Existential Questions

Spending time thinking about the reasons we are here or what we are doing with our lives can sometimes feel like a subject that's too heavy for daily conversation. Nonetheless, these are things that we can - and perhaps should - reflect upon. In doing so I would argue that we have the opportunity to bring more meaning to our lives, and to understand what we are doing with the time we are alive.

Anyone who has suffered loss or bereavement (and that's most of us) is aware of the finite nature of life to some degree. There are states of being, and of not being, and what those mean to us will be different for everyone.

In my existentially focused sessions we spend time discussing your thoughts and feelings about the meaningfulness (or meaninglessness) of life and what changes you might like to make to live in a more fulfilled way.

Some of my clients who choose to do this work have been affected by profound loss. They may not consider themselves great philosophers or academics scrutinising the meaning of life. They might instead be learning to adapt to a version of their own life without a key person. This is often exemplified by a bereavement which has come as a shock, a loss which is suffered by a long term carer or parent, or for someone who is a survivor of suicide*.

*this is someone who survives someone who died by suicide

I myself am a survivor of suicide and I have a number of clients who have suffered greater losses than my own. This subject is therefore extremely important to me and forms part of my writing life - you can read more about my thoughts on existential questions on my blog here.