"Have you ever wished to observe the work of a therapist first-hand? This comprehensive guide provides a bird’s eye view of therapy and the therapeutic assessment process. Annotated Psychotherapy is a handy reference and a complete package that offers not only therapy transcripts and therapist evaluative comments but also explanations of key therapy concepts and a glossary of terms. Reading it is almost like having a supervisor by your side as you develop your therapeutic skills."
Ann Goelitz, PhD, LCSW, psychotherapist and author of From Trauma to Healing: A Social Worker's Guide to Working with Survivors, 2nd ed, and Shared Mass Trauma in Social Work: Implications and Strategies for Resilient Practice
"This book, with its unique format of annotated transcripts of therapy sessions, is a valuable addition to the library of resources available to psychotherapists of all disciplines and will be especially useful in training new therapists."
Robert Rohrbaugh, MD, professor of psychiatry and associate dean of global health education at Yale School of Medicine
"Annotated Psychotherapy reveals the therapist’s internal dialogue in reaction to patient’s statements. The valuable lesson of the book is how the dialogue serves to guide the therapist to adjust the delivery of the psychotherapy. Annotated Psychotherapy joins Makover’s Treatment Planning for Psychotherapists, and Basics of Psychotherapy to create an essential foundation for educating therapists."
Diane Sholomskas, PhD, assistant clinical professor of psychiatry at the Yale School of Medicine and codirector of the Center for Treatment of Anxiety Disorders and Phobias
Reviewer: Olivia Colombo, DO, MHA (Trinity Health)
Description: This book review was co-authored by Tejaswi Nunna, undergraduate senior, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The book is a collection of transcripts of author Richard B. Makeover's interviews with psychotherapy patients, including explanations of his intentions during the interview, as well as development and execution of treatment plans. The book details eight cases of patients from various backgrounds such as facing a high stress job or the struggles of being a new mother.
Purpose: The book's purpose is to describe the practice of psychotherapy, including the proper length of psychotherapy treatment, and the therapist's mindset throughout execution of the treatment plan. The book contains a transcript of eight cases used as examples encountered in day-to-day practice with the purpose of providing a first-hand expert opinion on psychotherapy practice. The book meets these objectives. The extensively explained dialogue allows individuals to discover the power of language in the therapy process.
Audience: The intended audience of this book is therapists. However, the book is suitable for all audiences interested in mental health, from students to professionals. Students may read this book and learn methods to approach an interaction with a patient in the future. Mental health professionals may use this book to learn how another professional in the field may approach patient interactions and apply these concepts in their own practice. The book is a nice reminder that there are multiple ways to interview patients.
Features: For each of the eight cases, timestamps note therapy session durations and italicized font indicates the therapist's interpretation of what is occurring and their intentions during the interviews. It is important to make these stylistic choices to differentiate the external dialogue from the internal thoughts of the therapist as they guide treatment. The book contains a glossary of psychotherapy terminology, which is particularly helpful for students who may be unfamiliar with such words.
Assessment: This book is a worthwhile contribution to the field, particularly for those who are interested in developing psychiatric interviewing skills. Students may find it useful to read the way a seasoned professional navigates and interprets such interactions. For those early on in their careers, it provides a unique, first-hand account of the psychiatric interview as it is carried out by a professional. In a field where we learn from the practice of our mentors, this is appreciated.
