Anomalous Experiences
Experiences that challenge our understanding of reality can be profoundly meaningful, disorienting, and often deeply isolating. Whether related to mystical or spiritual experiences, near-death experiences, encounters that feel impossible to explain, unusual experiences of consciousness, or other anomalous phenomena, many people struggle to find spaces where they can speak about and explore these experiences openly without fear of being judged, dismissed, disbelieved, or being automatically pathologized.
These experiences have been well documented historically and scientifically, and therefore deserve to be acknowledged and included in therapy as a legitimate dimension of human experience.
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Anomalous Experiences
Research suggests that non-ordinary or anomalous experiences are relatively common across the general population and that "most of them are not related to psychotic disorders".* Current research also suggests that psychological outcomes are influenced less by the experience itself than by factors such as the individual's interpretation of the experience, its impact on daily functioning, the broader social and cultural context, and the support available to help integrate it.
Ontological Shock
Experiences that challenge our understanding of reality can sometimes give rise to ontological shock—a profound disruption to the assumptions we hold about ourselves, the world, or the nature of consciousness. This can leave us questioning what we once believed to be true and may evoke feelings of awe, fear, confusion, grief, existential uncertainty, or isolation. Often, it is not only the experience itself that is difficult, but the challenge of making sense of it within a worldview that no longer feels stable.
Offering Space to Explore
These experiences can be difficult to talk about because they are often misunderstood, dismissed, or made taboo. In therapy, you don't have to defend your experience or arrive at any particular explanation. My approach is grounded in curiosity, compassion, and current research. Together, we can explore what the experience(s) meant for you, how it has affected your life, and support its integration in a way that honours both your lived experience and your psychological well-being.
*Moreira-Almeida, A., & Cardeña, E. (2011). Differential diagnosis between non-pathological psychotic and spiritual experiences and mental disorders: A contribution from Latin American studies to the ICD-11.
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