Freedomain Radio

I was wondering if there were any books on cognitive therapy anyone had seen that are accessible to a "therapy beginner." I'm not necessarily looking for a self-therapy book or anything, but just something that casts light on the science of therapy. I got a bunch of results on amazon and I'm afraid to take a shot in the dark and be disappointed - the last thing I want is some pop-culture-washed crap.

For general psychology, I've seen a few recommendations for Nathaniel Branden's books, but if anything else has jumped out at you as extremely helpful, let me know!

I'm reading Alice Miller's "Truth Will Set You Free"

http://www.amazon.com/Truth-Will-Set-You-Free/dp/0465045855

She is very insightful, I'm enjoying the book a lot.  I got onto her because I had heard her name thrown around a bunch here at FDR

Hope that helps!

Alice Miller's Drama of the Gifted Child casts a very bright light on many aspects of both therapy and therapists.

chewgarus:

I was wondering if there were any books on cognitive therapy anyone had seen that are accessible to a "therapy beginner." I'm not necessarily looking for a self-therapy book or anything, but just something that casts light on the science of therapy. I got a bunch of results on amazon and I'm afraid to take a shot in the dark and be disappointed - the last thing I want is some pop-culture-washed crap.

For general psychology, I've seen a few recommendations for Nathaniel Branden's books, but if anything else has jumped out at you as extremely helpful, let me know!

For a good overview of some of the science behind a lot of what is talked about here, I recommend either or both of Daniel Goleman's books:

Emotional Intelligence

Social Intelligence

There were a number of key things in both these books that resoundingly corroborated many of the theories and ideas presented in Stef's podcasts. It really gave me a lot of confidence in the legitimacy of the field, and the legitimacy of it's application here, early on in my listening days...

Hope this helps.

Sweet, thanks everyone! With these, plus Branden's stuff, and the rest of what I read, I'm totally "booked" for the next couple of years.

chewgarus:

I got a bunch of results on amazon and I'm afraid to take a shot in the dark and be disappointed - the last thing I want is some pop-culture-washed crap.

BTW -- Amazon has a very good return policy -- free return shipping within 30 days for any reason. Just keep the box, and send unwanted books back and get a full refund. You print out a postage paid return label from their site.

There wera number of key things in both these books that resoundingly corroborated many of the theories and ideas presented in Stef's podcasts. It really gave me a lot of confidence in the legitimacy of the field, and the legitimacy of it's application here, early on in my listening days...

That's exactly what I want, confidence in the legitimacy of the field. It's not good enough just to assume cognitive therapy works, that emotions are worth attending to. Sure could go a podcast on this subject, or an online resource to clear things up. Any suggestions in that direction will be greatly recieved.