Garret Brosky

I often think of the first line on the first page of the book, Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy, by Nancy McWilliams where she wrote, “psychology may be a science but psychotherapy is an art.” And how could working with the soul of an individual be anything but an art? Psyche presents itself through images and symbolic visions in the dreamscape of our unconscious. True art, like true psychotherapy, concerns itself with these noble forms of expression and considers them the mixed media and prima materia for constructing personal meaning and uncovering archetypal sources of life.  

My practice and therapeutic philosophy is Existential-Humanistic (E-H); which places not only the individual at the center of the work but also life itself. In contrast to a reducible, measurable and objective self, E-H therapy maintains that self is always unique and contextual. Change and transformation are therefore natural processes of life that confront us at different times and for different reasons. The means by which E-H therapists achieve such durable change in clients is primarily through the ability to form a collaborative, focused and honest relationship. This requires, first and foremost that the therapist cultivate a stance of therapeutic presence. 

Through presence and provision of a healing experience, therapists can facilitate the creation of new meanings for clients that are flexible and responsive to immediate experiences. From this perspective, the therapist’s expertise resides not in his privileged knowledge of disorder and application of strategies and techniques, but in his ability to adopt a way of being that is deeply attuned, receptive and responsive to the client’s way of being.