The practice of holistic therapy includes looking at mental health not simply as our thoughts and our feelings. Your mental health is dynamic. It’s connected to physical health, the quality of relationships in your life, your environment, and your sense of identity and purpose. Instead of viewing the client through a list of symptoms to meet a diagnostic criteria, Holistic therapy takes time to learn the whole person and the different factors that affect your well-being and functioning. That could mean sleep, nutrition, movement, stress, relationships, work, purpose in life, spirituality, etc. We look to answer the question what do you need in order to be healthy, connected, and well?
Being a clinical mental health counselor, I utilize evidence based therapeutic approaches in my counseling along with paying attention to those factors. Sleep or nutrition questions, for example, are not aimed at replacing psychotherapy or medical consultation, but at exploring the factors that can influence mood, anxiety, stress, overall functioning. For example, I can explore with clients how movement affects their mood, how relationships make them feel connected, how stress affects them physically, what is their daily schedule to make sure that it is in line with their goals and values. If it is appropriate for the client, holistic counseling can explore spirituality, values and meaning/purpose of people’s lives. That’s the beauty of holistic care; we look at it all! The goal of this is not making some ideal daily schedule or “optimizing” your life but helping you to recognize how different areas are related to each other and what your body might be asking for in order to heal.
Holistic therapy is about seeing the person behind the diagnosis, symptom, or presenting concern. Mental health is not something that exists in vacuum, and meaningful change often requires to look beyond particular problem and see the whole person. As a holistic counselor, I strive to give clients a space to explore not only what is bothering them, but also what is important, what gives meaning to their lives and what makes them thrive.