Methodologies

Evan utilizes an eclectic range of therapeutic methodologies depending on the client, which can include:

Depth psychology:

Simply put, depth psychotherapists help a person understand the intricacies of his or her personality by bringing unconscious material into the light of day. Often there is an emphasis on two phases of therapy:

  1. Identifying and treating the symptoms
    (e.g., anxiety, fear, rage)
  2. Identifying and treating the wounds
    (e.g., developmental traumas)

 

Symptoms are often painful and happen in our conscious experience (that is, we’re aware of them), and they point to the existence of wounds, which often reside in our unconscious (that is, we are much less aware of them). To illustrate, imagine smoke signals rising over the horizon. The smoke are the symptoms, the disturbances we can directly perceive and experience. The wound is the poor stranded soul in the distance who is signaling us to rescue him. Our task in therapy is to follow the symptoms directly to the wounds, to rescue the elements of our souls that have been isolated or cutoff from our conscious experience. By bringing the wounds to the fore and listening to what they have to “say”, we release them from the need to speak symptomatically and wreak havoc on our lives.

Cognitive behavior therapy:

In identifying and treating symptoms like anxiety, fear, rage, etc., cognitively based techniques can be utilized to bring awareness to one’s triggers (the things in our daily lives that set us off) and the automatic thought and behavior patterns that follow, with specific exercises designed to “interrupt” the flow and bring a measure of sustainability back to one’s life.

Exploration of attachment patterns:

Object relations theory contends that the way we relate to people and situations in our adult world was “programmed” into us by the way we experienced our parents as infants and children. That is, our primary attachment figures formed the basis for every relationship we ever have. As part of treatment, clients will explore their childhood attachment patterns and how they continue to influence the client in the present day.

Spirituality:

Dr. Carl Jung, one of the founders of depth psychology, believed that all of us, on some basic unconscious level, experience a degree of angst that he called “the spiritual thirst of our being for wholeness,” and an exploration of one’s spirituality (or lack thereof) is essential. Clients will be encouraged to explore their deeply held existential beliefs and values.

Psycho-education:

Before a pilot flies a plane, he or she must understand the mechanics of aerodynamics (or so we hope). It is just as important for a client who wishes to reach higher, more complex states of consciousness to understand the mechanics of how consciousness evolves in the human nervous system. Clients should become a student of consciousness to some degree, and a measure of psycho-education is necessary, which could include reading suggestions or directed conversation.

Eastern techniques:

At times, treatment will utilize certain noninvasive, tried-and-true Eastern methods, specifically mindfulness practices and Vedic techniques designed to relieve anxiety, unstress the body and mind, and heighten one’s conscious awareness.