by Joel Blackstock LICSW-S MSW PIP no. 4135C-S | Dec 7, 2025 | Christian Mysticism in Therapy, Philosophy for Therapists
A Theologian Who Understood the Psyche In the landscape of 20th-century thought, few figures managed to bridge the seemingly disparate worlds of theology, philosophy, and psychology with the elegance and profundity of Paul Tillich. Born in Prussia in 1886 and...
by Joel Blackstock LICSW-S MSW PIP no. 4135C-S | Dec 7, 2025 | Jungian Therapy and Depth Psychology
A Philosopher-King Writing to Himself in the Dark In the final decade of his life, along the frozen banks of the Danube River, surrounded by the chaos of military campaigns against Germanic tribes, the most powerful man in the ancient world sat alone in his tent and...
by Joel Blackstock LICSW-S MSW PIP no. 4135C-S | Dec 7, 2025 | Philosophy for Therapists
A Medieval Voice Speaking to Modern Minds In the dimly lit scriptoriums of fourteenth-century England, a Franciscan friar bent over his manuscripts, crafting arguments that would reverberate through centuries of human thought. William of Ockham could not have known...
by Joel Blackstock LICSW-S MSW PIP no. 4135C-S | Dec 7, 2025 | Christian Mysticism in Therapy, Phenomenology and Existential Psychology, Philosophy for Therapists, Psychology of Mystics, Gurus, and Spiritual Philosophers
The Ancient Roots of Inner Exploration When contemporary therapists speak of the unconscious, the divided self, or the healing power of narrative confession, they participate in a tradition far older than Freud or Jung. Sixteen centuries before the birth of...
by Joel Blackstock LICSW-S MSW PIP no. 4135C-S | Oct 19, 2025 | Psychology of Fiction / Flash Fiction / Screenwriting, Psychology of Film and TV, Psychology of Media and Culture
A Review of Into the Abyss by Werner Herzog Trigger Warning: This essay discusses capital punishment, murder, violence, death, and contains descriptions of violent acts including attempted murder. The film and essay examine traumatic events and their psychological...
by Joel Blackstock LICSW-S MSW PIP no. 4135C-S | Oct 1, 2025 | Psychology, Psychology Topics and Articles
Terror Management Theory (TMT) offers a profound framework for understanding the human psyche’s response to existential threats and mortality awareness. This paper explores how TMT illuminates the mechanisms of trauma creation and provides insights into...
by Joel Blackstock LICSW-S MSW PIP no. 4135C-S | Feb 4, 2025 | Psychology Topics and Articles
How can Existential Therapy Help? Loss is an inevitable part of the human condition. Whether through death, separation, or the myriad other ways in which life can strip us of what we hold dear, loss is a universal experience that touches every heart. And yet, despite...
by Joel Blackstock LICSW-S MSW PIP no. 4135C-S | Oct 18, 2024 | Philosophy for Therapists, Psychology, Psychotherapy Biographies: Historical Figures in the History of Psychology
Exploring the Contributions of Rollo May to Existential Psychotherapy Who was Rollo May Rollo May (1909-1994) was an influential American existential psychologist and psychotherapist. He played a key role in introducing existential psychology to the United States and...
by Joel Blackstock LICSW-S MSW PIP no. 4135C-S | Oct 1, 2024 | Alternative Medicine and Holistic Health, Anthropology and Evolutionary Psychology for Therapy, Philosophy for Therapists, Psychology, Psychology of Modernism Post Modernism and the Meta Modern, Psychotherapy Biographies: Historical Figures in the History of Psychology
The Stages of Grief as Defelection from Existential Dread We all go through the stages of grief all of the time: The stages of grief – denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance – represent common emotional reactions to loss and change...
by Joel Blackstock LICSW-S MSW PIP no. 4135C-S | May 5, 2024 | Depth Psychology Approaches and Techniques, Psychotherapy Biographies: Historical Figures in the History of Psychology
Foucault’s Ideas for Understanding Power, Discourse and the Self Who was Michel Foucault Who was Michel Foucault? Michel Foucault (1926-1984) was one of the most influential philosophers and social theorists of the 20th century. His groundbreaking ideas on...
