Why combine systemic psychotherapy and the humanistic approach?

When looking for a psychotherapist, one question often comes up: which therapeutic approach should I choose?

There are many different schools of psychotherapy. At Abroad Psychotherapy, we have chosen to work from two approaches that, for us, are inseparable: systemic psychotherapy and the humanistic approach.

Why?

Because understanding our history is not always enough to create change. And because experiencing our emotions without being able to give them meaning can sometimes leave us feeling confused.

It is precisely in the dialogue between these two approaches that we find the richness of the therapeutic process.

Systemic psychotherapy: we are always in relationship

We never build ourselves alone.

The way we think, love, manage conflicts or go through difficulties is shaped by a history made of relationships.

Systemic psychotherapy explores this history.

It looks particularly at:

• family relationships;

• life experiences that have shaped us;

• the stories we tell ourselves about who we are;

• patterns that repeat themselves over time;

• cultural, social or professional contexts that influence the way we exist in the world.

This approach does not seek to find someone responsible for our difficulties.

Instead, it aims to understand how these difficulties make sense within a wider system.

When a behaviour is placed back into its context, it often becomes more understandable… and therefore easier to transform.

Understanding does not always mean transforming

It is common to hear someone say:

"I know exactly why I react this way… but I keep doing it anyway."

This sentence captures a limitation that we sometimes encounter in therapy.

Understanding is essential.

But it can remain purely intellectual.

We know our history.

We identify our patterns.

We may even be able to explain them very clearly.

And yet, something does not change.

Why?

Because change does not happen through reflection alone.

The humanistic approach: listening to what the body and emotions are experiencing

The humanistic approach invites us to return to present experience.

It reminds us that we are not only beings who think.

We are also beings who feel.

Our emotions.

Our bodily sensations.

Our needs.

Our boundaries.

Our desires.

The body sometimes carries information that words are not yet able to express.

For this reason, in therapy sessions we give an important place to what is experienced here and now.

Not to analyse every emotion, but to learn how to recognise them, welcome them and understand what they are trying to communicate.

Gradually, this process of listening also allows us to regain a sense of responsibility.

Not in the sense of blame.

But in the sense of regaining power over the way we choose to act today.

Why we never separate these two approaches

For us, these two approaches naturally complement each other.

Without the humanistic perspective, systemic psychotherapy can remain mainly intellectual.

We understand our history.

We understand our relationships.

But this understanding may remain only in our minds.

On the other hand, without a systemic perspective, humanistic work can sometimes lack essential reference points.

Emotions are present.

Inner experiences are rich.

But they may remain disconnected from the history that gives them meaning.

One provides context.

The other provides experience.

One sheds light.

The other transforms.

Do we need to know exactly why we suffer?

We do not believe so.

In psychotherapy, it is rare for a single answer to fully explain a difficulty.

The question "Why am I like this?" rarely has only one answer.

Instead, we can build different hypotheses.

Different ways of understanding what is happening.

These different perspectives allow us to move away from rigid explanations.

They offer more freedom.

Fewer certainties.

But often many more possibilities.

And this is precisely what allows us to move forward.

Our way of accompanying you at Abroad Psychotherapy

Each person has a unique story.

That is why we do not seek to apply a fixed method or a ready-made formula.

Our work is to create a space where it is possible to:

• understand your personal history;

• identify recurring relational patterns;

• explore the stories built throughout your life;

• listen to emotions and bodily sensations;

• regain your ability to make freer and more conscious choices.

For us, psychotherapy is not only a place where we understand what has happened to us.

It is also a space where we experience a new way of being with ourselves and with others.

It is this meeting between the understanding of our history and the experience of the present moment that makes change possible.

Would you like to begin psychotherapy?

If you are looking for systemic and humanistic psychotherapy, we would be happy to talk with you.

Whether you are going through a difficult period, wish to better understand certain recurring patterns, or simply want to regain more freedom in your life, we offer support adapted to your history, your pace and your needs.

Every journey is unique.

Our approach is too.