Mr Luke Edwards

A conversation with Luke Edwards

• What led you to choose psychotherapy or counselling as a profession?

  I knew I had a knack for being able to handle complex situations and circumstances with a sense of calm and compassion. I also knew I wanted to help people and communities find navigate their way to the inherent goodness we all carry and for the possibility for this goodness to lead us out of difficult times. Psychotherapy has provided a great way of bringing all these things into play.

• Which philosophical approaches have influenced your professional development?

  Holistic and humanistic approaches to therapy that integrate the mind, body and spirit are at the centre of my approach as a therapist. My training in Person-Centred Therapy, Focusing Oriented Therapy, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy have supported this orientation.
  
  I also hold a deeply Contemplative Spirituality. This worldview informs the way I practice and the way I live my life.
  
  An additional component to my practice is my belief in the value of ongoing learning through personal and collective participatory learning and creativity through the arts.

• Which particular aspects of health or the human journey are you interested in?

  I am fascinated by the mystery, complexity and beauty of being human. I see all of life and our experiences as a school of love - where we have the opportunity to learn and start again. I believe in the generativity of life and the movement towards greater wholeness that is always possible. I am fascinated by the path towards transformation that can take place when honesty, courage and desire meet.
  
  Within this big picture, I am particularly interested in how our bodies respond and react to our experiences and how a commitment to take responsibility for these responses and reactions, provide us with the opportunity to discover who we are, what our purpose is and how we can live out this purpose.

• What methods do you use?

  I am predominately a Person Centred practitioner who integrates Focusing Oriented Therapy and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy. I also integrate experiential and creative methods when appropriate, including songwriting, music, poetry writing, singing, yoga and meditation.
  I have a particular interest and expertise in applying these methods to attend to the impact of traumatic experience.
  
  

• When do you think the client will start to feel that progress is being made?

  A sign of progress is when the client is able to recognise within themselves a sense of space, where what has been difficult and challenging may still be present but doesn't have the same grip and hold on their life and wellbeing.
  With this space, the client may have a sense of expanded perspectives and capacity where there is more room and energy for a wider range of feelings and even opportunities. These shifts can range from feeling greater energy, a sense of calm, increased self-compassion, enhanced relationships through to the capacity to mourn, forgive and make hard decisions. Often, these signs of progress emerge out of the honest and courageous efforts to name and turn towards what is painful and challenging.

• How has therapy made a difference in your life?

  For me, my therapist has been like a rear view mirror - without their presence, I would not have been able to see the challenges I was facing so clearly, or navigate my way through and beyond these challenges in such a healthy and helpful way. It has helped me to obtain both the clarity I needed and the support to develop the life practices and skills to a healthier and whole life.

• What do you like most about being a therapist?

  It provides for me the opportunity to shape my life in accordance to my values and hopes for life. I also love the fact that I can continue to learn and develop my skills through the practice of therapy and also through continual professional development. I also love how my creative and entrepreneurial interests can be used to develop my practice and help others.

• Do you ever have 'bad hair' days?

  Um...Yes Indeed. I'm human. It's Ok to not be ok. We don't do ourselves or each other any favours by creating images and standards that are unreal.
  
  Let's make compassion and being human great again!

• What do you think is the most significant problem we face, in the world today?

  I think our greatest problem is the experience of isolation and disconnection from ourselves, each other and the world. I think this has developed as a result of a cultural focus on ourselves as individuals where our needs and desires drive us towards our own ends and achievements. This way of life has blinded us to the natural value of community and connection and we have set ourselves up to be consumers competing against each other. The attitudes and behaviours that are a part of this lifestyle leave room for the creation of fear and distrust and lead us away from the natural goodness that lies at the heart of humanity.

• Can you share the name of a book, film, song, event or work of art that inspires you?

  One of my most favourite books is called The Awakened Heart: Opening Yourself to the Love You Need by Rollo May.
  
  Film - Dead Poets Society, Manchester by the Sea
  
  Song - God Only Knows, The Beach Boys