A reading list on counselor and therapist experience
I am always fascinated by the life stories of counselors and psychotherapists. As I read them I feel privileged as if the authors are sharing with me a life time of wisdom. Their stories provide insight into how they and others have navigated the challenges and celebrated the joys of their client relationships. They also offer extraordinary views of self reflexive minds at work.
Yalom is a master story teller and he uses his skills to maximum effect in his memoir.
Yalom, I.D. (2017) Becoming Myself: A Psychiatrist’s Memoir, Basic Books.
More of a guide for therapists in the making but very much based on Cozolino’s own journey.
Cozolino, L (2004) The Making of a Therapist: A practical guide for the Inner Journey, WW Norton.
I learned so much from this book and Casement’s other volumes, ‘On learning from the patient’ and ‘Further learning from the patient’. His evident expertise and humility leave me in awe each time I re read his accounts.
Casement, P. (2006) Learning From Life: Becoming a Psychoanalyst.
More advice for therapists based on the author’s life and experiences with clients.
Kottler, A.J. (2010) On Being a Therapist, Edition 4 Jossey-Bass.
This is the only account in my library by a woman. The warmth that Pipher transmits to her imaginary trainees is impressive, as is the compassion she shows to her patients.
Pipher, M. (2003)Letters to a Young Therapist, Basic Books.
McLaughlin’s account of his early life and the way it impacted his work as a therapist is raw and profoundly moving.
McLaughlin, J. T. (2005)The Healer’s Bent: Solitude and Dialogue in the Clinical Encounter.
