About Gestalt Therapy

Gestalt therapy is a theoretical approach to therapy within the umbrella of humanism, studied and practiced all over the world. It is a branch in the family tree that has its roots in the work of Max Wertheimer and the gestalt psychologists. What was termed “gestalt therapy,” as distinct from gestalt psychology, was a theoretical orientation to therapy founded by Fritz and Laura Perls, and developed by countless contributors worldwide. It is a holistic, organismic theory including many essential concepts influenced by the traditions of gestalt psychology, the work of Kurt Lewin, the organismic theory of Kurt Goldstein, and an assortment of related philosophical (existential, phenomenological) and psychoanalytic thinkers who are all interrelated within a shared family tree.

Gestalt therapy is complicated to summarize because it is, in truth, a synthesis of many concepts and work of these many thinkers. Gestalt therapy has always valued the importance of the person’s individuality, growth in self-awareness, their ability to self-regulate and self-actualize, while also paying attention to the impact of their environment.

There is not just one way to be a Gestalt therapist. As a theory, it provides a grounding orientation upon which the individual therapist integrates their own particular way of being, their individual judgement, expertise, and areas of focus. This website does not offer specific how-to’s as much as it is a place to find grounding framework and essential concepts that inform the individual person’s assimilation and growth as a therapist. This theory may also be of interest to people in or out of the therapy field, as a way of conceptualizing human existence, making meaning of their experiences and their world.