Growth On The Edges: Transformation Through Discomfort, Difference, and Discovery
Growth rarely happens in comfort. As psychotherapists, we live and work at the edges — the places where certainty gives way to curiosity, where connection meets conflict, and where vulnerability invites transformation. These edges arise in the therapy room, in our professional relationships, and in our personal lives. They challenge us to encounter difference, to tolerate ambiguity, and to stay present in the face of discomfort.
The 2027 Institute and Conference will invite us to explore the edges that define and expand us — the boundaries between self and other, between knowing and not knowing, between safety and risk. How do we meet the moments that stretch us beyond familiar patterns? What can we learn when we listen at the borderlands of our comfort zones — in therapeutic rupture, in cultural difference, in the evolving identity of our profession, and in our own internal worlds?
Together, we will examine how the willingness to approach rather than avoid the edges — of emotion, identity, ethics, and relationship — can open new possibilities for healing and connection. Through dialogue, experiential process, and creative exploration, we will honor the courage it takes to grow where we are most uncertain and most alive.
