Pursuing Meaning: TLS Counselling’s Psychotherapeutic Philosophy

Life is hard. Sometimes, suffocatingly so. In the last few years I was juggling school, work, and taking care of my family with special needs. It was very stressful - and stress is a major trigger of my depression. I was really, really, struggling. But at my therapist's recommendation I shifted my focus from looking for happiness and finding pleasure in my usual activities to consider where I might find meaning in my life. The next week in one of my classes I was introduced to the therapeutic philosophy of Viktor Frankl, the Austrian psychiatrist that survived the Holocaust. Prior to his imprisonment, Frankl theorized that humans possess a drive towards meaning and that meaning, not happiness, ought to be one's primary aim.

He affirms human freedom and our ability to choose how we will respond to the inevitable suffering we experience in this life. These decisions must be in line with our deeply held values and so we ought to pursue meaning, not happiness. For Frankl, the pursuit of happiness is futile because what we are really looking for a reason to be happy. Once we find that reason, happiness follows. Or to put it another way, pursue meaning and happiness will ensue.

Frankl noted that his fellow prisoners in the WW2 concentration camps were more likely to survive their ordeal if they had rich inner lives, future-oriented goals, and could discover meaning in their suffering. He was fond of citing Nietzsche who said, “He who has a why to live can bear almost any how.”

He believed in at least three paths to help us discover meaning in our lives: 1) Perform a deed or create something (taking action); 2) Come into contact with someone/ something (experiencing); 3) Cultivate a healthy attitude while experiencing unavoidable suffering. What I found particularly helpful was the idea that we are completely unique individuals. No one who has ever existed has had or will have my life, including the hardships and suffering I was experiencing. But I had a choice in how I was going to respond to these challenges – what kind of husband, father, priest, and student did I want to be?

I was fortunate in that it was pretty easy for me to find meaning in all the things taking up my time and energy. Home, work, and school contexts each provided me with valuable learning and opportunities to grow. I decided I was not going to wait for my program to be over in order to live fully, but I would embrace the challenges and hardships and act like the kind of person that I wanted to be. I believe this resolution helped me to not to simply ‘get through’ the program, but to really enjoy it, and my life.

Frankl's "Logotherapy" as a modality does have some helpful intervention strategies (particularly questions that help clients determine their own goals), but I believe it principally serves as a sound therapeutic philosophy that undergirds my practice. I lean heavily on other postmodern therapies like narrative therapy, solution-focused brief therapy, strengths-based therapy, as well as the ever-popular CBT (particularly third wave CBT) and DBT. But the crux of my approach is existentialist in nature that emphasizes the significance of the therapeutic encounter. I try to recognize how this encounter not only impacts my clients, but myself as well. This approach helps me to work with clients collaboratively by determining treatment plans unique to their own strengths and needs.