Life Balance with Positive Psychotherapy

Abstract

Life balance is a central focus of positive psychotherapy (PPT, after Peseschkian). According to this humanistic psychodynamic psychotherapy, a balance among the four areas of body/health, work/achievement, contacts/relationships, and future/meaning is vital for one’s health.

The balance model is based on the concept that there are essentially four areas of life in which a human being lives and functions. These areas influence one’s satisfaction with life, one’s feelings of self-worth, and the way in which one deals with conflicts.

The balance model describes and connects the biological–physical, rational–intellectual, socio-emotional, and imaginative–spiritual spheres and capacities of human beings in everyday life. Although the potential for all four areas and capacities is present in every human being, some are especially emphasized and others neglected through differences in education and environment. Disorders and problems develop from areas that are not over-emphasized, but from those that are neglected.

In therapy, the patient learns to understand which family concepts have led to his/her one-sidedness and how s/he can develop other areas. In counseling and coaching, the client learns a framework for a healthy lifestyle, identifies strengths and weaknesses, and applies this self-help model in his or her daily life.

The balance model of positive psychotherapy has been applied in more than 25 countries as therapy, prevention, coaching, training, self-help, and education. It is appreciated by patients and clients from different cultural backgrounds and social levels.