Here is my first blog on this site. You may be wondering what I am trying to convey by the name “green healer.” I am currently a PhD candidate at the Institute of Transpersonal Psychology. I am studying clinical psychology; thus I consider myself a healer or rather, a healer in training. Even though my school does not offer a curriculum in ecopsychology or environmental psychology, I have independently studied these subjects extensively after having had many enriching experiences in nature. My dissertation is devoted to studying individual experiences of visiting natural, holy places. It is my goal to eventually integrate these learnings into the realm of clinical psychology. There is a subfield of ecopsychology known as “ecotherapy” which incorporates nature experiences into the therapy but I do not believe that this form of psychotherapy has been well researched or developed. I will probably talk more about that in future blogs. Furthermore, while “holistic” practices are becoming more researched and widely accepted and applied, holistic typically implies “mind-body-and spirit.” The foundation of my graduate studies is this dynamic. I intend to argue here that awareness and healing of the mind, body and spirit cannot occur without a forth dimension and the context of the existence of the mind-body-spirit– the planet. So I beg the question, how can you possibly understand the dynamic movement and existence of your mind, body, and spirit without also regarding the environment in which you exist?
If the natural world prior to civilization was the world that our ancient ancestors were born from, everything about how they adapted to this life was dependent on their surroundings, the earth, and unseen forces. Transpersonal psychology attempts to address the relationship between these unseen forces and the human spirit and mainstream psychology and medical science has tackled the mind-body question. But how could we have an integrative health system that does not take into consideration our place in the ecosystem at large or our interdependence with other species of life?
I find myself in this strange position trying to integrate this concept of “green” into mainstream psychology and clinical practice during a time where “green” is in vogue. Sustainable living, energy independence, conservation, and green living are all hot topics in everyday culture, much to my excitement. Interestingly this green movement has not seemed to hit mainstream psychology in the same way it has in most other areas of living. I find this paradoxical and I hope that starting with this blog and later on, my future research publications, that I can help heal this rift between the field of psychology and mainstream society.
In addition, I think that while mainstream society has taken a very important step towards healing the disharmony between us and the natural world from dominance to interdependence, more work needs to be done and I believe that research and clinical work will serve an important role in this. The field of ecopsychology elaborates on this concept but unfortunately, the most recent publication is 1997 and virtually none of these publications are grounded in data. In addition, other than bringing clients out into nature, little work is done in the way of bringing ecological concepts into the urban clinician’s office. I believe therapeutic techniques and advanced theory development can ameliorate these deficits to bring forth a truly holistic psychology that can benefit humans as well as the planet.
Thank you for reading and stay tuned for additional posts on this subject.
