Counselling Psychology

Therapeutic counseling in a Christian context can be highly effective when it maintains narrowly focused goals in a time-limited setting. The details of this proven model of pastoral counseling are described in this practical guide. This second edition of Strategic Pastoral Counseling has been thoroughly revised and includes two new chapters. Benner includes helpful case studies, a new appendix on contemporary ethical issues, and updated chapter bibliographies. His study will continue to serve clergy and students well as a valued practical handbook on pastoral care and counseling.

“If only I could get some closure…” If you’ve found yourself saying these words, you’re not alone. When you’ve lost a relationship, a job, or a loved one, closure can seem as elusive as it is necessary. Psychotherapist and relationship coach Gary McClain says it’s one of the most common—and important—issues his clients bring up. In this empathetic and insightful guide, Dr. McClain explains why the promise of closure is so appealing—and why it’s not always all it’s cracked up to be.

Since the beginning of time we have told stories to each other. As we have become more articulate, we have learned to include metaphors to emphasize our point. A story or metaphor can "paint a verbal picture", and help express what we really feel, think, and believe. For those in the wellbeing space, this is a potential goldmine for exploration and opportunity.

“To treat, even to cure, is not always to heal.” In this expansive cultural history of the treatment and healing of mental suffering, Kay Jamison writes about psychotherapy, what makes a great healer, and the role of imagination and memory in regenerating the mind. From the trauma of the battlefields of the twentieth century, to those who are grieving, depressed, or with otherwise unquiet minds, to her own experience with bipolar illness, Jamison demonstrates how remarkable psychotherapy and other treatments can be when done well.

This groundbreaking text goes to the very heart of the therapeutic meeting between therapist and client. Focusing on the concept of "relational depth", the authors describe a form of encounter in which therapist and client experience profound feelings of contact and engagement with each other, and in which the client has an opportunity to explore whatever is experienced as most fundamental to her or his existence.

This groundbreaking book provides a comprehensive overview of the anatomy of racial trauma and the debilitating hidden wounds associated with it. Racially sensitive trauma-informed interventions and strategies that centralize race and racial oppression in every facet of the therapeutic process and relationship are meticulously highlighted, making this a must-listen resource for all practicing and aspiring clinicians.

An essential defense of the people the world loves to revile - the loners - yet without whom it would be lost. The Buddha. Rene Descartes. Emily Dickinson. Greta Garbo. Bobby Fischer. J. D. Salinger: Loners, all - along with as many as 25 percent of the world's population. Loners keep to themselves, and like it that way. Yet in the press, in films, in folklore, and nearly everywhere one looks, loners are tagged as losers and psychopaths, perverts and pity cases, ogres and mad bombers, elitists and wicked witches.

Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy (DDP) is an attachment-focused treatment for children and adolescents who have experienced abuse and neglect and are now living in stable foster and adoptive families. Here, Daniel Hughes and Kim S. Golding provide a practical accompaniment to their highly successful DDP text coauthored with Julie Hudson, Healing Relational Trauma with Attachment-Focused Interventions.

Spirituality is an important part of many clients’ lives. It can be a resource for stabilization, healing, and growth. It can also be the cause of struggle and even harm. More and more therapists - those who consider themselves spiritual and those who do not - recognize the value of addressing spirituality in therapy and increasing their skill for engaging it ethically and effectively. In this immensely practical book, Russell Siler Jones helps therapists feel more competent and confident about having spiritual conversations with clients.

Treatment of Dissociative Identity Disorder is designed to be practical and useful. It is made particularly for the therapist new to dissociative identity disorder (DID) who needs brief, to-the-point guidance on how to begin working with someone with DID. The audiobook includes many therapist-client dialogues that illustrate the techniques and strategies Dr. Ross has learned over the years.

IFS Couple Therapy Skills Manual presents clinicians with a powerful, non-pathologizing approach to helping couples better understand themselves, their differences, and the underlying reasons for their suffering.

This extraordinary book presents scenarios of one family's therapy experience and explains what underlies each encounter. You will discover the general patterns that are common to all families - stress, polarization and escalation, scapegoating, triangulation, blaming, and the diffusion of identity - and you will gain a vivid understanding of the intriguing field of family therapy.

The Practitioner’s Guide to Mirroring Hands describes in detail how "Mirroring Hands" is conducted and explores the framework of knowledge and understanding that surrounds and supports this therapeutic process.

Children and families burdened with attachment disruption, emotional distress, or psychological disorders need effective and immediate assistance. They do not have the time to wait for long-term interventions or developmental changes to improve the parent-child relationship. Here, psychologists Elizabeth A. Sylvester and Kat Scherer provide the most effective approach in such situations: interventions that impact the entire family at relational, emotional, and cognitive-behavioral levels.

Have you ever wondered why you act the way you do, or why you just can't seem to click with certain people? Understanding yourself and others isn't always a walk in the park. The Enneagram is a powerful tool used by psychologists and therapists worldwide to understand personality dynamics and improve interpersonal relationships. That's where this book, "The Only Book You Need To Understand the Enneagram", comes in. It's your friendly, relatable guide to self-discovery and personal growth.

Adult children of narcissists have been conditioned to downplay, dismiss, and ignore their experiences. This survival skill of staying below the radar can cause even very skilled clinicians to miss subtle opportunities to connect. It is paramount that clinicians understand the scope of these clients' experiences in order to support their healing—and to avoid the common clinical mistakes and pitfalls that often lead to inadvertently repeating harmful cycles.

The Couples Therapy Workbook: 30 Guided Conversations to Re-Connect Relationships is a series of guided questions to promote meaningful conversations between couples and build ongoing, connected communication. The core of this unique guide is 30 guided conversations of the most critical relationship struggles. For each of the 30 topics, there is an introduction, goal-setting strategies, and 10 scripted questions to ask each other—all presented in an easy-to-use, mindful style.

CBT is widely regarded as the gold standard in psychotherapy for treating anxiety and depression. Based on the self-help classic, Thoughts and Feelings, this take-anywhere guide offers distilled CBT skills you can use anytime to challenge the negative thinking that leads to anxiety and depression, balance your emotions, and start engaging in activities that make you feel good about yourself. Most importantly, you'll learn how your thoughts affect your mood, and how changing your thoughts can actually change your life!

Strengthening, calming, and stabilizing the mind is the essential first step in accomplishing nearly any goal. Growing up American with a Tibetan twist, Sakyong Mipham talks to Westerners as no one can: in idiomatic English with stories and wisdom from American culture and the great Buddhist teachers. Turning the Mind Into an Ally makes it possible for anyone to achieve peace and clarity in their lives.

The number of children, youth, and families seeking help for a wide range of mental health concerns is growing at an alarming rate, and many struggle to thrive despite well-intentioned interventions from skilled helpers. Unplugging from technology and reconnecting with the web of life is a powerful antidote to the highly technological and fast-paced realities of so many.