THERAPY SCHOOL

Alison Crosthwait 2016 ©

www.therapyschool.co

Psychotherapy Client Resource List: A Place To Start

This list is a place to begin or continue your reading on psychotherapy and the journey of being human. It is not comprehensive but brings together some diverse creators to spark new ideas, insight, company, and inspiration.

Part 1: Resources Directly Relating To Psychotherapy

About Therapy

I'm Working On It In Therapy: How To Get The Most Out Of Psychotherapy, Gary Trosclair

Wisdom From The Couch: Knowing And Growing Yourself From The Inside Out, Jennifer Kunst

The Gift Of Therapy: An Open Letter To A New Generation Of Therapists And Their Patients, Irwin Yalom

What It Feels Like To Change, Alison Crosthwait

The Therapeutic “Aha!”: 10 Strategies For Getting Your Clients Unstuck, Courtney Armstrong

Inside Your Therapist’s Mind: How A Psychotherapist Thinks And Why It Works, Dr Drew Permut

On Becoming A Person: A Therapist’s View Of Psychotherapy, Carl Rogers

Know Thyself: How Psychotherapy Works And How It Can Improve Your Life In Unforeseen Ways, AndrewCarley

In Session: The Bond Between Women And Their Therapists, Deborah Lott

The Talking Cure: Wittgenstein’s Therapeutic Model For Psychotherapy, John Heaton

Emma Cameron (blog)

Erika Labuzan-Lopez (blog)

Therapy Stories (fiction and non-fiction)

The Examined Life, Stephen Grosz

Irwin Yalom:• Momma and the Meaning of Life• Creatures of a Day• Love’s Executioner• Lying on the Couch• The Schopenhauer Cure• Every Day Gets a Little Closer• The Gift of Therapy

Schopenhauer’s Porcupines, Deobrah Luepnitz

Bare: Psychotherapy Stripped, Carlo deCarlo

Moments Of Meaning (web video series of stories told by therapists)

THERAPY SCHOOL

Alison Crosthwait 2016 ©

www.therapyschool.co

Whistling In The Dark, Shannon Fitzgerald, Episodes #11 and #17, “Karen the Therapist” (podcast)

New York Times Opinionator “Couch” Column

Tales From The Therapy Room: Shrink Wrapped, Phil Lapworth

Patient’s Perspective

Life In A Bind: BPD and Me, Anonymous (Blog)

Therapy in Film & Television

A Dangerous Method

Hope Springs

Good Will Hunting

Spellbound

In Treatment

Mindfulness & Meditation

John Kabat-Zinn Books and CDs

Mindfulness, Ellen Langer

Headspace App

Dreams

On Dreams, Sigmund Freud

Memories, Dreams, And Reflections, Carl Jung

Inner Work: Using Dreams And Active Imagination For Personal Growth, Robert Johnson

EMDR

EMDR Institute (website)

Getting Past Your Past: Take Control Of Your Life With Self-Help Techniques From EMDR Therapy, Francine Shapiro

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

CBT For Dummies, Rob Wilson & Rena Branch

CBT Self-Help Course (free)

Psychoanalytic & Relational

Freud And Beyond, Margaret Black & Stephen Mitchell (The introduction is an excellent survey of psychoanalytic theory)

100 Years Of Psychoanalysis: A Timeline 1900-2000, Elizabeth Young-Bruehl (Chart)

That Was Then This Is Now: An Introduction To Contemporary Psychodynamic Theory, Jonathan Shedler (Article)

THERAPY SCHOOL

Alison Crosthwait 2016 ©

www.therapyschool.co

Gestalt Therapy

The Awakening Year: An Exploration In Gestalt Psychotherapy, Margaret Selwyn

Skills In Gestalt Counselling And Psychotherapy, Joyce & Sills (written for training therapists but a good read with a lot of interesting material relevant to clients)

Existential Therapy

Irwin Yalom

Man’s Search For meaning, Viktor Frankl

Art Therapy

Art As Medicine: Creating A Therapy Of The Imagination, Shaun McNiff

Therapy for Trauma

Understanding And Healing Emotional Trauma: Conversations With Pioneering Clinicians And Researchers, Daniela Sieff

Aimed at Therapists but Accessible and Interesting

Psychoanalytic Diagnosis: Understanding Personality Structure In The Clinical Process, Nancy McWilliams

The Power Of Countertransference: Innovations In Analytic Technique, Karen Maroda

What Therapists Don’t Talk About And Why: Understanding Taboos That Hurt Us And Our Clients, Pope, Sonne & Greene

On Being A Therapist, Jeffrey Kottler

Talking Therapy Podcast, John Webber and RJ Thomas

THERAPY SCHOOL

Alison Crosthwait 2016 ©

www.therapyschool.co

Part 2: Resources That Complement Psychotherapy

Psychological Insight

The Drama Of The Gifted Child, Alice Miller

Conscious Femininity: Interviews With Marion Woodman, Marion Woodman

The Power Of Vulnerability, Brene Brown (Ted Talk)

Homecoming: Reclaiming And Championing Your Inner Child, John Bradshaw

Non-Violent Communication: A Language Of Life, Marshall B. Rosenberg

I’m OK -- You’re OK, Thomas Harris

The Language Of Feelings, David Viscott

There Is No Hack That Will Get You Around Your Unconscious, Alison Crosthwait (article)

Trapped In The Mirror: Adult Children Of Narcissists In Their Struggle For Self, Elan Golomb

Playing And Reality, D.W. Winnicott

Man’s Search For Himself, Rollo May

Broken Open: How Difficult Times Can Help Us Grow, Elizabeth Lesser

The Language Of Emotions: What Your Feelings Are Trying To Tell You, Karla McLaren

Wired For Happy, Linda Esposito (online project focussed on teaching CBT and Positive Psychology tools and techniques to improve your life and manage anxiety and depression)

The Next Happy: Let Go Of The Life You Planned And Find A New Way Forward, Tracey Cleantis

How To Think More About Sex, Alain de Botton

Women Who Run With The Wolves, Clarissa Pinkola Estes

I Don’t Want To Talk About It: Overcoming The Secret Legacy Of Male Depression, Terrence Real

How To Be An Adult: A Handbook For Psychological And Spiritual Integration, David Richo

The Lost Art Of Listening: How Learning To Listen Can Improve Relationships, Michael Nichols

Mental Illness & Mental Health

The Mental Illness Happy Hour (podcast)

The Future Of Mental Health: Deconstructing The Mental Disorder Paradism, Eric Maisel (Eric also has an incredible 100-part interview series with which can be found here).

THERAPY SCHOOL

Alison Crosthwait 2016 ©

www.therapyschool.co

Couples & Relationships

Hold Me Tight: Seven Conversations For A Lifetime Of Love, Sue Johnson

The 5 Love Languages: The Secret To A Love That Lasts, Gary Chapman

The New Rules Of Marriage: What You Need To Do To Make Love Work, Terrence Real

Mating In Captivity: Unlocking Erotic Intelligence, Esther Perel

Writing & Creativity

The Story Course, Sarah Selecky (online course)

Big Magic, Elizabeth Gilbert

Writing Down The Bones: Freeing The Writer Within, Natalie Goldberg

Money

True Prosperity Program, Carmen Spagnola (online course)

Parenting

Why Smart Kids Worry And What Parents Can Do To Help, Allison Edwards

Anxious Kids, Anxious Parents, Reid Wilson

Infertility & Childlessness

Ever Upward, Justine Froelker (blog)

Grief

Good Grief: Healing Through The Shadow Of Loss, Deborah Morris Coryell

The Adversity Within, Tim Lawrence (blog)

On Death And Dying, Elizabeth Kubler-Ross

Forgiveness

The Forgiving Self, Robert Karon

Healing From Abuse

Emerging From Broken, Darlene Ouimet (Blog)

Illness

The Alchemy Of Illness, Kat Duff

THERAPY SCHOOL

Alison Crosthwait 2016 ©

www.therapyschool.co

The Body

The Body Keeps The Score, Bessel Van Der Kolk

Engaging The Movement Of Life: Exploring Health And Embodiment Through Osteopathy And Continuum, Bonnie Gintis

Bioenergetics, Alexander Lowen

ADHD

Smart But Stuck, Emotions In Teens And Adults With ADHD, Thomas Brown

Addiction

In the Realm Of The Hungry Ghosts, Gabor Mate

Addicted To Perfection, Marion Woodman

Dealing With Psychiatric Medications

Beyond Meds, Monica Cassani (online project)

Yoga

Breathe Relax Feel Watch Allow (Article)

Yoga For Emotional Flow CD, Stephen Cope

Three Part Yogic Breath (Video)

Yoga For Depression, Amy Weintraub

Yoga And The Quest For The True Self, Stephen Cope

The Inner Tradition Of Yoga: A Guide To Yoga Philosophy For the Contemporary Practitioner, Michael Stone

Inspirational & Spiritual

The Places That Scare You: A Guide To Fearlessness During Difficult Times, Pema Chodron

The Alchemist, Paulo Coelho

Barefoot Disciple: Walking The Way Of Passionate Humility, Stephen Cherry

No Boundary, Ken Wilbur

Demian, Hermann Hesse

Anam Cara, John O’Donohue

On Being (Podcast)

52 Permission Slips, Faith Watson (online project)

THERAPY SCHOOL

Alison Crosthwait 2016 ©

www.therapyschool.co

Memoir

Soulshaping: A Journey Of Self-Creation, Jeff Brown

Eat Pray Love, Elizabeth Gilbert

Scary Close, Donald Miller

Beachcombing At Miramar: The Quest For An Authentic Life, Richard Bode

Philosophical

Man’s Search For Meaning, Viktor Frankl

The Happiness Hypothesis, Jonathan Haidt

The School Of Life (online project with physical presence in London, UK)

About the list:

This list is a place to start.

It grew organically through the suggestions of readers. There are many important issues and categories that are not covered.

Some resources could be in multiple categories. Most creators have multiple works and I generally just list one of them. The creators range from the most well known authors of our time (and a few before our time) to some very new bloggers and podcast hosts. Within sections the resources are in no particular order.

While it is interesting and can be beneficial to learn about therapy and various techniques, it is important to work with a professional when dealing with sensitive issues and trauma.

In the end, what book is not about the experience of being human? What podcast is not relevant to the project of human speaking that is psychotherapy? So this list is a place to begin or to get new ideas of where to look for information, new ways of thinking, and inspiration. But this list is never, ever complete.

Happy reading, watching, listening and responding….