Gestalt therapy is an exploration rather than a direct modification of behavior. The goal is growth and autonomy through an increase in consciousness.

What is Gestalt counselling?

Gestalt counselling was originally developed by Fritz and Laura Perls in the 1940s, and aspects of Gestalt counselling are used in other forms of counselling today. The goal of Gestalt counselling is awareness: through deeper awareness of what you are doing and how you are doing it, within yourself, in your relationships, and in your life, you may discover more freedom and choice, as old fixed habits and patterns (Gestalts) can drop away once you become aware of them fully.

Counselling and therapy are sometimes known for looking at the past causes of present problems. In Gestalt counselling, the past is relevant only to the extent that we have brought fixed ways of being and behaving with us from our past. We may repeat old patterns, roles, and relationships, or feel that we are lacking in excitement and spontaneity. We explore these patterns and unresolved situations in the session in the present, through the counselling relationship, and sometimes through Gestalt ‘experiments’ (for example, we might use cushions or an empty chair to talk to someone from the past, or pebbles to explore your family relationships, or art materials to explore experiences that cannot easily be put into words).

Sometimes these fixed ways of being, which we have developed in response to past situations, prevent us from being and accepting all of ourselves. Through Gestalt counselling, you may begin to explore a wider spectrum of human states and emotions, rather than cutting off experiences that have previously been labelled unacceptable, thereby giving you more choice and freedom as to how you wish to be.