Ceremonies from the Heart

I believe that there is more to who we are than being the end result of our parents, social environment or any other psychological theory that we have been taught. I believe that we are not human beings having a spiritual experience but spiritual beings having a human experience. We are all trying to “know who we are,” to understand the “meaning of life,” and to find ways of reducing suffering, getting along with others and having a sense of “inner peace” and happiness. There are metaphysical laws that guide us through life whether we know them or not. The word “spirit” comes from the Latin spiritus and is related to the verb spirare which means “to breathe.” So in a literal sense the words spiritual or spirituality are really referring to the very essence of what it means to be alive. Our breath is the unifying link between our mind, body, and emotions. It is also what connects us to one another.

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Spiritual or Holistic counseling is a contemporary approach to treating the whole person, body, mind, and soul. Many people believe in a higher power. Regardless of religion people who believe a universal presence guides them can benefit greatly from spiritual counseling. This form of counseling focuses on tapping into the core belief system of an individual. Someone suffering from depression may undergo spiritual counseling and find that they are experiencing an internal conflict in some area of their life. A person who is struggling with anxiety may discover that they are sabotaging their efforts to become the person they were intended to be. Communing with nature, meditating, focusing on particular selections of music and other non-traditional techniques are often employed during this type of counseling as a method of exploring the deepest part of the self. Spiritual counseling strives to connect the body and mind with the soul and to create a sense of oneness between all three so that the individual may live in harmony with the universe.