Dr. Thurlow views his patients as whole human beings who possess within themselves everything they need to solve their problems. He sees each person as a complete human being who has a complex personality with many mental, emotional and physical issues that are inherent within the human condition.
Dr. Thurlow's psychotherapy practice is centered primarily in the cognitive approach. He sees adolescents, adults and seniors in individual therapy, as well as couples and families. He helps people find or regain a feeling of balance in their lives.
Through cognitive therapy people gain insight into dysfunctional patterns and the irrational core beliefs that sustain their patterns. By the time people come to therapy they have already tried and failed to solve their problems through ordinary intellectual understanding - an understanding that usually involves self-judgment and self-criticism. The intellectual mind is not capable of understanding or coping with our own complex psychological problems.
Many people in our world today feel insecure and overwhelmed by the stress of daily life. They often feel powerless to change and unable to confront fear, loss or hurt within themselves. This perceived inability may lead to feelings of depression and/or anxiety. Frequently this is accompanied by an existential experience of abandonment, aloneness and emotional separation from spouse, children, parents or friends. To address these feeling, Dr. Thurlow creates a safe, warm and empathic environment for people to examine their inner experiences.
Generally speaking, the most effective psychotherapy involves stepping completely outside of patterns and silently observing them. This is accomplished by assisting the person to assume witness consciousness - an internal position within the higher abstract mind. Witness consciousness is a neutral place where we can observe our own thinking, feeling and behavior.
Being with a psychotherapist who functions from the witness position has a powerful affect. Dr. Thurlow invites people to join him in witness consciousness by letting go of familiar references. Those who are able to make this shift, have immediate access to a broader and more holistic view of themselves and their issues.
Frequently, the result of this shift is a multi-level experience of insight and an overall heightened awareness of one's psychological or emotional functioning. With this deep understanding comes a renewed sense of well being and a willingness to pursue even deeper and more hidden patterns and beliefs that define us as less than the pure incarnate spiritual beings that we are.
With each new psychological discovery the person finds new meaning and value in life. Relationships become richer and more nuanced. Access to higher principles such as love, forgiveness, and compassion becomes easy as the person is able to transform dysfunctional patterns and forgive self and others. This results in the creation of meaningful relationships with others and the deeper Self.
