Sarah Luczaj has published the following reviews at Counselling and Therapy Book Reviews.
Brazier reminds us that counselling often goes beyond offering a non-judgemental space in which the client can listen to and experience themselves, to actively encourage a kind of self-preoccupation which can actually make one more isolated and miserable.
This book seems to contain all of human life, from the scientific details through the full range of emotions, including the extremes of love and hate. And it emanates a sense that although we all get shaken sometimes, and life is dangerous, every feeling is expressible and every situation is workable.
This book is important reading, as it competently deals with the treatment of a major health issue which is both prevalent and chronic, with strong co-morbidity. While the tone didn’t particularly engage me, I did finish the book with some insights and solid understanding.
The basic conceptualisation of human experience offered by this book is that distress arises from our relationship with our own internal experience. The remedy goes beyond (and could be seen as contrary to) the traditional cognitive therapy approach of disentangling the client from the thoughts, questioning them and replacing them with more realistic and helpful ones.
Seemingly aimed both at students and at internet-illiterates, this book provides fairly comprehensive coverage of the history and development of online counseling. As a practical guide or handbook, however, it lacks depth.
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