Published: August 9, 2025
On June 29, 2025, the Hearing Voices Society, in collaboration with the Mental Health Choices Network, hosted a professional seminar titled Process Work with Extreme and Altered States of Consciousness at the Sigmund Freud University Vienna – Ljubljana branch. The seminar was led by Will Hall, a renowned U.S. counsellor, activist, and process-oriented therapist.
Hall, author of the Harm Reduction Guide to Coming Off Psychiatric Drugs, is recognised internationally for his expertise combining personal experience with psychiatric services, community organising, and therapeutic approaches rooted in process-oriented psychology, open dialogue, and humanistic principles.
Participants were introduced to the fundamentals of process work, which explores personal myths, inner processes, and symbolic meanings within extreme states of consciousness. Through experiential activities, the seminar created a safe space for understanding diverse inner experiences and reflecting on non-pathologising approaches that support personal growth and integration.
Hall’s approach views extreme states as potentially meaningful expressions of a person’s inner process and of broader cultural fractures. Emphasising openness to different interpretations, user autonomy, and accessible, diverse forms of support beyond the biomedical model, he encouraged practitioners to meet individuals where they are—without judgement or rushing to intervene—while collaboratively exploring the meanings behind their experiences.
The seminar highlighted a holistic perspective on mental health, encouraging critical reflection on diagnoses, medication, and systemic structures in modern psychiatric care. It promoted ethical, non-hierarchical relationships and recognised mental health as a complex phenomenon shaped by personal, social, and political factors.
Source: Sigmund Freud University Vienna – Ljubljana Branch
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