When dealing with the most common mental health issue in the world — anxiety — it helps to be open to many approaches. You’ve probably read about breathing exercises and meditation, but are you familiar with the Gestalt therapy chair technique?
For starters, Gestalt therapy is a form of psychotherapy. It focuses on the present moment — more specifically, your experience as it is happening right now. By emphasizing one’s self-awareness, Gestalt therapy helps clients take ownership of their thoughts, emotions, actions, etc. The goal is to instill trust in your experiences in the name of discovering healthy approaches to managing an issue like anxiety.
Ok, so what is this technique? It’s called the “empty chair technique” and this treatment concept lives up to its name haha! The use of a literal empty chair is designed to offer someone to speak with. It could be an imaginary person but, just as often, you might be encouraged to express emotions to the part of yourself that’s struggling.
You might wonder why you don’t just talk to the therapist. You do, of course, but the empty chair represents more freedom. A client may initially feel limited in how they speak with their therapist. An empty chair, on the other hand, allows their imagination to take over. You have a captive audience, so to speak — someone who can evolve and shift throughout the treatment.
Quite often, a person struggling with anxiety knows what the underlying problems are. However, they feel too anxious to admit and confront it. The chair technique provides a safe space to explore, process, and resolve the root causes of an anxiety disorder.
But Who Are You Talking To?
Again, it doesn’t have to be a specific person. However, two common choices are:
- A person who triggers anxiety
- The part of yourself that remains unable or unwilling to confront the problem
Such a process shines a light on what typically remains internal. With guidance from your therapist, this can lead to insights that were previously inaccessible.
How Does Gestalt Therapy Chair Technique for Anxiety Work?
Let’s say you’re asked to provide reasons why anxiety is derailing your daily life. Your honest answer might be “I don’t know.” Or perhaps the underlying trigger relates to a person who has passed away, is not present in your current life, or is someone you’d rather not speak with. This is an ideal time for your therapist to suggest the chair technique.
The setup is straightforward. An empty chair is placed in front of you (at whatever distance feels comfortable). From there, if you can’t yet access the source of your troubles, you can gently talk to yourself. With support from your therapist, you begin to open up about how much distress you feel. You describe how you feel and how much you want resolution and healing. It’s not a guilt trip or an angry tirade. Rather, with self-compassion, you urge a part of you to share feelings that have (until now) been suppressed.
In cases when you visualize a person in the chair, you can finally declare everything you’ve wanted to say. You can explain your side of the story without getting interrupted or shut down. It can provide incredible catharsis to say out loud what you’ve probably rehearsed in your head a thousand times.
A few things to keep in mind:
- There’s no “wrong” way to do the chair technique
- You can try it on your own first to get more comfortable
- Don’t censor yourself
Gestalt therapy for anxiety is especially useful in that it trains your attention on the present moment instead of past regrets or future fears. If all this has made you curious, we’d love to help you conquer your anxiety once and for all!! You can schedule yo-self here or reach out to us now and we’ll be happy to pair you with the right therapist for you or your child. As always, we’ve got you!
