Body and inclusion of bodily dimension in relational family therapy

Abstract

Currently, in the world of psychotherapy, there is a shift in focus towards the body. Neuroscience has brought many new discoveries about the brain, body and mind. These are all relevant to the theory and practice of psychotherapy and hence initiate a dialogue between psychotherapy and neurobiology. Many models of psychotherapy incorporate a growing body of knowledge into more complex clinical models that are grounded in developmentally relational concepts, in neuroscience data and in clinical observations of the psychosomatic expressions of bodily experiences in therapeutic alliance. Among them is the innovative relational family therapy. The key point of our study was to establish the attitude of therapists and supervisors of relational family therapy towards the incorporation of the body and bodily processes into the therapeutic process and the process of supervision. Another goal was to assess their ability to be conscious of bodily sensations and countertransference. Research study showed that therapists and supervisors have positive attitudes towards incorporating the body and bodily sensation into the therapeutic process and into supervision. It was also established that therapists perceive their own bodily sensations (they have body awareness) and the sensa­tions of the client, and they perceive body countertransference in the psychotherapy process.