Experimentation | A Pillar of Gestalt Therapy
Sometimes talking about something isn’t quite enough
Gestalt psychotherapy is built around four important pillars:
Phenomenology, Dialogue, Field Theory and Experimentation.
Each offers a different way of understanding ourselves, our relationships and how we experience the world.
Today, I’m looking at the fourth and final pillar:
Experimentation.
What Is Experimentation in Gestalt Therapy?
Experimentation is about moving beyond simply talking about our experiences and becoming curious about what happens when we try something different.
Sometimes we can understand a pattern really well, know where it comes from and recognise when it’s happening, yet still find ourselves doing the same thing.
Gestalt experiments give us an opportunity to explore those patterns in the moment, rather than just discussing them.
What Might Experimentation Look Like in Therapy?
I might invite you to:
Notice what happens in your body when you talk about something difficult.
Try saying something out loud that you’ve never felt comfortable saying.
Explore what happens when you change your posture or the way you’re sitting.
Imagine having a conversation with someone you’ve struggled to speak honestly with.
Try expressing a feeling differently and notice what changes.
There’s no right or wrong outcome. An experiment isn’t a test, and you don’t have to get anything right.
It’s simply an opportunity to discover something about yourself.
Why Is Experimentation Important?
One of the things I particularly enjoy about Gestalt psychotherapy is that we don’t always have to sit and talk.
Sometimes I’ll invite a client to try something small, and they’ll notice something they hadn’t been aware of before.
Perhaps they realise they’re holding their breath when discussing conflict. Or that their body becomes tense when they try to say no.
These small discoveries can tell us a lot.
Understanding why we do something is valuable, but experiencing something different can open up new possibilities.
As a Gestalt and Sensorimotor Psychotherapy practitioner, I enjoy bringing the body into our work. Our posture, movements, sensations and responses can offer valuable information that words alone might miss.
And sometimes an experiment doesn’t reveal much at all. That’s okay too.
Experimentation is collaborative, always an invitation, and something we explore at your pace.
For me, it’s one of the reasons therapy can be creative, surprising and occasionally even fun.
Curious to Know More?
If you’ve tried therapy before and still feel stuck, perhaps it’s time to try something different.
I offer Gestalt psychotherapy and body-based therapy in Albion, Brisbane, and online across Australia.
You’re welcome to reach out to find out more or explore whether my approach might be right for you.
Cath Sully
Psychotherapist | Counsellor | Registered Nurse
Terra Soul Therapies
Albion, Brisbane QLD
Clinical grounding: This post reflects established Gestalt principles described by Joseph Zinker in Creative Process in Gestalt Therapy (1977), and Jan Roubal’s Experiment: A Creative Phenomenon of the Field (2009). Experiments are collaborative explorations intended to deepen awareness, rather than exercises designed to produce a predetermined result.
Experimentation in Gestalt Therapy
Experimentation in Gestalt Therapy
Experimentation: A Gestalt Therapy Pillar
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