Bob Edelstein writes on "The Existential Crisis of Birdman"

Bob Edelstein presents an existential crises embodied in Innaritu's 2015 movie "Birdman" starring Michael Keaton. In his article "The Existential Crisis of Birdman" on PsychologyToday Bob discusses the existential struggle to become your authentic self.

"As humans, we all struggle to understand both who we have been and who we want to be — a struggle which centers around accessing and expressing our present, authentic self and releasing aspects of our old self. I recently saw a powerful representation of this struggle in the movie Birdman. Riggan Thomson — played by Michael Keaton — is a former movie star known for his portrayal of the superhero icon, Birdman. The role, one he played 20 years ago, made Riggan a celebrity. His fans don’t want him to be anyone else. "

Read "The Existential Crisis of Birdman" on PsychologyToday.com.

Latest Article by Bob Edelstein on Authentic Engagement entitled "The Anxiety of Being"

The Anxiety of Being

How do you relate to your anxiety?

Published on March 23, 2014 by Bob Edelstein, L.M.F.T., M.F.T in Authentic Engagement

Bob Edelstein, EHI Board Advisor recently published a new article on his Psychology Today blog. Here is an excerpt from the introduction:

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"Anxiety is often looked at as the enemy in our culture. The goal is to get rid of it, or at the least, to tone it down. Often it is associated with being neurotic. Woody Allen has made a career portraying the anxious neurotic that we can all laugh at. There is a cultural conditioning that says, something is wrong with you if you get too anxious. This same conditioning tells us that anxiety needs to be eliminated. The aim is to be cool, calm, and collected, like the archetype of a martini-sipping James Bond."

Read the full article on Authentic Engagement at PsychologyToday.com. 

New Article by Bob Edelstein on "4 Ways to Experience Authentic Engagement"

4 Ways to Experience Authentic Engagement 
by Bob Edelstein
Published in Authentic Engagement on Psychology Today 
December 24, 2013

Bob Edelstein, EHI Board Advisor, has recently published a new article on his blog "Authentic Engagement" about the complexity of being authentic.

 From the article:

"Authentic engagement is an alive, passionate, embodied, and profound way of being. It is complex. We are not just authentically engaged in a vacuum. We must be authentically engaged in relationship to someone or something. As I see it, in our human endeavors, there are four ways we authentically engage."

Read the whole article by Bob Edelstein at Authentic Engagement on Psychology Today.

New Article by Bob Edelstein on How Our Identity is Fluid, Subjective and Chosen.

Authenticity and Identity

In this most recent article Bob Edelstein, L.M.F.T., M.F.T discusses how discovering who you are in the moment modifies your already established identity.

From the intro to the article:

In every moment we can rediscover and recreate ourselves. From an Existential-Humanistic perspective, this change takes place when we discover that who we are in the moment is not congruent with how we have identified ourselves. We then have the opportunity to redefine ourselves in order to align with what is most true in the present. To do so, we may need to reinterpret what cannot be denied from our past (George Kelly, Ph.D.). We may also begin to re-envision who we want to be in the future in a more congruent way as we shift this part of our identity into what is authentic in the present. This is an ongoing process because our authentic identity changes throughout our life in response to the impact of our life experiences.

Read the full article on Bob Edelstein's blog Authentic Engagement on the PsychologyToday website published on September 28, 2013.

Related Articles:

• AskimoTV Interviews with Bob Edelstein on Existential Humanistic Psychotherapy

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Bob Edelstein, L.M.F.T., M.F.T., is an Existential-Humanistic psychotherapist based in Portland, Oregon. In addition to being a therapist for over 36 years, he also provides consultation, supervision, and training for professionals, including a one-day workshop entitled Deepen Your Therapeutic Work Using an Existential-Humanistic Perspective. Bob is a founding member of the Existential-Humanistic Northwest Professional Organization and the Association for Humanistic Psychology - Oregon Community. He is a board member of the San Francisco based Existential-Humanistic Institute.

Bob Edelstein Interview Series Pt 5: Existential Humanistic Approach to Couples Therapy

Bob Edelstein Discusses E-H Psychotherapy Part 5 of 5

Join Bob Edelstein as he addresses the "Existential Humanistic Approach to Couples Therapy", in this final part of this E-H Psychotherapy interview series.

In this episode Bob answers the following questions: What is the meaning behind the dichotomy of isolation versus relationship and how can this affect a couple's relationship? In couples therapy of this kind, do you place a heavier stress on assessing the two people as a couple or as individuals? Why? How and why do you as the therapist act as a role model for the couple in therapy? What is meant by an existential theme and what is its importance regarding couples therapy?

Part 5: Existential Humanistic Approach to Couples Therapy (6:45) Askimo TV

Related Posts:

Bob Edelstein Interview Series: Means and Ends of Existential Humanistic Psychotherapy, Part 4 in a 5 part Series on Existential-Humanistic Pyschotherapy.

Bob Edelstein Interview Series: Goals of Existential Humanistic Psychotherapy, Part 3 in a 5 part Series on Existential-Humanistic Pyschotherapy.

Bob Edelstein Interview Series: The Role of the Therapist in Existential Humanistic Psychotherapy, Part 2 in a 5 part Series on Existential-Humanistic Pyschotherapy.

Bob Edelstein Interview Series: Existential-Humanistic Psychotherapy, Part 1 in a 5 part Series on Existential-Humanistic Pyschotherapy.

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Bob Edelstein, L.M.F.T., M.F.T., is an Existential-Humanistic psychotherapist based in Portland, Oregon. In addition to being a therapist for over 36 years, he also provides consultation, supervision, and training for professionals, including a one-day workshop entitled Deepen Your Therapeutic Work Using an Existential-Humanistic Perspective. Bob is a founding member of the Existential-Humanistic Northwest Professional Organization and the Association for Humanistic Psychology - Oregon Community. He is a board member of the San Francisco based Existential-Humanistic Institute. Read more from Bob on his blog, Authentic Engagement.

Bob Edelstein Interview Series Pt. 4: Means and Ends of Existential Humanistic Psychotherapy

Bob Edelstein Discusses E-H Psychotherapy Part 4 of 5

Join Bob Edelstein as he addresses the "Means and Ends of Existential Humanistic Psychotherapy", in this fourth part of his E-H Psychotherapy interview series.

In this episode Bob answers the following questions: What does the theory behind Existential Humanistic Psychotherapy define as the means and the ends? What is the meaning of Sartre's claim that “Existence precedes essence”? In what way can a crisis in a person’s life allow to discover a better meaning of their existence and presence in this world? What happens when there is a conflict in a person between their despised and authentic self and how can existential humanistic therapy help to solve this? What is the value is finding one’s authentic self?

Part 4: Means and Ends of Existential Humanistic Psychotherapy (6:56) Askimo TV

Related Posts:

Bob Edelstein Interview Series: Goals of Existential Humanistic Psychotherapy, Part 3 in a 5 part Series on Existential-Humanistic Pyschotherapy.

Bob Edelstein Interview Series: The Role of the Therapist in Existential Humanistic Psychotherapy, Part 2 in a 5 part Series on Existential-Humanistic Pyschotherapy.

Bob Edelstein Interview Series: Existential-Humanistic Psychotherapy, Part 1 in a 5 part Series on Existential-Humanistic Pyschotherapy.

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Bob Edelstein, L.M.F.T., M.F.T., is an Existential-Humanistic psychotherapist based in Portland, Oregon. In addition to being a therapist for over 36 years, he also provides consultation, supervision, and training for professionals, including a one-day workshop entitled Deepen Your Therapeutic Work Using an Existential-Humanistic Perspective. Bob is a founding member of the Existential-Humanistic Northwest Professional Organization and the Association for Humanistic Psychology - Oregon Community. He is a board member of the San Francisco based Existential-Humanistic Institute. Read more from Bob on his blog, Authentic Engagement.

Bob Edelstein Interview Series Part 2: The Role of the Therapist in Existential Humanistic Psychotherapy

Bob Edelstein Discusses Existential-Humanistic Psychotherapy Part 2 

In this second part to the interview series "The Role of the Therapist in Existential Humanistic Psychotherapy" Bob Edelstein answers the following questions: How is the therapy from an Existential-Humanistic Perspective conducted? Must therapy only be carried out individually or can groups also participate in a successful therapy session? What role does the therapist himself play in this form of therapy and is it different from other forms of psychotherapy? As an Existential-Humanistic Psychotherapist, what is your ultimate goal that is common throughout all of your patients that you wish to see?

Part 2: The Role of the Therapist in Existential-Humanistic Psychotherapy (4:56) Askimo TV

Related Post: Bob Edelstein's: Existential-Humanistic Psychotherapy, Part 1 of 5 in a 5 part Series on Existential-Humanistic Pyschotherapy

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Bob Edelstein, L.M.F.T., M.F.T., is an Existential-Humanistic psychotherapist based in Portland, Oregon. In addition to being a therapist for over 36 years, he also provides consultation, supervision, and training for professionals, including a one-day workshop entitled Deepen Your Therapeutic Work Using an Existential-Humanistic Perspective. Bob is a founding member of the Existential-Humanistic Northwest Professional Organization and the Association for Humanistic Psychology - Oregon Community. He is a board member of the San Francisco based Existential-Humanistic Institute. Read more from Bob on his blog, Authentic Engagement.

Bob Edelstein's Interview Series on Existential-Humanistic Psychotherapy, Part 1 of 5

Bob Edelstein Discusses Existential-Humanistic Psychotherapy Part 1 

We continue the Series What is the meaning of Existential-Humanistic Psychotherapy? What are some of the universal themes of existence that are explored in this field? What changes or enhancements to a person’s life are expected to come as a result of adopting an Existential Humanistic Approach? All of these questions will be answered by: Bob Edelstein - Existential-Humanistic psychotherapist who specializes in personal growth, life transitions, relationships, chemical dependency, anxiety and depression.

View Part 1: Bob Edelstein - Existential-Humanistic Psychotherapy (4:15) Askimo TV

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Bob Edelstein, L.M.F.T., M.F.T., is an Existential-Humanistic psychotherapist based in Portland, Oregon. In addition to being a therapist for over 36 years, he also provides consultation, supervision, and training for professionals, including a one-day workshop entitled Deepen Your Therapeutic Work Using an Existential-Humanistic Perspective. Bob is a founding member of the Existential-Humanistic Northwest Professional Organization and the Association for Humanistic Psychology - Oregon Community. He is a board member of the San Francisco based Existential-Humanistic Institute. Read more from Bob on his blog, Authentic Engagement.

Recently Bob Edelstein writes on "We are No-thing"

Bob Edelstein on his blog Authentic Engagement has a recent article entitled "We are No-thing -From no-thing-ness I discover my unique existential identity" in which he suggests an alternate paradigm to "being a somebody or something" in our culture.

"Crisis often mobilizes us to experience the transitory nature of life and our no-thing-ness. Acknowledging that we are no-thing goes against the cultural paradigm that all we are is some-thing. One must come from the space of one’s no-thing in order to be authentically some-thing." Read the full article

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Bob Edelstein, L.M.F.T., M.F.T., is an Existential-Humanistic psychotherapist based in Portland, Oregon. In addition to being a therapist for over 36 years, he also provides consultation, supervision, and training for professionals, including a one-day workshop entitled Deepen Your Therapeutic Work Using an Existential-Humanistic Perspective. Bob is a founding member of the Existential-Humanistic Northwest Professional Organization and the Association for Humanistic Psychology - Oregon Community. He is a board member of the San Francisco based Existential-Humanistic Institute.