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Lying on the Couch

3.88 of 5 stars 3.88 · rating details · 2,327 ratings · 141 reviews

From the bestselling author of Love's Executioner and When Nietzsche Wept comes a provocative exploration of the unusual relationships three therapists form with their patients. Seymour is a therapist of the old school who blurs the boundary of sexual propriety with one of his clients. Marshal, who is haunted by his own obsessive-compulsive behaviors, is troubled by the ro...more

Paperback, 384 pages

Published July 18th 1997 by Harper Perennial (first published 1996)

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Nov 04, 2012 Bogdan Spoitu rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: fiction

A seemingly demanding lecture, judging by its proportions. However, the incursion in both scientific, which is fairly scholastic, and mundane aspects in the life of the psychotherapist all under the spectrum of a well devised plot and ingeniously humored language, make the story relishing.

The psychotherapist is first of all human, in Yalom's book. He is built, within the story, in the reflecting image of three models. The decrepit master/professor, struck down by his own iconoclastic desire for...more A seemingly demanding lecture, judging by its proportions. However, the incursion in both scientific, which is fairly scholastic, and mundane aspects in the life of the psychotherapist all under the spectrum of a well devised plot and ingeniously humored language, make the story relishing.

The psychotherapist is first of all human, in Yalom's book. He is built, within the story, in the reflecting image of three models. The decrepit master/professor, struck down by his own iconoclastic desire for innovation in the field triggered also by his emotional weakness, a mentor with endless resources of inspiration for the future generation, which eventually downgrades him. Secondly, we follow his most talented and at the same time valuable scientific prodigy, with impressive literary sparks, whose career is shifted after sharing some exquisite fresh thoughts with the professor in a most dramatic and yet amusing scenario, considering the following cases that the author builds. Finally, the third model who, ironically, is outlined, regardless of the following events to be read, as the most level-headed and sane, is revealed in a rather classic maneuver, as a struggling personality in his endeavor for identity. All of them are highly acknowledged in their area of expertise.

What may seem, due to many blurb reviews, a surreptitious unveiling in the intimate world of psychological therapy, returns, to me at least, after two readings, as a built-in text for captivation and amusement in language, nonetheless with accountable events that make it worth like a first impression of any person, assuming every human imperfection after such vividness in exposure, of the responsibility to embark in such a professional journey. It is a considerable "process", that of therapy, which even the author emphasizes to be the key element in distinguishing it from a normal day-to-day relationship. The text is built on the foundation, where its most engaging and probably amusing twirl of scenes reside also, within synchronicity(principle of Jung, also reminded in the book) and the out-of-the-ordinary coincidences. Almost every character is linked towards the end. I didn't particularly enjoy that.

All in all it adds up to good fiction, and food for thought for therapists.

(less)

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Jun 12, 2011 Jenny rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: read-in-2010

This book had been on my "must-read" list (self-appointed just because it looked interesting, not because I'd heard anything about it) for quite some time. I finally sat down and read it, and I have to say, I'm not sure that I got it. Maybe it went over my head, or maybe I'm over-analyzing something that wasn't meant to be that profound. There were parts that really engaged me, while other parts that didn't were interesting enough for me to keep on going, but ultimately I'm not sure that it was...more This book had been on my "must-read" list (self-appointed just because it looked interesting, not because I'd heard anything about it) for quite some time. I finally sat down and read it, and I have to say, I'm not sure that I got it. Maybe it went over my head, or maybe I'm over-analyzing something that wasn't meant to be that profound. There were parts that really engaged me, while other parts that didn't were interesting enough for me to keep on going, but ultimately I'm not sure that it was quite what I was expecting. Well, I know it wasn't, but what I'm not sure of is what I was expecting.

Lying on the Couch follows the stories of two psychoanalysts, Ernest Lash, and his therapeutic supervisor, Marshal Streider. Marshal is a pretty old-school psychoanalyst with rigid boundaries who is fairly narrow minded about different techniques. Though seeking training and supervision, Ernest is more thoughtful and open-minded about the topic and has been leaning towards more honesty in the therapeutic relationship and more of an authentic relationship between therapist and client.

A main focus of this book was the lives of the therapists themselves and their dynamics with their clients, as well as the behind-the-scenes look into therapy or what the therapists were thinking about during the sessions and outside them. We also learn about a few of the clients they are seeing; for instance, Ernest is seeing a woman, Carolyn, who unbeknown to him is the forsaken wife of a previous client of Ernest's -- a client whom Ernest had encouraged to leave his wife. Carolyn has her own dirty reasons for entering therapy with Ernest and in being not quite honest with him, and this leads to some interesting therapeutic dynamics, especially when Carolyn's plans don't necessarily pan out. We also meet one of Marshal's clients, Shelley, who enters therapy because of a gambling problem but not really to overcome it -- more to improve it. And, of course, neither Ernest nor Marshal are impervious to their own demons that eventually manage to play out while in the course of providing therapy to others.

Was this a character study, a therapy study, or something else? I'm not sure. Maybe both. As a budding therapist, myself, I did find the "case studies", if you can call them that, interesting. I imagine that any fan of psychology would, in that sense, enjoy this book. I did find that the content felt a little "heavy" at times, but that may be more attributed to comparison of the light content and writing of some books I just recently finished. One interesting writing technique the author employed was providing a thorough glimpse into conversations; each person's contribution to the conversation would be a large paragraph, and the entire conversation would be played out. You don't typically see this in a lot of fiction as they tend to focus on just the most purposeful parts of the conversation. At times I felt it made things long, but, in another sense, it was refreshing to hear everything being said.

I'm familiar with some of Yalom's theory of the "here and now" in therapy as well as the relationship between the therapist and client. I've only read probably about half of his non-fiction book of an open letter for the new therapist, and I have to say there are some things he says that I completely relate to, but other things are a little too much for me. I'm not at a point where I feel the client and therapist should focus quite so much on their relationship rather than the client's issues. That's how I feel in general, and since there was a lot of focus on moving in that direction (at least for the therapist, Ernest) in the book, I couldn't completely relate to everything in the book.

And there was this one small part of the book where the most experienced therapist of all the characters, Marshal, is essentially obtaining therapy from a lay person (well, when it comes to therapy, at least), and the whole point of that confused me.

So those are my thoughts on this novel, where Lying on the Couch means more than just physically "lying"... despite my mixed feelings on it, Yalom did prove himself to be a smart, engaging writer, so I still plan on reading at least another of his books. For now, I'm satisfied with knowing that even experienced therapists have struggles they must work on for themselves.

Taken from my blog at www.takemeawayreading.com (less)

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Dec 12, 2009 marg rated it 3 of 5 stars

I imagine if you are in the field of therapy this book is much more meaningful - as it was it felt like a high brow Grisham novel in that Grisham took his career as a lawyer and capitalized on its thrill potential, and Yalom uses the multifaceted and intimate world of therapy to produce a sort of soap opera laced with underlying warning.
This novel had that weird feeling I get sometimes, where I think, if only I hadn't opened this book, so many people would still be happy. We begin with smugly co...more

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Aug 27, 2009 Khaya rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Therapists, and people interested in learning about the therapy process

Shelves: professionallit, highlyoriginal

I'm going to go ahead and give this five stars. It's not a perfect book, certainly not from a literary point of view. It was didactic at times, occasionally draggy with lengthy lecture-like dialogue and inner monologue, and some of its plot twists were highly contrived. But I don't think Yalom was trying to write a perfect novel, or if he was, that goal was secondary. What he was trying to do, according to an interview I read, is carve out a new genre -- what he calls the "teaching novel." It's...more I'm going to go ahead and give this five stars. It's not a perfect book, certainly not from a literary point of view. It was didactic at times, occasionally draggy with lengthy lecture-like dialogue and inner monologue, and some of its plot twists were highly contrived. But I don't think Yalom was trying to write a perfect novel, or if he was, that goal was secondary. What he was trying to do, according to an interview I read, is carve out a new genre -- what he calls the "teaching novel." It's an ambitious feat, and I feel he succeeded brilliantly.

The novel itself follows two parallel stories of clients lying to their gullible therapists, who for their part are struggling with boundary issues. The main plot focuses on Ernest, a psychopharmacologist-turned-beginner-psychotherapist, considering a career in psychoanalysis but starting to have doubts about the artificiality and rigidity of the relationship. As a therapist, Ernest would like to experiment with being more genuine, human, and transparent in the therapy room. This goal leaves him ripe for the machinations of Carol, a vengeful ex-wife whose husband, Ernest's patient, has left her thanks in part to Ernest's empowerment. Carol, the original hell-hath-no-fury dame, enters therapy with Ernest under false premises (and using an alias) so she can seduce him and subsequently ruin his career. Alas, Ernest's resolution to experiment with abandoning the traditional neutral stance makes it increasingly tricky for him to navigate Carol's aggressively seductive advances.

The subplot follows Ernest's supervisor, Marshal, an orthodox psychoanalyst who is critical of Ernest's renegade experimentation with deviating from the traditional neutral stance. Marshal is a stickler for the boundaries and rules imposed by psychoanalytic theory. He is also ruthlessly pursuing political advancement in the psychoanalytic society with little regard for his relationships with some of his colleagues, a classic example of someone who insists on the letter of the law while violating its spirit. A wealthy patient manages to convince Marshal to invest a significant amount of money with him -- a quintessential example of dual roles, although in a moment of weakness Marshal accepts the patient's ethically questionable justification that therapy is terminating and the therapeutic relationship is no longer relevant. This initial weakening leads to other ethical slips and boundary violations on Marshal's part, with far-reaching consequences.

These plots were certainly intriguing, and the characters were multifaceted and real although I found Carol's personality a little too changeable. For me, though, the book's main weaknesses on a literary level -- its lengthy, agenda-driven dialogue and asides -- were also its strengths on a didactic level. Using his characters as mouthpieces, Yalom explored some fascinating questions:

Is it ever okay to sleep with a patient? How about a former patient? How about a patient you saw 10 years ago, briefly, in group therapy? How about investing money with a former patient -- what's really wrong with that?

Which therapist is right – the one who rigidly embraces technique at the expense of creativity and individuality, or the maverick who ignores technique and strikes out on his own, taking risks and muddying the ethical waters?

When, and to what degree, is self-disclosure on the part of the therapist appropriate? What are the advantages and disadvantages of maintaining a neutral stance, as opposed to relating to the client on a more human level?

Yalom doesn't provide easy answers to these questions. Instead, he has his characters ruminate about them and debate them at length, raising many intelligent points on all sides and fleshing out the complexity of these issues. These long-winded discussions and asides do little to advance the plot or deepen the characterization, but they definitely stimulate thought and educate the reader about Yalom's therapy approaches.

More educational than a novel, more interesting than a textbook -- I give Yalom full points for creating this genre and providing us with an excellent example of its potential.(less)

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Feb 03, 2013 Pamela rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Just last year, I was surprised to discover that a well-known psychiatrist, Dr. Irvin D.Yalom, writes fiction. I am most familiar with his textbooks on psychotherapy. My friend Richard, who is a therapist, loaned me a copy of Lying on the Couch.
I have to insert an observation here. It is clear to me that Richard is one of those people who reads a book, but you could not tell this by the condition of the book. The physical book is pristine: no greasy smudges on the cover, no markings in the mar...more Just last year, I was surprised to discover that a well-known psychiatrist, Dr. Irvin D.Yalom, writes fiction. I am most familiar with his textbooks on psychotherapy. My friend Richard, who is a therapist, loaned me a copy of Lying on the Couch.
I have to insert an observation here. It is clear to me that Richard is one of those people who reads a book, but you could not tell this by the condition of the book. The physical book is pristine: no greasy smudges on the cover, no markings in the margins or underlined passages. There are absolutely no food stains on the pages. The back of the book has no cracks. In other words, the book is difficult to read spread open on, say, the dinner table, because it does not lay flat. It looks just as it did on the bookstore shelf.
I have always had some negative ideas about people who are such careful readers. It is difficult to see how this makes reading pleasure possible. No eating with meals, no librocubicularition, no reading from a comfortable position on the couch-just sitting upright, no brownies, and certainly no spaghetti sauce!
So now all of my reading sins are exposed; I am a slob when it comes to the act of reading a book. I suppose I should reveal this to Richard, who is, after all, a good friend. I want him to say that it does not matter, and I can just keep the book, to mess up as I must. And I know that I have to get his dispensation to read the rest of the novels he so graciously loaned me. (I am such a sucker for a man with a good book in his hand.)
I did not know what to expect when I opened the book and was captivated immediately by the revelation of an analysts inner thought life, his conflicts, and how he dealt with them. Even the hilarious comments of the first patient were intriguing and I found myself hoping this character would persist in the story line. Well, he did, but just not the way I had envisioned he would. Overt humor quickly gave way to a subtle, covert humor on the author's part.
Yalom is generous with his characters' outcomes, but he realistically portrays the consequences of their foibles. And his story is riddled with the issues of confidentiality, and the place they hold in everyday therapeutic practice. He also explores the place these issues have in the personal psychology of his therapist characters. The purpose and role of secrets, conscious and unconscious, is another aspect of all the characters' foibles.
All of this says to me that Dr. Yalom takes therapy, and the role it plays in therapist and patient lives, very seriously, and with a measure of self-directed wry, and at times grim, humor. And I appreciate the level of honesty in him that it reveals. An analyzed life is not an easy path.
I look forward to reading the other novels. But first I must talk to my friend, Richard. I have to confess my 'sloppy' reading style, and offer to buy him a 'clean' copy of the book to replace its besmirched predecessor.
I wonder how one would interpret my sloppy behavior?(less)

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Jun 18, 2010 Cameron rated it 4 of 5 stars

Recommended by a good friend I was excited to read a fiction book written by Yalom, best known for his group therapy text which is basically the group therapy bible. Though his writing style is kind in the textbook I was leery about what I would find in his attempt at fiction. I was pleasantly surprised and, at times, shocked at what Yalom threw out there. For those of us in any field of counseling/therapy, you will find the story lines to be fun as he puts his characters in ethical dilemmas and...more

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Dec 26, 2010 Miss M rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: psychological

The last line of this book made me smile.

The book examines the intricate connections between and within the characters. None of the characters are perfect, but we see a very interesting journey in each of them as the book progresses. There is not a single character that is the same at the beginning of the book as they are at the end.

It's a story about the human condition, and about the folly of suggesting there is one 'right' way to do psychotherapy. Definitely a great read for any therapist. I'...more

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May 19, 2013 Bianca rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Cartea aceasta mi-a fost daruita intr-un moment in care aveam multa nevoie de carti noi, fapt pentru care am apreciat-o din start.
Ca sa parafrez o vorba englezeasca: la inceput, am judecat cartea dupa coperta. Raftul Denisei nu mi-a oferit pana acum lecturi surprinzatoare, ba din contra, se intampla chiar sa incetez din citit dupa cateva zeci de pagini deoarece povestile spuse nu ma acaparau deloc.
"Minciuni pe canapea", in schimb, m-a prins din prima; pe parcurs, m-a pierdut in unele momente, d...more

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Mar 12, 2009 Sandyberger3 rated it 3 of 5 stars

The first 1/3 of the book was hard to get into, but once I got into it, I couldn't put it down. It gave me a lot of food for thought. I felt that Yalom did a great job exploring the inter psychic issues that therapist face, issues such as being congruent and genuine. What is best practice? Ethical dilemmas that one can face in the room, and the politics within therapeutic organizations. I think it'll be a great book to read while completing an ethics course, it brings up great discussion topics....more

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Oct 11, 2009 Lauren Albert rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: fiction

I loved his take on psychoanalysis from both the patient's view and the analyst's view. I thought the "twist" (I won't give it away) was both clever and believable. My favorite quote which I'll post in my notes was:

8
[the analyst character Seymour Trotter says:]
Ever think about the fact that it's easier to make a diagnosis the first time you see a patient and that it gets harder the better you know the patient? Ask any experienced therapist in private--they'll tell you the same thing! In other...more

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Jan 26, 2013 Sushipink rated it 2 of 5 stars

So disappointed by this as I am a huge fan of Yalom's case studies. His writing is usually beautiful, honest, reflective and incisive, but this novel is crude and vulgar (he describes this as 'burlesque'), with two dimensional characters who are fundamentally unlikeable. His fictional therapist seeks to have his emotional needs met by his patients, until he finds a former fling to meet his sexual needs, thus freeing him to become more focussed in his clinical work with an 'attractive borderline'...more

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Oct 10, 2011 Joanna rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: bookgroup, general-fiction

I did not enjoy this book. I found the characters to be intensely unlikeable and was unable to get past that to fully appreciate the teaching messages about psychotherapy. I must admit that reading about all of these horrifying analysis experiences helped to hammer home the central message. Trust is essential. The therapist must not violate the trust. Do not take advantage. Is there more to it as presented in this book? If so, I missed it. If not, this was an awfully drawn out experience to illu...more

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Feb 02, 2012 Daya rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Nikdy nepůjdu k psychoanalytikovi :-)

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Sep 20, 2012 Alexandra rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: belletristik, biologie-medizin, usa

Am Anfang dachte ich, dass an dem Roman wirklich nur Therapeuten und Ärzte, die sich mit Psychologie beschäftigt haben, ihre Freude haben, da der Leser doch sehr extrem mit den Theorien von Freud, Jung und Konsorten bzw. den Unterschieden zwischen den einzelnen Schulen bombardiert wird. Das war für mich als Laie ein bisschen mühsam.

Plötzlich verwandelte sich jedoch die Geschichte in einen spannenden Roman, in dem in Episoden kuriose menschliche Abgründe rund um handelndende Therapeuten und Klien...more

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Feb 10, 2012 Jeanne rated it 5 of 5 stars

I think I'm going to love this book. The first few pages really sets the scene and I'm assuming the plot of the story. The characters are certainly believable. Let's see how the story progresses, develops and concludes. This after reading the prologue, which I rarely do, and the first 5 pages of the story.

Funny, but I think I've read this book before, but never finished it because of all the sexual escapades that develop after Chapter One. I can see how the story is developed in this book, how...more

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Apr 14, 2012 Teji rated it 4 of 5 stars

Recommended to Teji by: Bob

Shelves: felicitous-misapplications-bookclub, centennial-bookclub

What would happen if a patient entered psychotherapy with the intent to deceive the therapist?

This novel examines ethics, boundaries, and the therapeutic relationship--and does it in a way that is way more interesting than it sounds.

Quotes:
"Do you know the two good things about Alzheimer's? Your old friends become your new friends, and you can hide your own Easter eggs." p3

"...the fact that medical students or physicians or pschotherapists yearn for simple, straightforward disagnosis and treatm...more

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Mar 24, 2009 Jonathan rated it 4 of 5 stars

I really enjoyed this novel- by a professor of psychiatry at Stanford. "Lying on the Couch" not only shows how therapists can become deeply involved in the complexities of individual's inner lives and relationships, but also how complex and challenging their own lives can become through the honesty or deception presented by their toughest clients. Recommended for anyone who enjoys a smart psychological thriller and even better if the reader likes, knows about, or would like to know more about th...more

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Sep 22, 2008 Juan Carlos rated it 4 of 5 stars

Overall, LYING ON THE COUCH, is a pretty good book. Regardless of the fact that I'm not into psychological analysis, it was hard to put the book down. I would not go as far as calling it a page-turner, though. It cannot however be compared to WHEN NIETZSCHE WEPT, also by Yalom, which is one of the best books I have read in quite some time.

The plot is well conceived, crafted and very interesting, and all the characters are neatly woven into it.

The novel evolves around the character of Dr. Ernes...more

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Nov 23, 2009 Leslie rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: novel, psychology

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. This is the story of two analysts--Marshall--jaded, greedy, and ambitious; the other--Earnest--idealistic, caring, and kind. Their patients end up in relationships with each other and with their therapists that get complicated-er and complicated-er.

From reading other books by Yalom, I know that Earnest represents him, because Earnest experiments with new ways of doing therapy, the same experiments Yalom, the therapist, has done with his patients and documents in his non-fiction books about thera...more

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May 27, 2009 Anderse rated it 1 of 5 stars

Somehow when I picked this up in Portland, I thought it was a mystery that had to do with therapy. It isn't so my mother got no Mother's day present.

It is a somewhat disjointed interconnected story of a bunch of people with therapy at the center. Every single character is so flawed as a human being, reading was sometimes painful. I do like when books in which the reader knows little connections about each character that they are not aware of.

Since the author is a psychiatrist himself, I wonder...more

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Jul 21, 2011 Natalija rated it 5 of 5 stars

I've been recommended to read Lying on the Couch, and I'm happy I've done it. I'm interested in therapy as such, and the book gave me an insight into therapeutical routine. More than that, Lying on the Couch is one of the most inspirational books I've read. It really spoke to me as I loved the idea of juxtaposing malice drinking its own poison and sincerity spreading its positive effect over other people like circles spread around a stone trown into a lake.

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Feb 08, 2013 Burak rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Nietzsche Ağladığında' daki kadar olayların içinde değilsiniz bu romanda. Daha çok psikiyatristlerin içinde bulundukları durumu, yaşadıkları ikilemleri, etiklikle insanlık arasında gidip gelmelerini izliyorsunuz. İlginç bir kaç tecrübeyi de yaşamadan edinebilirsiniz bu kitapta..Sonunun tatmin edici bir şekilde bitmediğine inanıyorum. Bazı karakterler okuyucunun yorumlamasına bile olanak vermeden havada kaldı. Sonu aceleyle yazılmış sanki..

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May 20, 2013 Lisa Forman added it

i got 2/3 of the way through this book and struggled at every point. the only thing i really liked about this book was the fascinating opening anecdote. the rest involved a group of incredibly unlikeable characters, arrogant, greedy, financially focused, interpersonally a little unpleasant. and that was just the therapists! this was my first Yalom, and a disappointment after hearing superb things about him for many years.

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May 19, 2011 Joy Fox rated it 5 of 5 stars

This was one of the best books I read when I was taking a class called "Supervision" in school. I highly recommend it because it gives an 'up close and personal' detailed account of a guy going through supervision in the traditional psychodynamic theory of psychoanalysis. Although the trend is not geared to this theoretical approach anymore, the insights gathered from reading this book were fascinating and intriguing.

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Oct 02, 2009 Sarah Emily rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: disappointing

This book has no subtlety. Within the first 50 pages, I knew what was going to happen in the next 150 pages. That's not necessarily a deal breaker for me; if a book is beautifully written, I'm willing to forgive a lot. But this is not beautifully written. In fact, the dialogue is frequently painful.

My partner asked me why I insisted on reading the whole thing. I'll update my review when I have a response.

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Sep 23, 2011 Leonore rated it 4 of 5 stars

Great book about psychotherapy and how it changes patients and therapists. One of my favorite parts is where a patient/lawyer starts doing therapy on one of yer clients, a therapist too paranoid to see a fellow therapist. Shows how many professions unwittingly end up playing therapist to their clients. Author is well-known therapist who writes with imagination and a superb sense of humor.

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Aug 07, 2011 Roberto Macias added it

This book is quite unique. I personally liked Yalom's literary style in "when Nietzsche wept" and found the whole concept of Lying on the Couch interesting, which it certainly proved to be. I guess if you are reading this review is because you are mildly interested in the subject, let me just say I do recommend the book, for it is not only informative, it is also quite enjoyable.

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Aug 01, 2011 Joanna Bedggood added it · review of another edition

Yalom writes nonfiction that I have really enjoyed and learned from. This is the first time I have read one of his novels, but it definately will not be the last. This book appealed to me on so many levels..plot, characters, and it felt like a behind the scenes look at the lives of psychiatrists. I really hope someone I know will read it too, because I would love to discuss it.

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Mar 15, 2013 Pia Bergqvist rated it 2 of 5 stars

I really enjoyed Love's Executioner which is a collection of case studies. Was very disappointed at this attempt at fiction. The languge is lacking in flow and comes off as lifeless. The story (not sure what it is, even though I gave it the 100 pages I always give a book before giving up on it) is constantly interupted by speaches about the philosophy of psychotherapy.

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Oct 04, 2012 Maryana rated it 4 of 5 stars

I would definetly recommend this book. It talks about the importance of trust in any relations - between a psychiatrist and his patient, a lawyer and his client, a husband and his wife, between lovers. It explores methods and techniques of psychoanalysis from the insider's perspective and is surprisingly honest. The double meaning in the title is metaphoric....more

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About Irvin D. Yalom

Irvin David Yalom, M.D., is an author of fiction and nonfiction, Emeritus Professor of Psychiatry at Stanford University, an existentialist, and accomplished psychotherapist.

More about Irvin D. Yalom...

Books by Irvin D. Yalom

Love's Executioner and Other Tales of Psychotherapy

The Gift of Therapy: An Open Letter to a New Generation of Therapists and Their Patients

The Theory and Practice of Group Psychotherapy

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Quotes from Lying on the Couch

“Only the wounded healer can truly heal. (97)” — 68 people liked it

“What? 'Borderline patients play games'? That what you said? Ernest, you'll never be a real therapist if you think like that. That's exactly what I meant earlier when I talked about the dangers of diagnosis. There are borderlines and there are borderlines. Labels do violence to people. You can't treat the label; you have to treat the person behind the label. (17)” — 36 people liked it

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Lying on the Couch

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