Deepening the Treatment

Almost everyone who crosses the therapist''s threshold is looking for a second chance-a shot at living a richer, less restricted life. Understanding how echoes of the past resonate in and shape the present provides opportunities to resolve crippling ... Read more

Almost everyone who crosses the therapist''s threshold is looking for a second chance-a shot at living a richer, less restricted life. Understanding how echoes of the past resonate in and shape the present provides opportunities to resolve crippling conflicts and make new choices. Furthermore, such insight produces a sense of mastery. But not everyone is aware that the problems s/he brings into weekly therapy are just the first few bars of his or her song. Jane Hall wrote Deepening the Treatment to help the psycho-dynamically informed therapist help the patient recognize that exploring ideas and feelings is a journey worth taking and that the therapist is a trustworthy guide. Often, people need to wade before they feel comfortable diving into deep waters. Hall introduces a responsible if unconventional application of respectful, nondirective therapy, and she supports her vision with clinical examples and thoughtful attention to issues of basic technique-among them separation, termination, self-disclosure, frequency of sessions, tolerating patient rage, and, of course, interpreting the transference. Less