I have spent the last year and a half
outpatient therapist, I have witnessed the importance of creating and holding safe spaces where people can be without judgment or expectation. This is why teletherapy can be just as effective as in person therapy; the holding doesn’t happen in a physical room but in the space and relationship that is shared.
Therapy is one way of holding space, but holding space is also a way of being to which we can aspire as a parent, a spouse, a close family member, and a friend. It is asking someone h
how they are doing and being ready when they don’t reflexively respond that they are “fine”, hearing them out and being with them, letting go of our own expectations of how someone “should” feel in a situation, and validating that the human experience (and especially right now) is full of lots of big emotions. How can we hold space for each other?
Stacey Patterson, LCPC, MT-BC