Frequently Asked Questions

Depth work refers to personal processes that are intended to be healing or therapeutic in nature; it is a form of ‘depth psychology’, which refers to an inner exploration of the depths of the human psyche.

Our approach explores the more subtle and unconscious aspects of the psyche, that underlies our basic human yearnings, struggles and dilemmas.

We strive to look inward in ways that support the awakening of conscious awareness, as well as the enlivening vitality of one’s interior life, through an exploration of underlying unconscious processes in the psyche.

We practice PSEN Core Values, one of which is Accepting What Is, especially about our fundamental human nature, in order to evolve as human beings.

We understand process as a movement, something that happens and unfolds, both between practitioner and client, and within the client, that goes beyond verbal content, and provides a depth of understanding and meaning to one’s lived experience, and to one’s inner life.

Engaging in a ‘process’ requires the practitioner to help the client move from the story towards what he is feeling connected to what he is trying to convey to us.

The art of ‘process facilitation’ in PSEN work refers to our particular style of attending to and accompanying a client during a depth process session.

Our style requires of the facilitator to become comfortable with staying grounded in their bodies and mindful in the present moment, while entering into the unknown with a client during an encounter that unfolds moment-to-moment between the two.

Process facilitation requires the practitioner to listen deeply, and be informed both by what is happening within himself, within the client, and what is happening between them during the unfolding process.

The art of facilitation involves the ability to follow something happening, and then furthering the experience.  This is different than actively leading, directing or imposing something on a client’s experience.

Embodiment is our ability to be present in our bodies, and experiencing what is happening within us.   Embodiment practices help us to become  informed by our body’s subtle moment-to-moment reactions and adaptations to our environment.  It is used to be in service to our own presence, and for our client’s unfolding process.

The felt sense of one’s ‘being there’, through the ability we have to feel into our body in mindful, attentive ways, is a key element to our capacity for depth work. 

Embodied presence is shaped by the ways in which we can be conscious of our own inner body processes, while being also conscious of our client’s unfolding experience.  We allow the sensate experiences in our bodies to inform our minds, and shape the interactions which we  having with our client.

Embodied presence creates a necessary kind of ‘solid ground’; it is a type of holding container for the client’s experience, where the client can find safety for exploring deeper, unconscious aspects of his or her psyche.

This helps us to suspend all judgments and preconceived ideas we may have about the client and about what should be happening for them.

Mindfulness is at the heart of traditional Buddhist meditation practice; it is utilized to gain a deeper understanding of the nature of the Mind. 

In recent years, due extensive research of mindfulness in the field of neuroscience, mindfulness has found its way into many contemporary styles of psychotherapy.

Mindfulness refers to a state of mind that is open and engaged with one’s present moment experience; it supports a willingness to approach experience rather than avoid it.

Mindfulness helps us not to judge our experience. We learn to accept our experience as it is, while we also learn to accept the impermanent nature in all of our experience.

Our purpose is twofold: We consider mindfulness a necessary and useful tool for our journey because it directly supports the process of awakening.

In addition, we consider a mindful mind a necessary requirement for deepening into our interior lives.  Mindfulness helps us to slow down, to stay with process as it is unfolding.  It allows us to go beyond the constraints of our preconceived ideas, and thus it opens us to novelty.

We consider developing a ‘Practitioner’s Mind’ essential for becoming skilled facilitators, as this fosters the ability to actively think on behalf of the client, and reflect upon the client’s process by keeping it “in mind” as it is unfolding during a session.   

We train our practitioners to engage and explore useful questions about their process sessions and about their clients.  This helps them to further their understanding of what has been happening in the client, and also between the client and themselves during an unfolding process.