Techniques of Grief Therapy

by Robert A. Neimeyer (editor)

Techniques of Grief Therapy is an indispensable guidebook to the most inventive and inspirational interventions in grief and bereavement counseling and therapy. Individually, each technique emphasizes creativity and practicality. As a whole, they capture the richness of practices in the field and the innovative approaches that clinicians in diverse settings have developed, in some cases over decades, to effectively address the needs of the bereaved. New professionals and seasoned clinicians will find dozens of ideas that are ready to implement and are packed with useful features,

Genres: Psychology, Grief, Nonfiction, Social Work, Counselling, Mental Health

408 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2012

Reviews

[Modern Chaplain · Rating 4 out of 5]

Framing the work -- Modulating emotion -- Working with the body -- Transforming trauma -- Changing behavior -- Restructuring cognition -- Encountering resistance -- Finding meaning -- Rewriting life narratives -- Integrating the arts -- Consolidating memories -- Renewing the bond -- Revising goals -- Accessing resources -- Grieving with others -- Ritualizing transition -- Healing the healer.

[Gv · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5/5
Interesting content, exceptionallu clear and helpful structure, many stimulating ideas/suggestions, helpful examples.

[Maryam · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not bad for someone working with clients dealing with grief

[Christy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Techniques of Grief Therapy is an indispensable guidebook to the most inventive and inspirational interventions in grief and bereavement counseling and therapy. Individually, each technique emphasizes creativity and practicality. As a whole, they capture the richness of practices in the field and the innovative approaches that clinicians in diverse settings have developed, in some cases over decades, to effectively address the needs of the bereaved. New professionals and seasoned clinicians will find dozens of ideas that are ready to implement and are packed with useful features, including:



Careful discussion of the therapeutic relationship that provides a "container" for specific procedures
An intuitive, thematic organization that makes it easy to find the right technique for a particular situation
Detailed explanations of when to use (and when not to use) particular techniques
Expert guidance on implementing each technique and tips on avoiding common pitfalls
Sample worksheets and activities for use in session and as homework assignments
Illustrative case studies and transcripts
Recommended readings to learn more about theory, research and practice associated with each techniqu

[Dominic Pakenham · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lots of papers of fairly varying quality - one of them recommends using the metaphor of a river as a way of speaking about the grief process in rich, figurative terms. The author gives a strong argument for the idea that our ‘grief process’ language is too clinical and sterile to be evocative for most clients, but the metaphor of a river that he tortuously strings out in its place doesn’t feel much better. At the end of the same paper, he admits to having no quantitative or qualitative data to support his metaphorical framing but can speak, anecdotally, to some positive feedback.

While I did enjoy some of the other papers, particularly those that treated grief as a form destabilised attachment, this just didn’t seem like the kind of consistently high quality academic material you would expect from a compilation that is supposed to be a key reference point for grief studies. Moreover, no effort was made to editorialise or even to lightly indicate any overarching patterns in a collection of papers that often contradicted one another. Practitioners usually need a framework, not a "choose your own adventure" of contradictions.

[Joseph Mundo · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one feels more clinical than spiritual, but it still gives useful frameworks for handling grief without guessing. I see it as a toolbook, not a worldview, which means I pull what actually works and ignore the rest. It gives enough structure to guide hurting people without getting in the way of biblical truth.

[Jack · Rating 5 out of 5]

Broad & varied text, extremely practical, and a theoretically solid book.

[Gurj · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great interventions that can be modified and used in our own practices.