How Therapy Works
Jann Burner
November 09, 2006
Therapy works for two reasons. First the patient or client has a need to “understand” something, or to have “something” fixed. The client is in some level of discomfort. Secondly the therapist has their “intention” to be of service, to assist the client in understanding their dilemma and to ease the pain of their affliction.
But how does this dynamic actually “work”. Essentially the technique offered by a therapist is nothing but a metaphorical template. It actually means…nothing. It is a ritual form of chanting which hopefully offers two things. First it facilitates the therapist in getting out of their own way. This is no small thing. The power of the time imprinted, personal EGO is a force to be reckoned with. Unfortunately, although it is indeed a force, its power to heal is very limited. Thus the most productive technique a therapist can learn is how to simply get out of their own way, with the innate understanding that the power of intention is available to the individual clinician. If the therapist can put them self in a clear space, they can summon and then allow a higher wisdom to come through. What the therapist can offer is pure intention. Intention is truly a force to be courted.
The specific “techniques” which a therapist might use serve merely as a template over which the therapist can drape their intellect and their attention. If the template is of sufficient interest to the therapist, then they have a good chance of getting out of their own way and achieving the first step towards their goal.
The second and most important purpose of a specific technique is to “enthrall” the patient or the client. What held the attention and stilled the heart of a patient/client a hundred years ago will scarcely work today. People have increased their personal vision. They have a larger concept of who they are and who they aren’t. As a therapist one has to admit that television, films and the Internet form a background buzz offering an incredible informational data download which assists in creating the overall belief structure within the mind of the client. Unfortunately while all of this data can indeed be informing, it is less often enlightening.
As therapists our job is to increase our personal vision and create a way, via relevant metaphor, to communicate this vision and these tools to our clients. Our ideal goal is to have a dynamic where both the client and the therapist succeed in getting out of their own way, away from their personal pain and drama and to a point where, in a sense, they are sharing direct “Spirit to Spirit” communication. Direct source to source. No intermediaries involved. No time imprinted restrictions.
As the client holds their discomfort, so the client often holds the solution to their own dilemma. Often the very reason for the “breakdown” is also the reason for the breakthrough, for in the final analysis we really aren’t learning anything “new”. We have all that we need. Anything totally “new” would be utterly unrecognizable. When we “learn” something which we perceive as new, what we feel is a subtle resonance. This is the resonance of truth. This signals to us that “Oh, I knew that…” . In some deep mysterious way, we all know all we need to know. It is the access button that seems to continually elude us. This access button is what I would call “Free Intention”. Free of ego, free of even desire. Just clear intention capable of transmitting the Light of mind to where it might be needed.
But how does this dynamic actually “work”. Essentially the technique offered by a therapist is nothing but a metaphorical template. It actually means…nothing. It is a ritual form of chanting which hopefully offers two things. First it facilitates the therapist in getting out of their own way. This is no small thing. The power of the time imprinted, personal EGO is a force to be reckoned with. Unfortunately, although it is indeed a force, its power to heal is very limited. Thus the most productive technique a therapist can learn is how to simply get out of their own way, with the innate understanding that the power of intention is available to the individual clinician. If the therapist can put them self in a clear space, they can summon and then allow a higher wisdom to come through. What the therapist can offer is pure intention. Intention is truly a force to be courted.
The specific “techniques” which a therapist might use serve merely as a template over which the therapist can drape their intellect and their attention. If the template is of sufficient interest to the therapist, then they have a good chance of getting out of their own way and achieving the first step towards their goal.
The second and most important purpose of a specific technique is to “enthrall” the patient or the client. What held the attention and stilled the heart of a patient/client a hundred years ago will scarcely work today. People have increased their personal vision. They have a larger concept of who they are and who they aren’t. As a therapist one has to admit that television, films and the Internet form a background buzz offering an incredible informational data download which assists in creating the overall belief structure within the mind of the client. Unfortunately while all of this data can indeed be informing, it is less often enlightening.
As therapists our job is to increase our personal vision and create a way, via relevant metaphor, to communicate this vision and these tools to our clients. Our ideal goal is to have a dynamic where both the client and the therapist succeed in getting out of their own way, away from their personal pain and drama and to a point where, in a sense, they are sharing direct “Spirit to Spirit” communication. Direct source to source. No intermediaries involved. No time imprinted restrictions.
As the client holds their discomfort, so the client often holds the solution to their own dilemma. Often the very reason for the “breakdown” is also the reason for the breakthrough, for in the final analysis we really aren’t learning anything “new”. We have all that we need. Anything totally “new” would be utterly unrecognizable. When we “learn” something which we perceive as new, what we feel is a subtle resonance. This is the resonance of truth. This signals to us that “Oh, I knew that…” . In some deep mysterious way, we all know all we need to know. It is the access button that seems to continually elude us. This access button is what I would call “Free Intention”. Free of ego, free of even desire. Just clear intention capable of transmitting the Light of mind to where it might be needed.
Print
Email
