Bloom therapy is a practice I have been developing on the basis of Jungian analytic therapy. It revolves around the need each individual has to bloom, or fully develop their personality. This is what C.G. Jung had called the individuation process.
I base my practice on the teachings I gained from Jungian depth psychology: the conscious and unconscious minds can sometimes be out of sync with each other, which leads to problems or blockages in life. The goal of psychotherapy is to find ways to realign the two.
Problems arise because deep-seated emotions govern our behaviour and lead us to act and think in undesirable ways. What we try to do during our therapy sessions is to unravel these deep-seated emotions through conversation, dream analysis, and various forms of imagination practices.
BLOOM THERAPY, my approach
Following the hands
Here is where art comes in. I myself have discovered that the work I make often knows about me much earlier than I realise at the time of its creation. It tells a story of what is going on inside me in an enigmatic way.
In the context of therapy, art comes in as a great helper. Words are sometimes simply not enough, so we must follow the hands. Making something creates the initial safe distance between oneself and these deep-seated emotions. Indeed, they are in the object! Once there is distance, we can look more closely at the thing made, connect with it, and understand what it contains.
This process of self-expression and assimilation is essential to the therapeutic process. Deep-seated emotions are felt, understood, and the behaviours associated slowly lose their grip on one’s personality. This inevitably leads to relief, and a regained sense of control over one’s life.
Our journey together
Our journey begins with an introductory meeting, where we lay the foundation for our therapeutic collaboration. Here, you can share your feelings, considerations, and life experiences with me in complete confidentiality. Together we will identify your concerns and stumbling blocks and try to understand where they could come from. This forms the starting point of our joint exploration.
During our sessions we will use various approaches and techniques to uncover the depths of your subconscious. Along the way you’ll discover unknown facets of your personality that will help you on your way. The unconscious sometimes holds unpleasant emotions, but it also often holds keys for our further development.
In our exploration together, we’ll seek to reveal those hidden parts of you, and put you on a path toward greater freedom and independence.
Are you ready to bloom ?
Review
''I have had the pleasure of being one of Annabelle's first clients. What I experienced during the sessions lead me to a better understanding of myself and gave me some valuable tools for overcoming the challenges of (a creative) life. The pleasant thing about it is that I feel that I gained the tools myself: I was given a space to freely express myself and be listened to. This was done in conversation, but also through painting, visualising, sculpting, dancing, and while these forms of expression were sometimes challenging, they did help me gain courage and confidence to face my demons. Over the course of six or so months, I had a regained sense of self-esteem and worth, a better understanding of the underlying problems I felt on a daily basis, and while everything was of course not resolved, I had made quite some progress. I definitely recommend Annabelle for her soft and yet incisive mode of enquiry, her kind and compassionate nature, and her good sense of humour!'' (man., 28 years old who is a poet)