Life can feel confusing sometimes. You may wonder why you feel unhappy even when everything seems fine. You might question your relationships, career, or purpose. Or you may feel stuck after a major life change.
Existential therapy helps you explore these questions in a safe and supportive way.
It does not tell you how to live your life. Instead, it helps you understand yourself, make choices that match your values, and build a life that feels meaningful.
At Vedder Counselling, we offer Existential Therapy to help people understand themselves better and move forward with confidence.
If you feel lost, overwhelmed, or simply want to grow as a person, our registered clinical counsellors can help.
Dr. Ben Garrett, a Registered Clinical Counsellor (RCC), offers existential therapy in Chilliwack, Salmon Arm, and online across BC. He helps adults, teens, and families better understand themselves and make lasting positive changes.
What Is Existential Therapy?
Existential therapy helps you understand yourself on a deeper level. Instead of only focusing on symptoms, it helps you explore your values, choices, relationships, and purpose.
This approach encourages you to ask questions like:
- What kind of life do I want?
- What truly matters to me?
- Why do I feel disconnected?
- What choices can I make today?
The goal is not to give you all the answers. The goal is to help you discover your own answers and build a life that feels meaningful.
Do Existential Therapy Techniques Actually Work?
Research suggests they can.
One large study examined 21 clinical studies involving 1,792 people. It found that existential therapy helped many people find more meaning in their lives. It also helped reduce feelings of anxiety and depression.
The study found the best results when people explored their values, life goals, and the challenges they were facing.
The American Psychological Association also says that existential therapy helps people make better choices, take responsibility for their actions, and face difficult emotions rather than push them away.
What Are Existential Therapy Techniques?
Many people know something feels wrong, but they cannot explain why.
You may feel anxious, stressed, or unhappy. You may feel stuck in the same routines or keep making the same choices, even when they are not working. Knowing there is a problem is one thing. Knowing how to move forward is another.
Existential therapy techniques are simple but powerful ways therapists help people explore their thoughts, emotions, values, and life experiences.
These techniques help you understand yourself on a deeper level. They help you explore your thoughts, emotions, values, relationships, and life goals. Instead of simply treating symptoms, existential therapy helps you understand what is causing them in the first place.
Below are some of the most common techniques used in existential therapy.
1. Self-Reflection Through Questions
Existential therapists rarely tell you what to do. Instead, they ask thoughtful questions that help you understand yourself.
You might hear questions like:
- What matters most to you?
- When did you last feel truly happy?
- What are you avoiding right now?
These questions encourage you to slow down rather than react automatically.
Imagine you keep changing jobs because you think every workplace is the problem. During therapy, you may realize you have been choosing jobs that never match your values. That insight helps you make a different choice next time.
Many people already have the answers. They simply need the right questions to discover them.
2. Exploring Your Personal Values
Many people build their lives around what others expect.
You may choose a career because your family approves of it. You may stay in a relationship because you fear disappointing people.
Your therapist helps you separate your own values from everyone else’s.
Someone believes they should become a lawyer because of family pressure. Through therapy, they realize they actually enjoy teaching. That discovery helps them make career decisions with more confidence.
When your life matches your values, you often feel more motivated, confident, and fulfilled.
3. Meaning-Making
One of the best-known techniques in existential therapy helps people find meaning after difficult experiences.
The goal is not to pretend suffering is good. Instead, you ask how you can grow from it.
After losing a loved one, someone decides to volunteer with a local grief support group because they want to help others who are experiencing the same pain.
The loss still hurts, but it now has purpose.
Research shows that therapies focused on meaning can improve quality of life and reduce psychological distress, especially during major life challenges.
4. Looking at Freedom and Responsibility
Many people feel trapped by their circumstances.
Existential therapy reminds us that while we cannot control everything, we can choose how we respond.
Your therapist helps you identify the decisions that are still within your control.
Someone stays in a stressful job because they believe they have no choice.
During therapy, they realize they can update their resume, apply elsewhere, ask for flexible hours, or develop new skills.
They may not leave tomorrow, but they now see options instead of dead ends.
Recognizing your choices often reduces feelings of helplessness.
5. Facing Difficult Emotions Instead of Avoiding Them
People naturally avoid painful emotions.
They stay busy, scroll social media, overwork, or distract themselves.
Existential therapy gently encourages you to face those emotions rather than run from them.
A person avoids thinking about retirement because it makes them anxious.
Instead of pushing those feelings away, therapy helps them talk through their fears, understand them, and prepare for the future.
Avoiding emotions often makes them stronger. Understanding them usually makes them easier to manage.
6. Honest Dialogue
The conversation itself becomes part of the therapy.
Your therapist creates a safe space where you can speak openly without worrying about being judged.
You practice saying things you have struggled to say for years.
Someone admits, for the first time, that they constantly feel they disappoint everyone around them.
Once those feelings are spoken out loud, they become easier to understand and work through.
Many people improve communication not only in therapy but also with their partners, family, and friends.
7. Exploring Mortality and Time
This may sound unusual, but it is one of the most important parts of existential therapy.
Thinking about the fact that life is limited often changes how people live today.
Instead of creating fear, it can create clarity.
Someone spends years waiting for the “perfect time” to travel, reconnect with family, or start a business.
After exploring how quickly life passes, they begin making those plans now instead of waiting another ten years.
People often become more intentional about how they spend their time, energy, and relationships.
8. Living Authentically
Many people spend years trying to become the person they think others want.
Existential therapy encourages you to become the person you want to be.
That does not mean ignoring other people. It means making choices that honestly reflect your values.
A client always agrees to extra work because they fear saying no.
Through therapy, they learn to set healthy boundaries without feeling guilty.
Living authentically often improves self-esteem, reduces stress, and creates healthier relationships.
Who Can Benefit From Existential Therapy?
Existential therapy can help people who:
- Feel lost or uncertain about their future.
- Struggle with anxiety or ongoing stress.
- Face major life changes.
- Want stronger self-confidence.
- Feel disconnected from themselves or others.
- Want a greater sense of purpose.
- Feel overwhelmed by important decisions.
It is also helpful for people who simply want to understand themselves better and continue growing as individuals.
What Happens During an Existential Therapy Session?
Your sessions are calm, supportive, and focused on your experiences.
Your counsellor listens carefully, asks thoughtful questions, and helps you explore your thoughts without judgment.
Together, you look at your beliefs, emotions, values, and life experiences. You also develop practical ways to manage stress, improve emotional awareness, and move toward the life you want.
Talk to an Existential Therapist!
If you feel uncertain about your direction or want to understand yourself more deeply, you do not have to figure it out alone.
Vedder Counselling offers existential therapy in Chilliwack, Salmon Arm, and online throughout British Columbia.
Our registered clinical counsellors help you explore your values, understand your experiences, and move forward with greater confidence and purpose.
Book a counselling session today to start your journey toward a more meaningful and fulfilling life.
If you have questions or would like to speak with our team first, call (587) 819-1920. We are here to help.
People Also Ask
What are the main techniques used in existential therapy?
Existential therapists often use value exploration, self-reflection, honest dialogue, personal responsibility, meaning-making, and discussions about choice and purpose. These techniques help people better understand themselves and make thoughtful life decisions.
Is existential therapy only for people having a life crisis?
No. Many people choose existential therapy because they want personal growth, better self-awareness, or a stronger sense of purpose. You do not need to experience a major crisis to benefit from it.
Does existential therapy help with anxiety?
Yes. Existential therapy can help people understand the deeper causes of anxiety, especially anxiety related to uncertainty, life changes, or questions about identity and purpose. It also helps people build healthier ways of responding to those feelings.
How long does existential therapy take?
The length of therapy depends on your goals and situation. Some people benefit after a few months, while others continue longer as they work toward personal growth and lasting change.
