Beware the Talking Cure

Download or read book Beware the Talking Cure written by Terence W. Campbell and published by Social Issues Resources Series. This book was released on 1994 with total page 265 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Family therapist Terence Campbell provides a much needed critique of our therapy-happy society. He warns of the dangers that await the unwary, vulnerable client seeking answers for normal life problems. All too often, psychotherapy creates more harm than healing. Without condemning ALL therapy, Campbell takes a hard look at the destructive form psychotherapy has taken for many of its practitioners. In many cases, therapists encourage a sick, dependent relationship in which the client invests undue authority in the supposedly all-wise psychologist. "Many therapists act as if their charisma, & only their charisma, can alleviate a client's distress," Campbell writes. Millions of people are in "therapy" at any given time, at a cost of billions of dollars. The widespread result is not only a gigantic waste of money & time, but the actual loss of mental health & normal functioning, as clients are encouraged to see themselves as terribly traumatized & damaged. Among other things Campbell reveals how: * The majority of therapists routinely ignore scientific research in their field, & instead rely on what they "believe" is effective treatment. * Many therapists purposely alienate clients from close relationships & family while encouraging a greater dependence on the therapist. Beware the Talking Cure is timely & disturbing. Through compelling case histories, Dr. Campbell hammers home his points.