Thank you so much for this amazing interview.

Comment by Joyce — August 19, 2011 @ 6:46 pm

Great conversation. Bruce Tift has real skills and tremendous integrity. Thank you Tami for producing his work and thanks to Bruce for sharing his wisdom.

Comment by Noel Morton — August 19, 2011 @ 7:24 pm

Thank you to Sounds True and to Bruce Tift.
This talk has added another layer of understanding to the understanding of the relashionship between an acceptance of immidiate open awareness and the fact that all sorts of feelings will arise,pleasurable and otherwise,and what we consider as a problem is the unwillingness to feel as intensely as possible whatever may arise. This talk has deepened my understanding and acceptance of my training with Richard Moss. THANKS AGAIN

Comment by LEILA MOUSSI — August 20, 2011 @ 4:29 am

Wonderful interview – I’m going to listen to it twice. I recently had a dear friend point out that the biggest “stumbling block” to moving into the fullness of life is the inability to sit with pain (and not run.) Wow…

Comment by Kelli Swan — August 20, 2011 @ 10:50 am

I never did get resolved about the partner that keeps walking out on conversations etc. and leaves us feeling hurt, alone and frustrated. I got that we have to learn to be with those (our own) feelings and to find out that it doesn’t diminish us. But what about the childish behavior of the other person? If he or she doesn’t want to be involved in the same procedure, do we continue to live with them for our own enlightenment as a ever present irritant for our growth or leave them if the behavior doesn’t change?

There’s lots of Jungian mumbo jumbo here and I wonder if this can’t all be stated more directly and simply. Then too, this is not the only non-traditional approach to Spirit based therapy. Consider Shamanism/Soul Retrieval as one; and is perhaps a faster approach. In the end, are we not removing misconceptions in our mental and feeling bodies, if not our physical bodies as well? Could we not begin with the physical body?

Peace Out,

Wally

Comment by Walter Hughes — August 21, 2011 @ 4:17 am

Thank you so much for including this in your weekly wisdom series. I have learned so much about myself and my responses to stress and anxiety. I have learned that I have caused myself more anxiety and stress by wanting to avoid certain situations or resisting to “deal” with them. I believe the information that I have gained here will help me with my work & relationships. Again thank you.

Comment by Samantha Reeder — August 21, 2011 @ 4:16 pm

Excelent, Thank you so much for this interview, a very deep one and, so to speak, enlightening regarding the buddhist perspective in psychoteraphy.

Comment by Bàrbara — August 22, 2011 @ 8:52 pm

Being aggressive vs. being kind
to my own vulnerability
is a critical distinction that
was extremely useful
from my reading of this interview and
It reminded me of Peter Levine’s comment that a sensing human being is less likely to suffer…

and while suffering is part of the human condition
staying in sensation can ameliorate the harm.

Thank you for this good work.

Comment by Lynda Beth Unkeless — August 23, 2011 @ 12:49 am

it’s freeing to even consider that i could put forth the effort to do this work that bruce tift describes. thank you,tami, and thanks to roy of hollywood [kpfk] for introducing me to your wonderful work several years ago.

Comment by cecilia c center — August 27, 2011 @ 11:41 pm

I am a third year gestalt psychotherapy student and what Bruce has said about staying with the sensations and what we call in gestalt the phenomenology, staying with the “what is”. It is what is figural at that point in time. What Bruce has done for me is confirm that my training is on track.Thanks Bruce and Tami.

Comment by Karen Booth — September 6, 2011 @ 3:50 pm

Bruce’s practices seem simple, difficult, and hopefully effective;
• Accept that even the good life includes pain. There is likely no bypassing this.
• Keep coming back to an awareness of present moment embodied sensations; especially the intense ones.
• Spend some time resting as open awareness.

Comment by Stanley — September 11, 2011 @ 6:56 am

As a longtime yoga practitioner, I found the comments re: physical pain a bit questionable – due to my long work to reverse a lot of that, and it worked! (So far!) So, I love the emphasis that Tift has on staying in the mystery – maybe it’s possible to practice this type of self- and other-compassion, and reach new levels of whole-presence, that are deeper even than the whole open awareness he is talking about….therein lies the mystery! Wherever that may go, there are so many useful ideas in his perspective…I’m off to investigate!

Comment by Kathleen Goodman — September 11, 2011 @ 9:34 pm