Existential Trauma revised v1 0 (original) (raw)
Related papers
Existential Therapy: A Useful Approach to Trauma?
Background: Literature has suggested that the cyclical nature of psychological trauma can lead to enduring long-term effects on individuals and those around them. Content and Focus: This review examines the effects of psychological trauma and its relationship with existential therapy, not to endorse a particular approach in isolation, but to explore a variety of understandings of psychological trauma pertinent to counselling psychology. Despite being relatively unexplored with regards to psychological trauma, favourable empirical evidence is beginning to amass for existential therapy. A review of the contributions (and limitations) of existing approaches to trauma therapy is initially considered before the focus turns to the contribution that existential therapy might make. van Deurzen's existential dimensions (1997) and Jacobsen's existential conceptualisations of crisis are considered in some depth, along with the limitations and empirical challenges of existential therapy. Conclusions: Speculative practical and therapeutic implications are identified and relevant future research is suggested.
Existential Therapy with Trauma Survivors
While current psychotherapy literature consistently supports the application of existential principles in working with survivors of trauma, existential therapy as an approach to treating trauma has not been recognized as an Evidence-Based Practice in Psychotherapy (EBPP). Trauma is a uniquely phenomenological experience that often results in severe psychological, physiological, behavioral, and social consequences for survivors. The overwhelming prevalence rates of such tragedies as childhood sexual abuse, combat-related PTSD, rape, and interpersonal violence that presently exist within American society present an ever-growing pressure within the field of mental health to effectively address the sometimes devastating effects of trauma on survivors . In describing the existentiality of emotional trauma, Stolorow (2009) argues that traumatic experiences expose an individual"s human vulnerabilities by "shattering the tranquilizing absolutisms of everyday life" (p. 207). He argues the importance of incorporating an existential framework in psychotherapy with trauma survivors. Such an approach advances several essential therapeutic factors: 1) presence in the therapeutic environment; 2) genuine efforts to understand the client"s subjective world in context; 3) the existential struggles that unfold in the moment-to-moment interactions between client and therapist; and 4) the capacities that each client brings to therapy. This paper outlines several core existential principles that are identified in the current literature as important factors in treating trauma, including meaningless, freedom of choice, death anxiety, interpersonal connectedness, awareness, and therapeutic presence. Based upon these principles, Pitchford"s (2009) research on existential psychotherapy with trauma survivors provides a foundation of empirical evidence for this approach. Drawing upon this and other research support for the effectiveness of existential approaches to treating trauma, this presentation argues for the inclusion of existential therapy as an evidence based practice, and provides support for the 1
Existential Issues in Trauma: Assessment and Treatment
Trauma, by its nature, is existential through its impact on the manner in which the individual experiences the world, their self-understanding, and their sense of place in the world. Despite the recent proliferation of trauma literature, it remains common for trauma to be oversimplified in its conception and treatment. In particular, much of the treatment focuses on categorizing trauma into the diagnoses of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or adjustment disorder, and then treating the symptoms through medication and/or a behavioral conception of the symptoms. It is vital that we move to a more nuanced understanding of trauma. Trauma comes in many genres and various degrees of severity. This is further complicated in that it will have different impacts depending upon one’s development, resiliency, and interpersonal support, among other factors. In this paper, we focus on the role of various existential issues in the conceptualization and treatment of trauma, particularly relevant to Greening’s conception of “existential shattering.” Whether an individual exposed to traumatic events experiences an existential shattering or not is important for conceptualization and treatment. Traumatic reactions that include existential shattering are likely to be resistant to or insufficiently treated by symptom focused treatments that do not address the implications of the deconstruction or shattering of one’s world view, which is an important source of sustaining meaning and resilience. Although most trauma clients may benefit from the consideration of existential issues, for some clients, whose worldview and meaning systems have been shattered, it is an essential part of the healing process. Hoffman, L, Cleare-Hoffman, H. P. & Vallejo, L. (2013, August). Existential issues in trauma: Assessment and treatment. In I. A. Serlin (Chair), Developing resiliency: Compassion fatigue and regeneration. Symposium accepted to be presented at the 121st Annual Convention of the American Psychological Association, Honolulu, HI.
A Phenomenological-Contextual, Existential, and Ethical Perspective on Emotional Trauma
After a brief overview of the author's phenomenological-contextualist psychoanalytic perspective, the paper traces the evolution of the author’s conception of emotional trauma over the course of three decades, as it developed in concert with his efforts to grasp his own traumatized states and his studies of existential philosophy. The author illuminates two of trauma’s essential features: (1) its context-embeddedness—painful or frightening affect becomes traumatic when it cannot find a context of emotional understanding in which it can be held and integrated, and (2) its existential significance—emotional trauma shatters our illusions of safety and plunges us into an authentic Being-toward-death, wherein we must face up to our finitude and the finitude of all those we love. The paper also describes the impact of trauma on the phenomenology of time and the sense of alienation from others that accompanies traumatic temporality. The author contends that the proper therapeutic comportment toward trauma is a form of emotional dwelling. He concludes with a discussion of the implications of all these formulations for the development of an ethics of finitude.
Associations Between Existential Concerns and Adverse Experiences: A Systematic Review
Journal of Humanistic Psychology, 2019
Exposure to traumatic events or adverse experiences and its consequences have been studied mainly from a posttraumatic stress disorder perspective. Existential psychotherapy focuses on universal human concerns and the anxiety that occurs when a person confronts the conflicts inherent in life and toward death, which include the experience of difficult situations. A systematic review was performed including 56 papers that studied the relations between adverse experiences and existential concerns. The articles were assessed and described in relation to existential domains, type of adverse experience, posttraumatic responses, and existential psychological interventions. Existential concerns appeared in different degrees and categories in studied samples. Outcomes suggest that from an existential psychotherapy perspective, reactions to traumatic events can be both negative and positive for a person. In addition, the pass of time turned out to be an important factor, especially in finding meaning from traumatic experiences, the reduction of negative symptoms, and the achieving of posttraumatic growth. Existential-related interventions described in this review showed positive outcomes, suggesting that it is an effective trauma treatment approach.
Trauma Recovery and the Promises of Positive Existential Psychology
2005
Saturated media coverage has a way of influencing public consciousness and shaping the American psyche. One of the effects of 9/11 is that trauma, terror, and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) have become household words. The stigma attached to PTSD has disappeared since that fateful day. The mental health needs for counseling and psychotherapy have become widely recognized by the public and by policymakers.
A Critical Evaluation of the Theories and Practices in Existential Psychotherapy
2019
The paper highlights a few issues that have emerged over the years in the understanding and practice of existential psychotherapy. It starts out by tracing the existential and phenomenological traditions of the early 20 th century which led to the emergence of existential psychotherapy. Next, it highlights the relationship between existential philosophy and the practice of existential psychotherapy. The article also summarizes problems associated with existential psychotherapy, particularly the difficulties in its empirical testing and defining its theoretical boundaries. It also summarizes popular misconceptions about existential psychotherapy and its connection to other schools of psychotherapy. Finally, the article also talks about issues of religion in practice of existential psychotherapy.
2020
The “evidence-based practice” movement frames counselling and psychotherapy as causal processes, something the therapist does to the client. The value of what it is that is done is measured by interpreting mental and emotional distress as an abnormal behaviour, by giving this “symptom” a numerical score, before and after interventions in a quantitative research approach. In existential therapies emotions are viewed instead as healthy responses to our being in the world; as transient communications in relational contexts, altered only through the client’s autonomous choice. Human distress will be encountered and explored by all practitioners regardless of their modality. This article is an attempt to reclaim that exploration, as a phenomenological enquiry founded in the radically different epistemological framework of existential theory. Less value might then be placed on systemized measurement and control, and more placed on human responses to emotionality. Those who are distressed ...
A Review of Existential Therapy
This paper looks at the beginnings of existential therapy and some of the founders of it. Some of their early ideas will be seen. Also looked at are a couple of more modern existentialists, one still with us today. It will be seen that existential therapy is not a set of techniques used in every situation, but more a way of thinking, an attitude of thought. A major reason people seek therapy is because they have lost their way in their lives, forgotten the track they need to be on to experience joy and energy once more. How does one get back on that track? Can we as therapists help them find that joy once more?