HEALTH, WELLBEING.
Power.
Perhaps without us realising, the dynamics of power sculpts every interaction we have, in our families, occupations, socially, culturally.
It can be something that can enhance or diminish us. Lying at the heart of how valued, seen and respected we feel.
Power is defined as the “capacity to make a difference in the world by influencing the states of other people.” And in one influential framework published by Lisa Vaneklasen and Valerie Miller in their book A New Weave of Power they define it as existing in four different states- power over- achieved by dominance and control- power with, that is achieved through collaboration and mutuality, power within, that is related to a sense of self worth and self knowledge, including the capacity to acknowledge individual differences while respecting others” and power to, which respects that everyone has the capacity to shape their own experiences without dominance or relationships.
Power is therefore complex and multidimensional- existing on many levels, within, without and between.
It is an important consideration in many aspects and relationships of our lives, and in the context of healing and health, power can take on a particular significance and set an example for relationships that exists outside of a therapeutic realm.
As a virtue of knowledge, practitioners that specialise in the care of the body/mind/ brain can inadvertently assume a position of power over those in their care, that can subconsciously disempower and unintentionally may even subvert rather than reinforce the healing process. There is a delicacy in this most human and intimate of relationships, where the one receiving care must possess an element of trust and safety, which can be conveyed through professional expertise and wisdom, yet the intimate exchange of healing, can ask for a level of vulnerability and shared humanity, a relinquishing of power dynamics to some degree to allow a mutual experience to occur, within and without. Healing fostered within this environment of inclusion and equality and that may prompt and illuminate us to consider how we relate to and share our power?
By Helen Coutts.
15th July 2025.
References and Further Reading.
01. Stuart Graeme, 01 Feb 2019. 4 types of power: What are power over; power with; power to and power within? Sustaining Community. Accessed online at https://sustainingcommunity.wordpress.com/2019/02/01/4-types-of-power/
02. Rogers Carl, 1961 On Becoming a Person, A Therapists View of Psychotherapy. Constable, London.
03. Van Der Kolk Bessel, 2014, The body keeps the score. Mind, Brain and Body in the transformation of trauma. Penguin Books, UK.
