For those who have lived abroad, the experience of being an expat is one of
constant adjustment, adaptation, and striving towards a sense of balance and
completeness. The Gestalt therapy approach offers a powerful framework for
understanding and navigating the psychological terrain of the expat journey.
At its core, Gestalt therapy is focused on achieving wholeness, authenticity and
meaningful presence in the here and now. This is accomplished by bringing
integrated awareness to one’s thoughts, emotions, behaviours and surroundings in
each new situation. For expats, who are constantly being transplanted into unfamiliar
cultural environments, developing this type of holistic, present-focused awareness is
both extremely challenging and absolutely vital.
The perpetual newness and transition inherent to expat life can breed feelings of
disorientation, disconnection and fragmentation of the self. Forming an integrated
Gestalt – a unified sense of wholeness – requires expats to remain highly attuned to
their immediate thoughts, feelings and surroundings as they navigate cross-cultural
complexities. There is a constant need to make sense of new situations through
synthesizing various thoughts, sensations and environmental inputs into a cohesive,
meaningful experience.
A core principle of Gestalt therapy is that psychological suffering and fragmentation
stems from a lack of integrated self-awareness in the present moment. Expat life,
with its near-constant upheaval and re-calibration, offers fertile ground for slipping
into this state of disconnection and “unfinished business.” Developing the capacity
for focused present-awareness, letting go of attachments to previous environments,
and practicing acceptance of oneself and one’s circumstances are critical Gestalt
practices for finding wholeness abroad.
The Cycle of Experience at the heart of Gestalt therapy illuminates how expats must
learn to flow with the natural rhythm of ever-shifting awareness and adjustment.
There are phases of taking in new sensations and information about the host culture,
followed by periods of energy-building and introspection, then finally taking action to
integrate this experience into a new, unified sense of self. Finding balance and ease
within this cyclical process is key for sustained well-being and growth as an expat.
Gestalt therapy also emphasizes building greater self-knowledge and ownership of
one’s needs, beliefs, desires and behaviours. In order to feel whole and authentic in
new cultural contexts, expats must get clear about their own personal truths,
boundaries and inner drives. Developing this level of self-understanding while
toggling between cultural norms is an immense psychological undertaking.
The work of creating an integrated Gestalt is fundamentally about strengthening the
connection between one’s inner experiences and outer reality. For expats, this dance
of aligning internal needs with external environments is in constant motion. It
requires relentless self-awareness, openness to shifting perspectives, and a
willingness to continually reconstruct and refine one’s sense of self in relation to new
cultural contexts.
In many ways, expats exist in a perpetual state of the “paradoxical theory of change”
espoused in Gestalt therapy. To grow and transform, one must fully accept and
inhabit their immediate reality, while simultaneously nurturing the creative
possibilities for their future self and situation. Striking this delicate balance while
straddling multiple cultural frames is the great challenge – and achievement – of
creating an integrated, authentic Gestalt as an expat.
While immensely demanding, the expat’s journey of striving for wholeness through
cycles of present-awareness, self-understanding and adjustment leads to profound
personal empowerment and psychological flexibility. A successful expat Gestalt
enables one to feel at home within themselves – whole, vibrant and fully alive –
wherever their adventures may lead.