature (Mendelowitz & Schneider, 2008).

• The approach stresses continued human growth and development and offers hope to clients through
directed readings and therapeutic encounters with the counselor.

• The approach is effective in multicultural counseling situations because its global view of human
existence allows counselors to focus on the person of the client in an “I-Thou” manner without regard to
ethnic or social background (Epp, 1998; Jackson, 1987).

• The approach helps connect individuals to universal problems faced by humankind, such as the search
for peace and the absence of caring (Baldwin, 1989).

• The approach may be combined with other perspectives and methods (such as those based on learning
principles and behaviorism) to treat extremely difficult problems, such as addiction (Fernando, 2007).