Presence
9 September 2021
Biodynamic craniosacral therapy requires a deep understanding of human anatomy & physiology and is, of course, the lifelong commitment to the practice and development of relational skills required for meeting clients in a supportive relational field.
I spend a lot of time on developing my knowledge in those areas, but I also pay great attention to cultivating presence. Specifically, therapeutic presence. But what does this mean?
Therapeutic presence involves being fully in the moment with a client on a multitude of levels; physically, emotionally, cognitively, and spiritually. A therapists’ presence provides an invitation to the client to feel met, understood, and safe which allows movement towards natural wholeness which is where we believe we can connect with full health.
A therapists’ experience of therapeutic presence involves being grounded in a healthy sense of self, whilst being receptive and immersed with what is poignant in the moment and with a larger sense of spaciousness and expansion of awareness and perception. This grounded, immersed and expanded awareness occurs with the intention of being with and for another, in service of the client’s healing process.
The process of presence for the therapist involves being receptively open to the client, being inwardly connected to their own experience and extending the therapists’ inward experience to make contact with the client through words, images, and silence.
Therapeutic presence invites a neurophysiological experience of safety in the client that allows for a feeling of calm, openness, and engagement in effective therapeutic work.
Therapeutic presence is the groundwork for effective therapy across a variety of disciplines. A core fundamental approach of presence with the client allows for an attuned responsiveness to the needs of the client, and so responses and techniques will be fitting to the person and their needs in the moment.
