What is Existential Therapy?

We all face moments shaped by loss, transition, disillusionment, grief, or the subtle ache of wondering whether this is really the life we meant to live. These moments are as much existential as they are psychological. And, in my view, they deserve a kind of therapy that does not fixate on pathology, but instead meets us with honesty and depth that respects the complexity of the human condition.

Existential therapy begins from a simple but demanding idea: human lives are not problems to be solved. Rather, we are complex, meaning-making beings living in an unpredictable world. We are free, but also responsible. We are finite, yet capable of leaving an enduring impact. We are social, and yet can feel profoundly alone. At times, these tensions are enough to make anyone feel a sense of vertigo.

As Søren Kierkegaard put it in The Concept of Anxiety, existential angst is “the dizziness of freedom.” It arises when we glimpse how open life truly is, how many directions it could take, and how uncertain any single choice can feel.

So what does all of this mean for therapy?

Existential Therapy Meets You Where You Are

In practice, existential therapy is nothing like a philosophy class on Nietzsche or Sartre. Nor is it abstract or aloof. Existential therapy is grounded, collaborative, and concerned with the real questions people carry with them, such as:

Who am I becoming, and is that who I want to be?
How can I accept uncertainty, loss, or the unknown?
What kind of life feels meaningful to me?
How do I live authentically in a world that often asks me to perform or conform?

Existential therapy does not offer one-size-fits-all solutions. It is not about fixing symptoms in isolation from the larger context of a person’s life. Instead, it offers an intentional space to pause, reflect on choices, and re-engage one’s freedom with courage and clarity.

From Philosophy to Practice

While existentialism clearly informed therapeutic approaches such as Viktor Frankl’s Logotherapy, many of the ideas that continue to shape existential therapy were developed by philosophers who were not therapists at all. They were thinkers attentive to the profound contingency of their own lives.

Jean-Paul Sartre, for example, emphasized that “existence precedes essence.” This suggests that we are not born with a fixed identity, but instead create ourselves through action and choice. His work is centrally concerned with authenticity, freedom, and the tension between individual agency and being seen, judged, or defined by others.

Another important anchor comes from Simone de Beauvoir, who recognized the social and political dimensions of existential struggle, particularly for women. In The Second Sex, she writes, “one is not born, but rather becomes, a woman.” With this single sentence, de Beauvoir captured the existential project of identity in a world shaped by power. Her work reminds us that meaning-making always occurs within systems.

For this reason, existential therapy, at its best, is not only personal. It is also socially aware. It invites reflection on how lives are shaped by patriarchy, capitalism, racism, colonialism, and other forces that condition freedom. To engage with these questions in therapy is often an act of reclaiming one’s life.

Modern Existential Therapists

Although existential therapy is rooted in philosophy, its contemporary clinical forms have been shaped by therapists such as Irvin Yalom, whose writing explores freedom, isolation, meaning, and mortality in deeply human terms. Emmy van Deurzen is another important figure, emphasizing the creative possibilities of living with life’s ambiguities and tensions held in view.

In my experience, existential therapy often integrates well with narrative therapy, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), and somatic approaches. Taken together, these modalities respect a fulsome account of human experience, including relational, social, physiological, psychological, and philosophical dimensions.

Whether you are feeling anxious, stuck, lost, or ready for change, existential therapy offers more than coping strategies. It offers an invitation to engage with your life as something worth examining, worth shaping, and worth living on your own terms.

If you are interested in exploring how this approach might fit your therapy goals, consider booking a free, 15-minute consultation with me.

Books to Explore

• Simone de Beauvoir (1949/2010). The Second Sex (trans. C. Borde & S. Malovany-Chevallier). Vintage.

• Emmy van Deurzen (2012). Existential Counselling and Psychotherapy in Practice (3rd ed.). SAGE.

• Viktor Frankl (1946/2006). Man’s Search for Meaning. Beacon Press.

• Søren Kierkegaard (1844/1980). The Concept of Anxiety (trans. R. Thomte). Princeton University Press.

• Jean-Paul Sartre (1943/2003). Being and Nothingness (trans. H. Barnes). Routledge.

• Irvin Yalom (1980). Existential Psychotherapy. Basic Books.