Gestalt

Gestalt therapy helps clients focus on the here-and-now experience and helps them recognize their awareness by using different techniques during therapy. The reason why I decided to focus on this theoretical orientation was because in contrast to other therapies, the client is deeply involved in the therapy; coming up with their conclusions and discovering their self-awareness in the process, which helps them recognize their self, instead of continuing to focus on their ideal self. With the client being aware of their emotion, thoughts, and their environment, they will be able have insight on what they can do to resolve their current problems and have a holistic view of life. The therapist’s goal is to facilitate the therapy, focusing on the clients verbal and nonverbal behaviors, assisting them to be more self-reliant, and helping them focus on the present. During therapy, there is a continuous dialogue between the client and the therapist, in which the therapist shows warmth and acceptance (Jones-Smith, 2012).
Gestalt therapy has an existential/ humanistic approach that was developed by Fredrick and Laura Fritz (Fiebert, 2011). One of the major concepts of Gestalt therapy is that individual having awareness of themselves and their environment. Usually people seeking therapy have conflicts with self-awareness and an unfinished business. One way that therapists help clients is by helping them form new figure-ground relationships in order for the individual to be aware of their self and their environment, and live in the present moment with awareness (Jones-Smith, 2012). Another major concept of this therapy is focusing on the “here-and-now,” which deals with a current problem that the client is facing and let the client figure ou...

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...nal when communicating with others or when expressing himself, he believed that being logical will help him in all of the situations he is dealing with. In this stage, I was able to help Joshua realize that he needs both of his polarities are important to his total personality. After he finished discussing both of his polarities, he seemed more relaxed than before we began the therapy session. I let Joshua know that the session was over and thanked him for his time.
As stated above, Gestalt therapy is more focused on the present than in the past. By using a more holistic approach in this therapy, the therapist focuses on the whole person and clients rediscover themselves in this process. The goal of this therapy is for the clients to make their own explanations and to interpret their own conclusions, in order to gain awareness of themselves and their environment.