– Why is “Becoming Whole” a Goal for Individual Therapy in Nashville, TN?

Last Updated on April 16, 2016 by Chris Roberts

WHAT DOES BECOMING WHOLE MEAN IN INDIVIDUAL THERAPY?

There are many different ways to describe the goal for entering individual therapy in Nashville, TN. Many therapists will use the term “to become whole.” Other therapists may talk about accepting oneself, while others may distill the phrase “knowing one’s self fully.” All of these are similar ways of saying that therapy helps us know all the parts of our self. When we become (more) aware of all of the aspects that make up our particular individual, we become better agents for acting in the world in accordance with who we say we want to be. This is no easy task. As much as we know so much of who we are and what we believe, there is so much more beneath the surface.

Part of becoming whole through individual therapy in Nashville, TN is integrating all the “parts” of ourselves. Even as we grow older and older, we still house within our memory banks all the experiences of our entire lives. Of course we will never be able to access all of these memories and experiences, that is not the goal. The hope is to be able to access the influential and important experiences that have come to shape and define us throughout the years. We don’t operate in a vacuum. The choices we make in everyday situations are based on belief systems that we formed from birth (conception?) through the current day. Every decision we make has purpose, whether we choose to believe it or not.

Becoming whole means remembering and acknowledging that the way we were treated at 6 years old matters to our current situation. Becoming whole means accepting that part of ourselves that believed certain things or made certain decisions, even if we look back now and realize those decisions weren’t the most helpful. We judge ourselves far more often than we accept ourselves. Most of us want to believe that “the past is the past,” and it doesn’t affect me now. But to believe that the past doesn’t affect us is to systematically disavow parts of ourselves that are integral to understanding who we are now.

Becoming whole means integration. It means that no matter how upsetting or traumatic or even joyful a situation was back then, it influences our life now, and we need to learn to accept it in a non-judgmental manner. This is far more difficult than is sounds. All the time we are saying to ourselves or out loud, “Oh, that was when I was a kid.” As if being a kid was not and is not important to our individual life. Being a kid is just as important as being a teenager, as being a twenty-something, as being a sixty-something. We don’t become wiser with age. We only become wiser as we accept more and more the truths about life and engage tension with strength and kindness.

If you are interested in learning more about how you operate in the world and how you can function with more agency and clarity, then individual therapy in Nashville, TN may be helpful for you. Individual therapy is not an easy journey, but it can become incredibly rewarding and beneficial for you and for your loved ones. Chris Roberts is an individual therapist in Nashville, TN who would love the opportunity to work with you in uncovering your past and becoming more congruent with the person you are meant to be.