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IAAP Newsletter: The Unified Field

Theory of Psychotherapy and Attunement

It was very early in my study of Attunement that I realized that there was an overlay of theory and practice in psychotherapy and Attunement. Both are relational in nature and have the intention of bringing into light that which is positive, and releasing that which is blocking the highest functioning of the client. At that time I used the word entrainment, a process of opening my self up in a nonjudgmental, accepting and respectful manner so my clients would feel less defensive. They could allow their armor to drop and thus gain access to self knowledge about the life experiences that led them to cordon off or deny aspects of their beings which were not honored or allowed by their primary caregivers.

The potential of adding a deeper energetic level to this relationship could bring the possibility of an inner state of emotional calm and quietness, and freedom from the symptoms of anxiety, depression, paranoia or emotional damage with which we judge and shame ourselves. To be able to focus healing energy to specific glands in the body and recreate a sense of well-being and balance was very intriguing. So, as many of you know, I have been sharing Attunement with those clients who agree to join me in integrating psychotherapy and Attunement. I want to return to my theoretical roots to show how psychodynamic understanding of emotional development, which is based on a relational context, has assumptions similar to those of Attunement. That is, we become who we become because of what we've been through. The language and the forces involved have different emphasis but the parallels are there. The partnership of Attunement and psychotherapy is very natural.

Margaret Mahler, a Hungarian physician, who focused on child development and how children arrived at a sense of self, spoke about the importance of separation and individuation, the developmental process an infant experiences from birth to age five. This is the process of growth from being symbiotically tied to the mother to a place of confident and secure individuality. Mahler places great importance on the role of mothers/primary caregivers in this process. To quote: "When a mother's responsiveness in being with the baby is amiss, enduring patterns of pathological behavior run roots and mar the basic core, distorting subsequent development of optimism and confident expectation that constitutes the foundation of stability and cohesion.” If we take this as a kernel, the focus is to unearth the places of emotional injury from the past within the therapeutic relationship and gain new insight and understanding.

My experiences over the past few years inform me that the process of sharing Attunement with my clients allows the energy to reach these points of emotional traumas and, thus, a reconfiguration is allowed to take place. When an Attunement is shared, the vibrations within one's energetic field are raised to a higher frequency, leading to a feeling of well-being and a connection with a higher consciousness. Negative beliefs dissolve and transform within the gentle and compassionate experience of Attunement.

Mahler continues to say the relationship of parent and child (also read: client and therapist; client and Attunement practitioner) is "repeatedly tested, fine tuned within the stable and secure orbit before separation and autonomy can be sampled... the infant establishes a foundation of confident expectation and the beginning individual resource that evolves as a by-product of experiencing mastery.” The majority of the clients who have been combining their psychotherapy and Attunement are mirroring what Mahler is referring to here: a level of confidence and mastery they have not known in their lives before, with an inner sense of well-being, career competence, and relational satisfaction.

The posture of therapist and Attunement practitioner is clear in the similarities of their stance. In both, there is a delicate balance of being present, of witnessing and honoring the individual who is with you. Along with being internally present with your self using your internal barometer for sensing subtleties, there are possibly energetic or intuitive sensations which are not judged or even necessarily named, yet they are acknowledged, as you allow universal source energy to bring the client further along the continuum of realizing their unique and lovable identity.

—ET