About
Philip Oldfield
I grew up in Sydney and went to Normanhurst Boys High. My first job fresh out of school was doing global economic and political research work while I did my Commerce Degree at UNSW.
I've been running groups and seeing individuals and couples for therapy for over 30 years. My practice sees a range of individuals from many different backgrounds and ages. I work with individuals and couples including gay men, lesbians and heterosexual couples.
The two maxims that guide me are “The healing is in the meeting” and “The wisdom is in the individual”.
One of my principals has been that a therapist must be in touch with their own wounded self and be committed to their own healing. At the same time we develop a skill set to be able to walk with a client through their own journey of healing. I think this is still a primary requirement of good therapy. I am deeply grateful for those years where my students taught me through their honesty, struggle and wisdom at least as much as I taught them.
My Approach to Therapy
I believe that the most important element in the therapy journey is the connection that is established between the client and the therapist. Most hurt that brings people into therapy comes out of a disruption or breakdown of a connection that is important to the client. It makes sense that an important part of the healing is in establishing a good basis for the healing journey in the present.
I have a few guiding principles : The wisdom lies in the client as they are closest to their own experience. Clients know when something rings true for them even when they are in a sea of confusion.
How we dialogue together and how I support the client to dialogue with themselves in their own head is important. We heal much faster when we are met by care and compassion and genuine enquiry and we are held back when we are judged, criticised and shamed. The relationship with the therapist can become the role model and ground for a better relationship with yourself.
What is going on in the present world of the client and where they come from and what they have experienced is important and is different for each individual. It is important for a therapist to not too quickly judge what is going on or what the issues really is. Sometimes it can take a while to uncover the deeper dynamics and the real needs and yearnings that lie hidden.
Creating different experiences and ways of seeing things and new ways of getting in touch with insights and feelings in a therapy session can be very liberating. Trying on safe experiments in the the course of the therapy journey can be a good way to involve the body and release energy so that more than just the head is involved in creating solutions and moving forward. These are always negotiated carefully as this is not about performance but about supporting blocked energy to move through.
Staying closely connected to what is happening in the client’s present experience and being interested in what their senses are registering as well as what they are thinking and feeling can also be helpful. Often the body and the movement of energy or the blocking of energy can give an insight into something that the mind has yet to bring to awareness.
When we are aware of something that we are doing or feeling then we have a whole lot more choice available to us. Much of this work is about supporting awareness to come to the fore in a clear and supported way so we have more choices and space to move and create better outcomes for ourselves.
What Is Gestalt?
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Gestalt is a German word that means ‘configuration’ or ‘pattern’. Gestalt therapy is a way of experiencing the world as a whole person embedded in our environment. We learn by adjusting to our situation and are constantly developing creative adaptations to manage.
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We are always impacting our world and it always impacts us.
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When we are more aware of the way we organise ourselves and the impact we have on others we can attune to create a more deeply relational engagement. This is a method of becoming aware of our feelings and being able to express them in a way that connects. Over time, our responses change as we create new wholes or patterns.