What is a Felt Sense?

PLEASE NOTE: This class ended on November 17 but you may complete a post registration which will give you access to all recordings and resources until February 28, 2022.

An interactive 4-session course facilitated by Rob Parker.

Live sessions on Wednesdays: October 27, November 3, 10, and 17, 2021 at 2pm-4pm Eastern (NY) time. 

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The Experience of felt sensing is in many ways at the heart of Focusing and of Gendlin's philosophy of the implicit. But how well do we understand this experience? For example, how is it that the body can “know” something that the mind does not? Isn't "knowing" supposed to happen in the brain?

Using lecture, discussion and experiential exercises, this course will explore Gendlin's understanding of felt sense, and along the way we will also explore his understanding of consciousness, meaning, and life. Thus it will also be a good introduction to Gendlin's philosophy. And if you are already familiar with Gendlin's philosophy, this series may help you carry your understanding forward in a new way.

Session 1

• We will discuss the relationship between science and philosophy, and why current science cannot explain the felt sense. How philosophy can help science, and how Gendlin starts off on different ground than current science.
• We will then explore some basic concepts such as body-en, implying, and carrying forward. It is interesting that although implying is a central concept in Gene's philosophy, he has never given a clear definition of it. We will discover why not.

Session 2

• Armed with these basic concepts we will explore two new concepts, versioning and re-recognizing. These will enable us to go far beyond modern science, to think about the actual experience of feeling, perception, and consciousness.

Session 3

• We will use what we have learned so far to understand verbal consciousness, our sense of self, and social reality, in a new way.

Session 4

• In our final session, we will pull everything together to understand Focusing: how is it that our "body" can "know" something that the "mind" does not, what is a felt sense, and what is Focusing.

Prerequisite: This is for people who have experienced Focusing and are curious to know more about it. A background in philosophy is not necessary.

About Your Facilitator

Rob Parker, Ph.D. is a psychologist, philosopher, and Zen practitioner.  

As a psychologist, Rob specialized in helping both victims and perpetrators of psychological trauma. He developed and directed one of the first hospital based treatment programs for sexually abused children, an outpatient treatment program for domestic violence, and an alternative-to-detention program for adolescent sex offenders. He has also served as an expert witness and court-appointed therapist in child abuse cases, and as a consultant for governmental and private agencies.  

Philosophically, Rob has been concerned throughout his life with the materialistic and reductionistic tendencies of Western science and culture.  This concern led to a meeting with Gene Gendlin in 2000.  Rob quickly recognized the importance of Gene’s philosophy and in 2003 began studying with him for several hours a week until Gene’s death in 2017.  At the same time, Rob learned Focusing and Focusing oriented psychotherapy from Gene’s wife Mary Hendrix, and Focusing oriented therapy for complex trauma (FOT-CT) from Shirley Turcotte.  

Rob did a Masters Thesis comparing aspects of Eastern and Western psychology, under the supervision of philosopher and Tibetologist Herbert V Guenther, and has practiced yoga and zazen meditation for many years. 

FORMAT

We use Zoom videoconferencing for our online classes. The class will not be limited. The class will be held in MEETING FORMAT so that all participants can see the presenter and each other. You will need to have a computer/mobile device. Calling in by phone is also possible but not preferred as participation in breakout rooms will be limited. Exercises carried out via breakout rooms are not recorded.

THE SMALL PRINT

Refund policy: A full refund minus a $15 administrative fee for cancellations 14 days before the start date. Cancellations less than 14 days before the start date are nonrefundable. The International Focusing Institute reserves the right to cancel or re-schedule for insufficient enrollment or for other unanticipated reasons. In such cases you will be given a choice of applying your tuition to future programs, or having the full enrollment fee returned to you.

For more information:

Contact Elizabeth at [email protected] or (845) 480-5111.