Core Process Psychotherapy

Core Process Psychotherapy (CPP) sits within the Humanistic & Integrative College of the UK Council for Psychotherapy (UKCP).

CPP is a mindfulness-based approach to therapy and includes not only the mind, but also the role of the body in holding onto habitual patterns of tension. It’s based on the understanding that at the centre of each of us lies the potential to be whole, happy and healthy. This is the ‘core state’ and it’s believed to be unconditioned and ever-present, regardless of the situation we find ourselves in. 

We’re always moving towards expressing this innate health as best we can. However, as we grow and shape our personality, this inherent state of being can become obscured. We begin to relate to ourselves and the world in habitual ways, repeating set patterns, attitudes, and tendencies. Events can overwhelm us and as we are not able to process them, we get stuck. In CPP we  create the conditions necessary to enable us to start moving on from these painful places within ourselves, through developing qualities of spaciousness, compassion and clarity. 

Difficulties and traumas in our lives can cause us to develop defensive strategies as part of our personality. These strategies can also become habitual and continue long after the original painful circumstances or traumas have passed. This has an impact on how we view the world and may cause us to respond in ways that do not help us, preventing us from reaching our full potential. 

The intention of CPP is to help us make contact with our core health, so we can respond more authentically and skilfully to whatever we meet in our lives.

CPP represents a blend of Eastern philosophy and Western psychology. It draws on Buddhist principles and practices, such mindfulness, compassion, and unconditional acceptance, and is guided by the Buddhist view of human suffering and healing. It’s also influenced by Western psychodynamic theories and therapeutic techniques. You do not need to have a spiritual background, belief system or practice to benefit from or undertake CPP. 

In CPP there is a focus on bringing awareness to our experience in the present moment. We learn to receive life just as it is, even when difficult or painful, becoming more aware of our moment to moment experience. This in itself is deeply healing and enriching.