The Here and Now, and There and Then

Both the past and present are important in the psychotherapy process.  We understand our present by first knowing where we came from and how we have gotten to where we are now.  The There and Then, is our roast and how we have moved through the world and relationships in a particular way of being and response.  In therapy, we attempt to recollect the past and put it into context.  By examining and looking at our past we can see patterns of relational dynamics and behavior—as well as gaining perspective on a past trauma.  

Once we understand our past, we can begin to better understand our present.  With this knowledge, we can start to see the patterns and trauma responses emerge in the present and current relationships.  The There and Then shows up in the Here and Now, which is the focal point of the therapeutic relationship.  As a therapist, I focus on both the There and then, and the Here and now.  But it is through the Here and Now that we can catch sight of a pattern and dynamic, and begin to shift that problematic pattern or dynamic.  We cannot change the past, but we do not have to be chained by it either.  

If you wish to read more about this idea, please check out The Core Competencies of Relational Psychoanalysis by Roy Barsness.