Attending the Soul: Depth Psychotherapy

Jim Moyers, MA, MFT

East San Francisco Bay Psychotherapist

I am a psychotherapist practicing since 1986 in the East San Francisco Bay Area.  I do short and long-term psychodynamically oriented work with adult individuals and couples.  Having grown up in a conservative religious community, in addition to the usual types of issues people that bring people into therapy, I have a particular interest in working with people who have been involved with fundamentalist churches and other highly demanding spiritual groups.  Follow the link below for more information about this and my other professional interests.

The Greek word, psyche, translates as “breath, life, or soul” in English. “Therapy” is derived from therapeia, the attendant who served both the gods and humanity in the temples of ancient Greece.   “Psychotherapy” can thus be described as the sacred work of attending the soul, carefully nurturing the most essential aspects of who and what one is, and connecting the personal self to a Source of meaning and wholeness.  The idea that the psyche, or soul, naturally moves towards integration and wholeness is at the heart of my work as a psychotherapist, an “attendant of the soul.”  As it takes time and effort to connect with the soul, psychotherapy that looks deeply into human experience to find meaning in the things that afflict us is increasingly rare in these days of supposedly quick “evidence-based” fixes that attempt to reduce human experience to a set of numbers.

I came into this field through my discovery of the writings of the great Swiss psychiatrist, Carl Jung.  A central concept in Jungian psychology is the idea that there is within each individual an innate drive to become more fully her/his self.  Psychotherapy in the Jungian tradition is a means for reconnecting with Something deep within that gives life purpose and meaning.  Rather than trying to shape you to fit some preconceived notion of what you should be, depth psychotherapy honors the uniqueness of your experience of self and the world, going beyond mere symptom relief to the discovery of meaning in the problems for which you seek help.  

While I don’t approach therapy as a sort of archaeological excavation of the past in hopes of finding the key to everything (which would be nice if possible!), I am very much interested in how past experience shapes what happens here and now.  I make suggestions from time to time, ask questions, and share my thoughts as we go along.  But more than anything else I very carefully listen to the unique story you have to tell.  Always my primary goal is to help you discover meaning in your unique journey through life while supporting you in broadening the range of choices available to you.  My job is not to be the expert on your life but rather to help you discover and connect with your own inner wisdom and expertise.  While I cannot promise to supply definitive answers to the questions that you bring to therapy, I can help you discover answers that lie within.  It is an honor and a privilege to be asked to attend someone for a little part of the journey through life.  It is a work like no other.

More

Information for New Clients

Some of My Professional Interests

My Training & Professional Affiliations

Religious Studies & Spirituality Links

Restrictive Religious Groups

Resources for Ex-Members of Fundamentalist/Cultic Groups

From Wildman to King:  Another Look at “Iron John”

Innovations in Fat reduction and Anti-Aging

Contact me: jim@jimmoyers.com

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