Ecological therapy, and more recently, Ecological TA, supports us to work in a way that recognises and honours our interconnection with the land and other beings. It provides the context for therapists to connect with the natural world in respectful and reciprocal ways and to bring these skills directly into our therapy practices and communities.

At Beyond The Garden we have two main reasons for working ecologically:  One is to honour the more than human in a way that many of us have forgotten, which is urgently needed at this time for the benefit of all beings. The second is to recognise that the lack of this honouring, the disconnection from our lives amongst other lives, contributes to our mental emotional and physical dis-ease.

Autonomy as defined by Eric Berne, the founder of TA, means that when we are truly ‘Adult’  we can be spontaneous and aware, fully capable of intimacy in the moment. I hold this meaning very much in mind when working with clients. As an honourable and timeless objective, it chimes with ancient practises such as Buddhism and Hindu Vedanta, and with Native American ideologies. 

At the same time, we are mammals designed to be interdependent, co-operative, and slow growing. We need each other to survive, and we need to love and to feel loved to thrive. We are also creatures who are part of a complex ecosystem, with which we are also deeply interdependent, in ways which many of us take for granted, or have been educated to ignore, forget, or destroy.

Working with Ecological TA

Most of us as children, when given the time and space, will have enjoyed playing outside, using our imagination and bringing our curiosity to the natural world around us. For many of us this was home to the stories we told ourselves about the magical lives we live and want to live. It fed our natural fascination with science, maths, geography, history, and language.  So, on an ordinary day to day level we have all related to the world around us and noticed what is alive that is not human. We have experienced that relationship, and felt it’s special value, it’s mystical miraculous quality. For example, finding that shiny perfect pebble on the beach, a falling leaf, soft green lichen, spiders webs glistening after the rain, evening birdsong. These experiences have helped us to feel good about ourselves.

During a therapy session, when we are deep in a conversation about relationship difficulties, it can be intriguing to suddenly notice birds arguing across the trees, defending their territories. Or when we are discussing something tender and painful, for the little robin to come and visit, checking us out, even coming close enough for us to touch.

When exploring our internal child adult and parent dialogue (known in TA as Ego States) in an embodied way, surrounded by nature, we have room to move around and speak from the place of each part. We can witness the change, so that it becomes alive with possibility, and easier to understand.

Together we can notice how we sit by the fire, talk to the fire, our arrival walking through the trees and amongst ferns and seasonal flowering plants. How we breath, how we move, how the air feels on or face. How even the rain brings a freshness, or a passing storm offers a challenge that is natural and normal. We will notice how all these experiences can contribute to our true sense of Autonomy - of being aware, spontaneous and intimate in the moment.

’We go to the forest because that is where we’ve come from. It is here in the wild places that we can remember how to live in harmony with each other, the planet, and ourselves. The forest is a great repository of wisdom that remains alive and intact. The “teachings” of the forest don’t always come in words but alter us on an energetic level and allow us to receive the imprint, the blueprint of life that is our birthright as children of this creation.’ ~ The School of Forest Medicine