Gestalt Approach To Life And Therapy

A Workshop with Srini Katragadda

This eight session training group is an opportunity for you to work on yourself, and learn from the Gestalt principles and techniques to enhance your skills as a practitioner.

Mastering the Art of Presence

Most clinical training focuses on what to treat: diagnostic categories and specific protocols. But what happens when the protocol hits a wall? This training is designed to provide the "missing link" in modern practice: it shifts away from just applying interventions to mastering therapeutic presence. Instead of getting lost in a client’s narrative, you will learn to track the "here and now" and recognize the subtle habits that keep clients stuck. This is an opportunity to move beyond just "talking about" problems and learn how to facilitate real change in the room, regardless of what your client is struggling with.

In This Training You Will:

Discover the power of Gestalt's right brain therapy.

Learn to harness what is most alive in the moment as a portal to health and healing.

Practice popular Gestalt techniques such as “empty chair” work.

Work with your somatic sensations, dreams and parts of self in an experiential and existential way.

Explore ways in which heightened awareness of the world can enrich your life both personally and professionally.

Learn to rest your mind and rest in your body and senses.

Dates

Starts Friday, August 28th 2026;

From 9:30am to 12:30pm PST

Eight sessions held every other week.

Location

In person sessions in Oakland, CA and virtual via Zoom

Admission

Only pay for the first session with the option to decide later if you want to continue the full program or pay the full amount up front.

Training Fee for 8 Sessions: $640

First Session Only: $100

Srini Katragadda, LMFT

Srini Katragadda has been an educator and clinician for over 20 years. During this time, Srini has developed training programs and workshops to increase awareness and alignment with oneself.

Srini has been teaching Gestalt Therapy and facilitating workshops in the SF bay area and internationally in a uniquely experiential way. He co-founded the Bay Area Gestalt Institute and is currently a faculty member at the California Institute of Integral Studies.

Srini has been facilitating this particular Gestalt training and process group for the last 15 years.

What past students say:

"Srini teaches the Gestalt class as a jazz musician plays on stage. He is so knowledgeable and has so much experience that he is able to improvise while attending to the here and now, using gestalt concepts, regardless of what direction the class takes. His demonstrations in class were powerful: he provided a safe space where several people seemed to have breakthroughs while surrounded by 15+ people. Quite masterful."

(Fall 2023)

"Srini teaches by modeling. He lives Gestalt, shares examples from his personal and professional life, and makes space for each student to come to their own understanding and experience of Gestalt. He is clearly passionate about the subject matter, and his enthusiasm generates a creative and challenging (in a positive way) learning environment."

(Spring 2025)

"This was my favorite course because of how much it stimulated my learning and growth! I felt like I was better able to live in the present moment because of the teachings of this course and felt an overall sense of peace that my life had been lacking. What I learned in class has come through in my clinical practice and I expect I will be incorporating the lessons learned from this class into my long term career."

(Spring 2024)

What Is Gestalt Therapy?

First developed in the 1950s, Gestalt Therapy has its foundations in Gestalt Psychology, existential philosophy and phenomenology, holism, humanistic psychology, Eastern contemplative practices, somatic work, and theory of change. When engaging with Gestalt, we hone our skills to listen more deeply to our somatic feelings and sensations. We discover that we have a sophisticated internal radar that can help us align with who we are moment to moment, as we continually emerge in response to the changing world around us.

Why Add Gestalt To Your Clinical Practice?

For many therapists, the challenge lies in helping clients break free from the "mental zone", the repetitive narratives and anxious chatter that traditional talk therapy sometimes reinforces.

Gestalt offers a powerful alternative: the Awareness Continuum.

By mastering this approach, you gain the ability to guide clients out of their cognitive loops and into the other two "zones" of reality: the outer zone of the senses and the inner zone of the body. This shift allows you to:

Move beyond the narrative: Help clients access immediate somatic wisdom rather than getting stuck in old stories.

Identify conditioning: Quickly uncover the anxieties driving a client’s mind by observing their somatic interruptions.

Teach "Mind-Rest": Provide clients with a tangible tool to quiet their internal monologue and experience a mind at rest.

Gestalt is an experiential tool that restores balance to the therapeutic process, allowing you to work with the whole person: mind, body, and environment.

About

Bay Area Gestalt Institute

Have questions? Contact Srini at srinik@gmail.com