Moving away from abstract concepts toward direct, lived experiencing is a cornerstone of Gestalt and Focusing-oriented counseling. Many counseling approaches prioritize conceptual frameworks “about” lived experience rather than immediate experiencing itself. While such constructs can help identify and define complex patterns, they remain distinct from the actual experience they represent. For humanists, holism transcends multidimensionality, and embodiment encompasses more than the physical body. Understanding this distinction illuminates what Fritz Perls referred to as “phenomenological seeing” and Eugene Gendlin described as “phenomenological saying.” This session will explore holism at two levels, integrating metacognition and embodiment within the phenomenal field. Attendees will engage in a clinical application to understand how clients’ “seeing” and “saying” can be utilized in Gestalt and Focusing-oriented counseling. Practical insights will be provided to demonstrate the relevance of these concepts across counseling theories and approaches.

Learning Objectives:
• Participants will understand the difference between pragmatic and experiential stances on holism and the body.
• Participants will synthesize how these differences apply to Gestalt and Focusing interventions in practice.
• Participants will engage with a demonstration of phenomenological seeing/saying and evaluate its merits.

Presenter: Brett D. Wilkinson, PhD
Dr. Brett Wilkinson is an Associate Professor at Purdue University Fort Wayne, where he serves as the Director of Counselor Education, founding Director of the Institute for Counseling Research (ICR), and Editor-in-Chief for the ACA's Journal of Humanistic Counseling. With 15 years as a Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC), Dr. Wilkinson holds dual BAs in Psychology and Philosophy from the University of Kentucky, an MA in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from Eastern Kentucky University, and a doctorate in Counselor Education and Supervision from the University of Northern Colorado, with a cognate in couples and family counseling. His research focuses on existential-phenomenological perspectives in counseling, specifically how they shape experiential awareness and embodiment in practice, training, and supervision. Additionally, he investigates cognitive complexity, the limitations of neuroscience in counseling, and mechanisms of therapeutic change. He coauthored Educational Psychology for Learners: Connecting Theory, Research, and Application (Kendall Hunt Publishing) and the forthcoming Therapy with Difficult Clients: Precursors and Techniques for the CHANGES Model (American Psychological Association).