Customer Reviews
essential reading - By: Maria Cambs, 03 Feb 2008 
A must read for all counsellor's/therapists - I can not recommend this book enough: invaluable, informative, excellent writing style & thought provoking.
My 100-word book review - By: A. J. Cull, 14 Mar 2006 Patrick Casement's honestyin writing this book is an inspiration to those of us aiming to be counsellors. Not many therapists would reveal & discuss their own mistakes & oversights so openly, with a view to helping others learn from them. Casement promotes active listening skills & use of the "internal supervisor" to gain awareness both of the client’s & one’s own internal processes. Also key to his approach is a willingness to embrace uncertainty & not to make snap judgements,in effect to make use of what the poet John Keats called "negative capability." I highly recommend this book.
refreshing and exciting - By: conjunction, 01 Mar 2006 Very enjoyable. Very frank discussion of case studies, mostly about learning from his mistakes. Written from within the psychoanalytical discipline of intensive work, quotes Winnicott & Bion frequently. Nevertheless there is little or no jargon, he is an ex-social worker & says he is also writing for those with less arcane training. Shows great sensitivity to the patient & great emphasis on the importance of the patient's view of the analysis, is not far away from a Rogerian approach where the patient leads the therapy.
Learn about yourself!! - By: Margaret, 11 Sep 2003 Oh what a relief to read of the real dilemmas & confusion that is part of being a therapist, as well as the appreciation of what is being given by the patient. The bravery shownin the disclosing & exploration by the author of his own internal processes can help facilitate the readerin exploring their own.
Thought-provoking - By: , 15 Jun 2002 A refreshing, thought-provoking read. An essential read for all psychiatrists - reminds one that dynamic processes are fundamental to understanding patients & the patient-therapist relationship.
