As Dina Ali was planning for her summer getaway to Montreal, she could not help but feel the stress of her marital problems. The 32-year-old nurse believed there must be a way to lessen the tension and make use of her stay in Montreal. Searching for self-development programs, she came across Solutions From Within that offers psychosynthesis sessions.
“I wasn’t familiar with psychosynthesis, but a workshop named ‘The Power Within’ caught my attention,” said Dina. “I e-mailed the lady who conducts it to inquire.”
Dina did not know what to expect from the six-week course. The sessions were held once a week for two hours with topics such as bad habits and why people develop them, exploring layers of self-image and examining obstacles in meeting one’s needs. “I thought it was very interesting and I wanted to give it a try,” said Dina. “The whole experience truly changed my life, especially meeting Libby.”
Libby Parker is a certified psychosynthesis practitioner who founded ‘Solutions From Within’ offering women a chance to explore everyday life difficulties to begin a process of change. She got acquainted with psychosynthesis when she first had her daughter.
“It’s a spiritual and holistic approach to psychotherapy,” said Parker. “As a young, divorced mother, I undertook psychosynthesis to increase my ability to be a better person for my child. I wanted to break a painful cycle: I did not want to carry forth so much pain and helplessness into motherhood.”
Libby has a Bachelor of Arts in Theater. It was during her studies that she first discovered the liberating and healing power of expression. Due to the loss of her mother and going through divorce, she experienced a transition. She realized that no one was there to pat her on the back for neglecting herself. It was a shift for her.
“I decided that I’m going to focus on living the fullest life that I could. I also wanted to do that as a gift to my daughter. I wanted to be a good example to her,” added Libby.
In 1993, Libby Parker joined Psychosynthesis Pathways of Montreal to receive a year of foundation and then studied two years to become a professional practitioner and a final year of supervision.
“What is nice about psychosynthesis is that while you’re studying you have to work on your own. What grief means to me? Sadness? Joy?” explained Libby. She said that she used to be an emotional person, but until she studied psychosynthesis she did not know the emotions she was feeling.
“There was a lot of confusion. Some people live from their heart, some from their body and some from their head. And if you’re too identified with one aspect then you’re not living a full balanced life,” she added.
When Libby started doing private practicing, she felt that there was a stigma of therapy. She worked with anyone who was interested in personal growth and not necessarily therapy.
“I just found in psychosynthesis a wealth of tools that anybody can use. So I wanted make a transition from therapy problem based practice to mainstream. I wanted to focus on self education,” she said.
Starting with private sessions and workshops, Libby decided to establish Solutions From Within (www.solutionsfromwithin.ca) offering psychosynthesis training and tools. Her courses and workshops are designed to help women improve their life by exploring and strengthening solutions to challenges that are interfering with personal development.
“What I have to offer is my experience. I’m helping guide someone along their path and that’s where the power comes from within,” said Libby. “Instead of telling someone you should be doing this or that’s wrong, people must allow themselves to listen to themselves.”
“The pain of not moving forward is not greater than the pain of trying to keep everything beneath the surface. You realize that when you start awakening,” said Libby.
Psychosynthesis was developed by the Italian psychiatrist Roberto Assagioli as a unified conception of human development and an organized system of techniques that can be applied in the fields of therapy. It blends Western philosophy and psychology with Eastern studies of human consciousness, such as meditation and yoga, creating a dynamic school of human development. Assagioli’s work teaches people how to live more fully by tapping into the higher realms of what it means to be human: inspiration, creativity, experiencing wisdom and joy, and learning how to bring these qualities into everyday life.
