Becoming Naturally Therapeutic: A Return To The True Essence Of Helping

by Jacquelyn Small

Already a classic in the alcohol treatment and counseling communities, here is a life-changing guide for anyone in a therapeutic relationship—whether a professional counselor, a teacher, a parent, or a friend.

Based on studies that pinpoint the characteristics of the most effective therapists, Becoming Naturally Therapeutic shows you how to help those you care about by opening your heart and releasing the healer within. A nationally known pioneer in the area of addiction and transpersonal psychology, Jacquelyn Small shows you how to emphasize without enabling, how to care without controlling, and how by helping others in a genuine spirit of giving you invariably help yourself. She teaches how the true art of therapy lives within us all.

You’ll

• The ten characteristics—from empathy and warmth to immediacy and concreteness—that all counselors need to discover within themselves.
• How to overcome patterns of toxic relating—the pitfalls of the preacher, judge, teacher, or savior that are barriers to true intimacy.
• The principle of helpful when to use it and how.
• How to “straight-talk” beyond codependent ways of helping and point those in need to their own inner strength.

Complete with practical exercises and sample dialogues, this clear and compassionate guide will help you let go and become the natural healer you are meant to be.

Genres: Psychology, Nonfiction, Self Help

176 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1989

Reviews

[Jessica Eisenhooth · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was recommended to me by my supervisor and it is a good read for therapists and people who want to be a better friend/partner/family member. The case examples were helpful and it’s a good reminder to not get so caught up in techniques, and to just be human.

[Sammie g · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Recognizing the good in one another and learning how to share in this goodness is love made visible” 😭😭

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a therapist's book, and also a friend's book. This will help ANYONE learn to be more supportive of friends in times of difficulty.

[Lynsie · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was a good book. I was required to read it for school but it was more enjoyable then most text books.

[Shelby Hawkins · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is a really good book to read. It changes your out look on social interaction. It's really good.

[Alissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice guide to being less of a jerk, good even if you're not a therapist.

[Chelsea T · Rating 4 out of 5]

great for review

[Chris Burd · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book came highly recommended by a friend, who has been a counselor for several years. I absorbed the relatively short text within a single night and I did find a great deal of value in it.

The detailed descriptions of the traits of therapeutic healers provide a great background to think about the traits and skills that a counselor should strive to develop. While some of the "practice" situations were a bit cheesy, they did provide a good opportunity to think about how you would react and illustrated the specific skill.

I was not expecting there to be such a great emphasis on alcoholism or other substance abuse. The book description did not indicate this focus, which I think would be a worthwhile adjustment to the book's summary.

I would also make the following suggestion for a fellow counselor or counseling student -- Skip the "Note" and "Introduction" at the beginning. The book, with a copyright of 1981, is a bit outdated and the author shows a little bit of contempt for counselor training. Programs of today place a far greater emphasis on training counselors to be genuine and honest, and the author's perspective feels a bit condescending.

[garfunkelgrass · Rating 4 out of 5]

This has good advice for therapists, important qualities to utilize, and how to ensure an appropriate counselor client relationship. It can also be used in other social situations and for other professional interactions.

[Melinda · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was assigned by one of my favorite professors in my last quarter in grad school. It quickly became a favorite; not only because it is a great read, but because after being so immersed in theory classes and technique for two years, this book brough it all back to why I wanted to be a therapist in the first place. A must read for anyone in the helping profession =)

[Savitri Mayer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Un libro hermoso, no creo que esté traducido al castellano, escrito por una psicóloga transpersonal que ha influído mucho en mi trabajo. Aquí, de un modo sencillo y escrito para todo público, explica como todos podemos ser "naturalmente terapéuticos".

[Julene · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent book that covers all the basic therapeutic traits of counseling in detail: coming from the heart, empathy, genuineness, respect, warmth, self-disclosre, immediacy, concreteness, potency, confrontation. The hows, the whys, the whens. I'm rereading it after many years.

[Amanda · Rating 1 out of 5]

lol no