The Courage to Feel: A Practical Guide to the Power and Freedom of Emotional Honesty

by Seubert Andrew

The Courage to a Practical Guide to the Power and Freedom of Emotional Honesty presents a pragmatic, creative and inspiring four-step path to emotional mastery and freedom.

Genres: Self Help, Psychology

288 pages, Paperback

First published June 20, 2008

Reviews

[LAMONT D · Rating 2 out of 5]

Overall message was fine but the book as a whole did not do much for me plus the turtle metaphor was not my cup of tea, so I skipped those paragraphs. Also, he uses a lot of stereotypes in the stories and tries to incorporate several fields of thought including Christianity without committing to anything. The personal stories probably are the most useful but that is the point, they are personal stories of clients that do not apply to most people.

[Ireland · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'll start out by saying that 'The Courage to Feel' by Andrew Seubert was recommended to me by my therapist as Seubert was her mentor and guide on her path to social work, and I am so thankful for her recommendation.

As the cover reports, 'The Courage to Feel' is a guidebook to the power and freedom of emotional honesty. I didn't really think that I -needed- this book, but once I started it, I couldn't put it down.

It's simple, definitely not a heavy read, and I imagine that some people upon first looking at the book might scoff and put it back down, but I think that this book has some real gems in here. Seubert gives you an array of tools to approach situations that you may encounter in life, specifically how to recognize and work through your emotions that these situations might bring up. A lot of these tools are step-by-step instructions that I have found myself now using in my daily life.

It's my personal opinion that the ideas presented in this book could be life-changing for individuals and communities, teaching us how to truly listen to ourselves and what our emotions are trying to tell us, which in turn opens us up to more effective communication and compassion within ourselves and our relations.

These might be simple reminders for some, but I think that we as a whole have neglected the value of our emotions and how important of a role they play in our daily lives. I will definitely be reading this again when needed.

[Philippe Desaulniers · Rating 5 out of 5]

Simple, yet deceptively profound. The author sheds a very pragmatic light on the most important concepts of Buddhist adjacent spiritual theory and practice, bringing them one step further, without even ostensibly being “about” them. I’ve read dozens of books on this topic, and practiced meditation over several years: this book is a surprising, powerful and fresh point of view on my own personal journey.

Meditation practice typically recommends to just let emotions “be”, without giving into their narratives. This is very effective, but the author sees this as just the second of a four step process, which further calls for some level of interpretation, and then a decision on action, or inaction. Always using love/compassion (as opposed to fear) as the underlying driving force. This is a really powerful idea.

[Sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

Overall message was fine but the turtle metaphor was simplistic and insulting for an adult audience. Also uses a lot of stereotypes in the stories and seems to have a Christian bent.

[Alden Roth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Recommended by Therapist Bethany Miller. Very insightful.

[Katelyn Joy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Easy to comprehend, quick read and gives good food for thought.

[Valentina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Although the metaphors were wishy washy this book is great because it helped me a lot. I think it serves its purpose and it doesn’t give simplistic advice. The methods here I use to evaluate how I feel.

[Dan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pleasantly surprised.

[Jonathan Main · Rating 4 out of 5]

So simple, so accessible, and yet certainly not dumbed down. I loved the life lessons contained within this book.