Existential Crisis: A pluralistic response

We reach significant turning points in our lives which might be described as ‘existential crises’1 where stark realities come into the foreground of our experience. We might experience a wondering about why I am living this specific life and not others: Why this partner? Why this place? Why these friends? Why this job? (Or more generally: What the hell am I doing?) It may involve a questioning of the meaning of things: why does this matter, why should I care? It may also involve an acute awareness that I am and/or the people I love are going to die. Often at these points we might seek out psychotherapy. However there are diverse routes through which client and therapist might work collaboratively to turn into and reflect upon existential experience. Moreover our clients will uncover different strategies through which to re-realise connection and continuity. As such, here a pluralistic approach2,3 to responding to existential crises is advocated. Whilst existentialism may be thought of as a middle class concern, for those of us with the luxury to ponder upon such things, nonetheless in this article I’m going to advance the idea that we are all confronted with the same perennial conditions of life – which I identify here as impermanence and incompleteness.

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