Staring at the Sun: Overcoming the Terror of Death

Chapter 7 provides therapeutic guidance for addressing death anxiety in clinical practice. The chapter opens with Yalom clarifying his existential approach to psychotherapy, which he defines simply as therapy focused on existence itself. He argues that humans are unique among creatures because their own existence becomes a problem for them to contemplate and grapple with.

Four ultimate concerns form the foundation of existential therapy: death, isolation, meaning in life, and freedom. Among these, death anxiety is the most prominent and troubling concern that patients face. Yalom’s existential worldview embraces rationality while rejecting supernatural beliefs, positioning human life as a series of random events within finite existence.

Rather than establishing existential therapy as a separate school of thought, Chapter 7 presents it as a sensibility that should inform all therapeutic approaches. He emphasizes that effective therapy depends not primarily on theory or ideas, but on the quality of the therapeutic relationship itself. Drawing on Carl Rogers’ research, he endorses the importance of genuineness, accurate empathy, and unconditional positive regard, while arguing that genuineness takes on special significance when working with death anxiety.

The chapter advocates for “connectedness” as the antidote to existential anguish. This requires therapists to remove artificial barriers between themselves and their patients, avoiding professional costumes, pretenses of knowledge they don’t possess, or hiding behind their professional roles.