Spiritual Emergence and Emergency
The term "Spiritual Emergency" was coined by Stan and Christina Grof, the 2 main pioneers of working with altered states of consciousness (or so called "holotropic states") for healing purposes and personal development.
In their many years of work, they found that some people experience very big and profound spiritual "openings" and expansions that can be experienced as incredibly enriching and purposeful ("spiritual emergence"), but when too intense, sudden or without any supporting context, can also be experienced as overwhelming and lead to crisis and mental health problems (spiritual emergency).
Spiritual emergence or emergency can be brought on or triggered by strong and deep spiritual practice, the use of psychedelics or other holotropic states of consciousness, Kundalini activation and opening, traumatic or very stressful events, very intense experiences (e.g. child birth), certain embodiment therapies and practices, but can also appear completely spontaneously.
In our western culture, we often lack a framework or understanding for these experiences and label them as mental health disorders or "breakdowns". While a strong and unsupported spiritual opening can of course take the shape and form of crisis and distress, it also holds the potential for great personal development and transformation when guided and supported in the right way.
Lisa offers support and counselling for anyone in a process of spiritual emergence or emergency.
Sessions can be online and in person and cost 90 Euros per 60 min session.
If someone is in acute emergency, a tailored support plan (potentially including other suggested support systems) may be put into place
More about Spiritual Emergenc(y)
Stan and Christina Grof coined the term "Spiritual Emergency" and brought great awareness to this concept, after Christina herself experienced a Spiritual Emergency after a Kundalini Awakening as part of her spiritual practice.
In the West we dont have much framework or understanding when it comes to strong spiritual experiences or processes and they can often be mis- labelled or misunderstood as signs or expressions of "insanity". However, in eastern cultures there is more understanding (if not even appreciation) for experiences that are "out of the ordinary".
Independent or not if our culture is understanding of it or not, going through a strong spiritual emergence / emergency can be very challenging as it may put to question many if not all aspects and perceptions of our life.
Being supported by a skilled therapist can be profoundly beneficial during this time and help to understand and integrate these new experiences while staying grounded, connected and functioning in every day life.