More on Gestalt Therapy

(Please note: this is not an exhaustive discourse on Gestalt Therapy)

Why “Gestalt”?
The term “Gestalt” dates back to the beginnings of psychological research around the 1910s, more precisely, a scientific branch called “Gestalt psychology”. Gestalt is the German term for form, shape or figure. Because these English words do not convey the meaning fully, the German word is still used internationally. Gestalt psychology examines the tendency of humans to form a meaningful concept out of parts that were unconnected. For example: The shape of a circle is seen, named and remembered even if there are only a few dots on the paper in the approxamite shape of a circle. Babies only react to simple drawings made of dots and lines if the drawings resemble a human face. The baby´s brain creates a “Gestalt” that stands out from the background and which is meaningful.

The roots
Gestalt therapy has three roots: Psychoanalysis, humanistic, holistic contemplations about human behaviour and experience and the aforementioned Gestalt psychology.
Gestalt therapy implies that even for psychological actions, humans strive to achieve complete processes, they strive to design a “Gestalt”. Read the following example to get a better idea of a complete process:
A satisfied need can be a complete process or “Gestalt”. Gestalt therapy assumes that a human being whose needs are fulfilled is a satisfied person who is in optimal degree of contact with his or her social environment.

A “Gestalt”
A need or desire must be recognized as such in the first place, be it the feeling of hunger or the need for physical closeness of another human being. Hunger is a good example here. One must perceive a feeling of hunger, then decide to react on it, find out what it is that will still the hunger: One must then find out how to get what is wanted and act accordingly; one must then take a bite of the food, chew,swallow and digest it. This process must be repeated several times and one needs to find out if the stomach signals a feelings of satisfaction. If that is the case, one might experience a feeling of relaxation and can then turn on something else to do.
There are various possibilities to disrupt this process at every level and this may lead to the person never having this feeling of satisfaction and relaxation.

Concept of the human being in Gestalt therapy
Gestalt therapy helps to identify the needs of the individual distinctly and to support the satisfaction or fulfillment of those needs. The individual needs are not rated or judged. Each person is honoured in his or her being and will not be forced to do something that is unwanted to them. Therefore, Gestalt therapy never created its own concepts of disorders and has a hard time defining illness. What is usally described as disorder can be viewed as a form of adaptation and becomes a matter of treatment only if and when it becomes a source of intense discomfort to the individual or his or her environment. Of course, if the fulfillment of a need seems to imply harming another human, the therapist will have to intervene and find non-violent ways.

The here and now
Certain problems may have their origin in childhood (In connection with the father for instance) but they show up today (In confrontation with a superior for instance). Gestalt therapy will find working with the current issue just as helpful as working with the past may be.

Aims and tools
The aim of Gestalt therapy is to develop a wide ranging palette of inner possibilities for fulfillment. Tools for use to this end are legion: Conversation, confrontation, acting, imagining, drawing/painting, writing. For a successful outcome the ability of the therapist to understand the client as encompassingly as possible is crucial as is meeting the client respectfully. Also, the clients ability for introspection and to dare something new is decisive. This “adventure trip” will only work out if it is supported by a mutual liking. That´s why the first session is designed to get to know each other a little and is usually free of charge.

The founders
Gestalt therapy was created by a group of psychoanalysts, psychologists, artists and social scientists: Frederick Perls and Lore Perls together with Paul Goodman, Ralph Hefferline and others layed the foundations. Their pupils Isadore From, Erving und Miriam Polster, Daniel Rosenblatt, James Simkin, Paul Weisz and others developed it further.

For more information go to:
http://www.aagt.org/index.html
http://www.gestalttherapy.net/welcome/index.html