If you’re dating a ‘loser’, you may recognize in your partner some of these characteristics described by Consulting Clinical Psychologist Joseph M. Carver, PhD. This article continues with a note on dangerous versions of the ‘loser’ and offers guidelines for detachment. Also see the new “Relationship Quiz: True Love or True Loser?”, which may help you to identify and highlight experiences of concern within your relationship.

Comprehensive, clear and well referenced, this guide to the theory and practice of dealing with ambiguous loss — loss without closure — provides a realistic hope, not that we will “get over it”, but that it is possible to live with the uncertainty and the unknown.

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 Relational-Cultural approach makes a robust challenge to the assumptions of much therapeutic, psychological and philosophical theory, by understanding human growth not as a process of separation and individualisation but as a process of making connections.

The formal diagnosis of PTSD, or posttraumatic stress disorder, is defined by this set of symptoms, which can be evaluated by psychiatrists and other mental health professionals.

With contributions from researchers, clinicians, and theorists, this edited collection offers a neurobiological perspective on trauma treatment and healing. On a first look, this book stands out especially for its introduction to the developmental origins of factors thought to place some individuals at greater risk of long-term effects from trauma.

If you’re in a controlling and abusive relationship, you may recognize several of the characteristics described in this article by Consulting Clinical Psychologist Dr Joseph M. Carver, PhD. Beginning with a description of how bonds form between victim and abuser, the article continues with observations about cognitive dissonance and offers suggestions for friends and family of victims.