“Presence is a more powerful catalyst for change than analysis.” Rachel Naomi Remen
I’ve been on a media fast for a little over a week now. As I clear out the noise, I am beginning to recognize that I have some deep sadness. I know that a large part of the sadness is about my father being ill. It is easy to start spending a lot of energy on figuring out what’s going on inside of me; I am a psychotherapist, after all.
Over the years, I’ve come to realize that Dr. Remen’s words are true: Presence is a more powerful catalyst for change than analysis. There is a way in which the process of psychotherapy can actually get in the way of powerful change because of too much analysis. The best therapists are those who are truly and genuinely present with their clients, setting aside assumptions, judgments, diagnoses, and solutions in order to deeply witness the person before them.
I realize that my attempt to analyze is a sort of trap, keeping me in my head where I can continue to avoid my experience. If I am to give the sadness a chance to do its work then I must find a way to be present with it. Analyzing, avoiding, or attempting to solve will only impede the deep shift that is possible.
I find that I do this analyzing in my relationships, too. It creates a kind of tension in me that actually blocks connection. Presence is what is needed: Presence with you, the world, and myself.
Presence is where the possibility of profound change exists.
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