Yoga session Have you awakened to a deeper sense of yourself, a connection to something beyond the physical world? A shift in spiritual consciousness can be a powerful and transformative experience, but it’s accompanied by a spectrum of emotions.  

While this journey can be exciting, it can also be challenging and overwhelming sometimes including an increase in anxiety or other mental health symptoms.  

As you navigate this new terrain, you might find yourself seeking guidance and support to understand your experiences, integrate them into your life, and find balance. This is where a therapist who understands your spiritual journey can be invaluable. 

The Journey of Spiritual Awakening 

Spiritual awakening is a personal process, but it often involves a shift in consciousness. You may experience heightened senses, a connection to nature that feels deeper than ever before, or a feeling of oneness with all things.  

You might also have vivid dreams, receive messages through intuition, or have a newfound sense of purpose. This expansion of spiritual consciousness can be incredibly exciting, but it can also be disorienting. 

Traditional Therapy and Holistic Therapy Explored 

Traditional therapy is important, and it can be helpful to improve mental health symptoms. It often focuses primarily on the mind and behavior which can be very helpful. However, it might not resonate with you if you’re seeking a holistic approach that integrates your spirituality and intuition. Holistic therapy, on the other hand, takes into account all of you; mind, body, and spirit.  

Perhaps you’ve had experiences like: 

Benefits of Therapy for the Spiritually Awakened 

The good news is, there are therapists who specialize in working with spiritually conscious individuals. These therapists understand the importance of intuition and spirituality in your healing journey. They can create a safe space for you to explore these aspects of yourself, helping you integrate your beliefs and abilities into your everyday life. 

Here’s what you can expect from a therapist who embraces your spiritual awakening: 

Finding the Perfect Fit 

Ultimately, the most important thing is finding a therapist who feels like the right fit for you.  

Don’t be afraid to interview a few therapists before making a decision. Here are some tips for finding a therapist who aligns with your needs: 

happy smiling young woman patient and woman psychologist at psychotherapy session

Living Your Awakening 

Integrating your spiritual awakening into your daily life is an ongoing process. Finding a therapist who resonates with your journey can be an expansive tool for growth and self-discovery.  

Trust your intuition, ask questions, and work with a therapist who understands and embraces the whole you. 

Close up rear view photo of person with ponytail looking at constellations in starry cloudFrom a space of wonder, in a garden under a summer moon, two lovers studied the starry sky and considered how they might arrange the constellations if they hadn’t already been named. What shapes would the stars come together to form if we had no predetermined understanding of how to see them? How might we understand the sky anew if we could get close enough to the stars to hear how they twinkled? What stories would they share? Just as some consult birth charts to gain insight into how the solar system may influence their lives, we can consider our experiences in relation to the larger family systems from which we hail.

Our complex ancestral systems carry unique energetic imprints. These relational dynamics make up our generational family trees, yet most of these influences exist beyond the boundaries afforded by our own perspectives. When embarking on a therapeutic journey of exploration, rather than relying on examining the self as a solitary star, it can be helpful to zoom out with the eye of an astrologer to consult the broader cosmic picture.

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From the cultural impact and traditional roles carried by our families’ countries of origin, to significant events such as untimely deaths, substance abuse, or physical and mental health issues, we inherit unconscious traumas from generations before us. They linger deep within our family psyche and can manifest in ways that impede our journeys through the emotional symptoms or undesirable patterns we yearn to shed. Some of us have more awareness of the family dynamics and significant events carried in our lineage than others. Yet even on the clearest nights, our vistas are limited by the distance that the naked eye can see.

Family constellations group work is a transpersonal approach that invites seekers into a co-created experiential space of emotional excavation and healing. The constellation approach acknowledges universal themes within families that can have a significant impact. These include the father’s lineage; the mother’s lineage; physical and mental health; death; war and conflict; immigration and migration; religion; and relationships.

Entering through the personal narrative of a challenge one is consciously negotiating, the other group participants are gently facilitated to role-play the significant family figures and themes in each person’s life. With little linear information to go on, the assigned characters begin to embody the energetic space and carry forth an experience that transcends that of the personal witness. “Family members” are encouraged to close their eyes and tune into information offered from the bodily sensations and intuitions that arise.

Like most transpersonal approaches, family constellations work is only diluted by efforts to sufficiently explain it. As such, it is best experienced. Part psychodrama, part energetic channeling, family constellations work is not a therapy that works within the confines of the linear mind.

Based on what information is known and what is sensed by each member of the group as it unfolds, constellations are mapped out. Participants are blocked like actors on a stage, configured and then reconfigured, reflecting the feedback from the collective journey as it reveals itself. As everyone deepens into their assigned personas, emotions quickly come to the surface to inform the process. The result of the innate wisdom arising through each participant allows family patterns that have been obstructing one’s ability to function in some area of life to be worked through and healed.

Like most transpersonal approaches, family constellations work is only diluted by efforts to sufficiently explain it. As such, it is best experienced. Part psychodrama, part energetic channeling, family constellations work is not a therapy that works within the confines of the linear mind. It is experienced through an intangible field, via an alternate state of consciousness that is easily accessible, deeply powerful, and magnified by the group. Depending on the facilitators and the group, the process takes place over several hours, yielding healing from generations of trauma.

By traveling beyond our typical waking states of consciousness to therapeutically address a problem, transpersonal approaches invite us to deepen our intuitive connections and commune with the energetic information that rises to the surface. Some other approaches to altered states of consciousness that transpersonally oriented therapists may offer include breathwork, hypnosis, visualization, dreamwork, drumming, and meditation.

All of these states can be likened to normal states of daydreaming, “zoning out” (such as while driving), or restful states. They are natural ranges of human experience that, when intentionally entered, offer us resources from which to draw beyond those of our shared material realm. It is from these states of being that we transcend our perceived limitations and invite our dormant potentials, infinite as the stars in the sky, to awaken and serve us.

Reference:

Family soul healing. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.familysoulhealing.com

woman with eyes closed in the sunlightTranspersonal therapy can be a powerful framework for using the expressive arts, such as music, drama, and visual art. But many people are unfamiliar with transpersonal therapy. You may be wondering what this term means and how it relates to expressive arts processes. Here’s what you need to know about transpersonal psychology and how it connects with expressive therapies.

What Is Transpersonal Therapy?

You have probably heard of the so-called “three forces of psychology”: behavioral, psychoanalytic, and humanistic. The classic examples that come to mind are Pavlov and his dog (behavioral); Freud’s dream interpretations (psychoanalytic); and Carl Rogers’ use of “unconditional positive regard” (humanistic). These examples are the stereotype of each of these psychological orientations. In truth, most therapists these days are influenced by more than one of the “three forces.”

And now, introducing transpersonal therapy (circa 1960s)—the fourth wave of psychology. The word “transpersonal” literally means “beyond the personal”—what Ken Wilber has described as “personal plus.” That is, it includes all of the personal and individual aspects of our experience, including our thoughts, physical sensations, and emotions, but it also moves beyond this personal framework to address our spiritual experience. Naropa University’s transpersonal counseling program clarifies this by including “mystical or religious experiences, intuition, different states of consciousness, creativity, and contemplative practice.”

Transpersonal psychology is also unique in its focus on wellness rather than pathology. A key idea in transpersonal therapy is the belief that all humans, under the right circumstances, will move naturally toward a state of wellness and wholeness. The role of the therapist is to guide the individual in this move toward wholeness by acting as a facilitator and not an expert.

Expressive Arts in Transpersonal Therapy

The expressive arts and transpersonal therapy make a great team because they are both focused on exploring a wider range of possibility outside traditional talk therapy. Expressive arts therapies can include:

Your specific experience in doing expressive arts with a transpersonal therapist will vary depending on your own creative interests, the therapist’s background and training, and the problems for which you are seeking help. In some cases, one expressive process might blend with another. For example, you might sculpt and paint a series of masks showing the different aspects of your personality, then create a skit in which you use the masks to act out a scene. You might then also write a journal entry or poem describing your experience of producing the skit. All of these actions would be undertaken with the guidance and support of your therapist. And, of course, any creative processes that you engage within transpersonal therapy will be handled with care by your therapist. Your therapist will assist you in exploring the emotional, intellectual, and spiritual meanings that you find in these processes.

In many instances, your therapist may encourage you to engage in imaginal processes. This term refers to an ability to relate to your own artwork, music, or writing as if it is a messenger. For example, using an imaginal process with visual art might mean that after you’ve painted a dragon-like creature, your therapist will help you to create a dramatic or written dialogue in which the dragon itself is given a voice.

Another common technique in transpersonal expressive therapies is to explore archetypes, evocative symbols that are found throughout human history. Some basic archetypes include the magician, the wise old woman, the hero, and the trickster. These symbols and their relationship to your own situation can be explored with various expressive arts practices such as journaling, visual art, drama, or sand tray therapy.

While some of you might prefer a more direct approach that is planned and structured with clear homework assignments, such as cognitive behavioral therapy, others might prefer the looseness of a more organic process that lends itself to the transpersonal realm. If you are lucky, you might even find a therapist who is skilled at applying an eclectic approach, combining different therapies for a dynamic outcome.

Important Notice

GoodTherapy is not intended to be a substitute for professional advice, diagnosis, medical treatment, or therapy. Always seek the advice of your physician or qualified mental health provider with any questions you may have regarding any mental health symptom or medical condition. Never disregard professional psychological or medical advice nor delay in seeking professional advice or treatment because of something you have read on GoodTherapy.