Human Givens Therapy

Solution Focused Counselling

Human Givens Therapy encompasses all effective approaches to helping people. It draws on findings from psychology and neurobiology about how people really function, as well as research studies that have established which Counselling techniques are most effective.

How is the human givens approach to therapy effective?

This approach looks holistically at a person from a point of view of what’s missing in their lives. It does not however attempt to dredge up real or imagined miserable memories from the past, since research shows this tends to confuse and upset vulnerable people. Neither does it deal in the time wasting and prolonged so-called voyages of ‘self-discovery’. Instead, it offers practical help that deals with mental and emotional distress in the here and now.

Therapy focuses on helping clients identify unmet emotional needs and empowers them to meet those needs by activating their own resources in new ways. To do this it uses a variety of up-to-date and proven techniques aimed at problem solving.

Therapy is unique to each individual because each individual’s life circumstances are different.

What are the human givens?

Human Givens

To live happy, balanced and fulfilled lives it is essential that we have certain basic needs met. Fortunately, nature has given us the abilities and skills to meet these needs (our innate resources). As babies, we are born into this world with these needs and resources programmed into us – this is our natural genetic inheritance – the givens of human nature. It is these needs and resources that we call the Human Givens.

We are all well aware of our physical needs for food, water, sleep, shelter and warmth for us to live, grow and survive. However, there are many other needs, emotional rather than physical, that are vital to our health, well-being and survival. Emotional needs are:

  • attention – to give and receive
  • love and security
  • autonomy – to feel in control of our life
  • self-esteem – which arises from competence
  • meaning and purpose in our life
  • making a contribution to the wider community

Nature programmed us with these needs while we were in the womb, along with the ‘instruction’ once born, to search for situations that satisfy these needs. Therefore, when our innate needs are met in a balanced way, we are mentally and emotionally healthy. So, to help us meet these needs, nature has given us a wealth of resources that include:

  • the ability to learn and remember (memory)
  • a powerful imagination
  • the ability to analyse, plan and adapt (problem solving abilities)
  • the ability to step back into our observing self and be objective (self-awareness)
  • the ability to understand the world unconsciously (through pattern matching)
  • the ability to build rapport, empathise and connect with others
  • the mind and body as an integrated system
Human Givens

It is the combination of these needs and resources, which are built into our biology, that make up the human givens. When emotional needs are not met, or when our resources are used incorrectly, we suffer considerable distress – becoming angry, aggressive, anxious or depressed -which is natures way of telling us that all is not well.

It is important to understand that it is when emotional needs are not being met, that people are at risk of taking substances to mask or hide their distress (excessive drinking, smoking or drugs etc.). Also, when someone is not feeling stretched or fulfilled in their lives, they find other ways to artificially get a buzz (for example through drugs, gambling and obsessive sex), and this becomes the start of addictive behaviours.

Please Contact me for more details.