How and/or why did you become a therapist?
Becoming a therapist was always a vocation for me and definitely my calling in life. Prior to becoming a therapist, I realised I was suffering from depression. I decided not to go down the medical route of taking medication, and instead took up meditation and went into therapy. In hindsight, I feel this was one of the most important decisions of my life. Although I think medication has a place, for me understanding the root causes of my condition became my path into becoming a therapist.
What are the most rewarding aspects of being a therapist?
It is a real privilege to do the work I do. I am given a rare glimpse into the lives of my clients, who in some cases have never told anyone else their difficulties. To be trusted in this way carries real responsibility and is in many ways the basis for the work between the therapist and client being successful. To be part to this process of changing people’s lives, is a real blessing.
What’s unique or special in your background or approach to interpersonal relationships?
I work as a Transpersonal Psychotherapist, which means that I work with the whole person, including mind, body and spirit. I specialize in offering an holistic approach in the treatment of depression, anxiety, bereavement, and addictions. This means working with all aspects of my client’s experience, as a means of helping them gain a more complete understanding of the underlying issues related to their difficulties. Alongside talking together, I may suggest the use of mindfulness, creative visualisation techniques, drawing, and dream work. My experience of working with clients over a 10-year period has shown me that this is one of the most effective methods of fostering lasting change.
What are your favourite or most interesting interpersonal relationship tips/advice?
It is often through being in a relationship, that our buttons get pressed and many of our issues come to the surface. This is because we often attract other people into our lives who reflect back to us those very things which we are unable or unwilling to see in ourselves. My experience has shown me that many of those issues, also have an opportunity within them. So, the symptoms that clients turn up to therapy with, often have an important story to tell. Therapy is fundamentally about giving a place for that story, and through which can bring its own healing.
What are some things about therapy that you want to increase public awareness about?
I think that understanding that our sense of wellbeing and happiness comes from within. How we choose to live our lives, can impact on this. However, it is our relationship to the world around us which fundamentally determines our sense of ourselves.
What are some of the biggest mistakes a therapist or patient can make?
Therapeutically, what can seem like a mistake, can reveal aspects of the client’s material, which may not have been seen any other way. I think it is important for client and therapist to see the therapeutic relationship as a safe place, where ‘mistakes’ can be held and explored with curiosity and understanding.
Bio
You can learn more about Lucas Teague at www.lucasteaguepsychotherapy.co.uk.