Abstract

As children are constantly growing and changing (psycho-physically) during the years of ageing and growing up in an adult person, searching for homeostasis, for balance, this quest for homeostasis and equilibrium can be followed by crises and problems. The organism constantly searches for homeostasis, maintaining both psycho and physical health and checks that balance (adaptation through searching) with aim to satisfy all its needs. Children respond to family and community (environment) problems, trauma, crises and losses in approximately similar developmental modes (disfunctionality). Today, we increasingly encounter children with a manifestation of a developmental impediment in effective social communication in a higher or lower degree. All I have been writing and talking about child wellbeing, illness (acute or chronic without difference), medical care and psychotherapy so far and what I was doing was just one part of this long, curvy road, full of obstacles and surprises. The other part that I was interested in, all in order to improve my work as a pediatrician and gestalt psychotherapist is what is behind the face of the therapy. What is above the therapy, standard medical treatment? That was the reason that in my everyday pediatrician’s practices my team and I implemented gestalt psychotherapy as measure of support (in some cases as preventive measure). Gestalt psychotherapy represents new paths in work with kids in pediatrician’s office and support to all healing methods.

Gestalt uses techniques that focuses on gaining an awareness of emotions and behaviors in the present rather than in the past, here rather than there. Due to etiology of most commonly psycho-physical disturbance in my pediatrician’s practice, psychological reasons are one of commonly mentioned risk factors. This paper shows how gestalt therapy can be used in work with children with chronic same as acute illnesses that blocked emotions and interrupted contact on several levels, but also shows how gestalt therapy can be used as preventive measures and support in everyday pediatrician’s practice. This paper/opinion will present a part of results I got, special awareness I got, my feelings, empathy, my interpretive understandings. I started with this research motivated to improve my work and results I got have the potential to become guideline for next step in developing best appropriate combination of medical and psychotherapeutic procedures.