Why Therapy Works: Using Our Minds to Change Our Brains (Norton Series on Interpersonal Neurobiology)

Incredible informative and hope inducing book that explains how therapy affects the brain to make positive and lasting change. The most important take away is by confronting one's fears a person gets the conscious controlling brain to overcome the automatic fear responses of the subconscious reptilian brain centered in the amygdala. This literally changes the brain and makes for mental health improvements. Cozolino also delves into how childhood experiences mold and settle into dysfunctional mindsets about how the world works. Therapy can reshape these mindsets and get a person back on their feet.

I was wondering how talking to therapist may make me better. This book goes a long way to give comprehensive & convincing answer that contains fair mix of science, author's personal experience and stories. It's not easiest book the get through, but it's definietely worth doing it!

I just finished reading Why Therapy Works and found it to be one of the best books I have read on therapy - ever (and I've been a therapist for over 30 years). The title explains the contents, and gives a hint at Louis Cozolino's clear and consice writing style. He describes the evolutionary neuroscience behind the reasons people seek therapy (e.g., the causes of anxiety, fear, & depression), as well as why and how the therapeutic process works. His neuroscience explanations are clear and understandable without "dumbing down" the topic. It not only explains why therapy works, the book offers tips for applying to clients. It truly is a gem of a book - if you are going to read one book on the topic - this is the one to read.

This book was a required reading for one my classes. I absolutely love it!It includes:- Insightful knowledge-language is easy to comprehend-Not a boring academic book-Briefly integrates psychobiology, and neurology- Includes author's personal life situations (engaging and educational)- Great for aspiring therapists and anyone that is interested in Psychology in generalI would highly recommend this book.

For anyone interested in learning about the neuroscience that explains why psychotherapy actually works, this is the best introductory explanation out there. Enjoyable, clear and to the point, I highly recommend it.

Easy to read and loaded with good information. I wish all my texts were like this

I found this book helpful to remind me of the processes involved in "talk" therapy. The author offers a clear and precise description of the brain process that makes talk healing in our lives. He also offered suggestions of things to present to patients a as ways to aid the internal and external healing process. It's a good book for the novice as well as the seasoned therapist

I found this book to be profoundly helpful in my own living and in the lives of the men I work with in the recovery program that I lead. This book is foundational in understanding the pain and suffering that many people who are broken struggle with every day. A must read for any caregiver.

Anyone practising therapy or interested in therapy, Please read this. The author is fantastic and it is so easy to read and understand.

Lovely book ! clear, easy to read !Explique clairement comment ça peut marcher une psy chothérapie

Cozolino writes with spring water clarity about the fundamental implications of the brain for how we think, feel and act. This book is particularly for psychotherapists and related mental health professionals. More than any other writer Cozolino knows what's important clinically and focusses on this sometimes revealing facts that no other author presents.As someone who has taught neuroscience for over 10 years to social work grad students Cozolino's works are my first go to resources and this book is perhaps the most dedicated to practice of all his works. It's relatively short and to the point. And it blends in his sense of humour to present ideas that capture your imagination.This book weaves in so much practical knowledge from his other writings that it would be a good place to start for practitioners.One thing has puzzled me about what this book doesn't contain. Cozolino presents information on the implicit memory system and how powerful these beliefs and memories are to impact. He doesn't seem to acknowledge the work over the last couple of decades on ways to unlock these memories and apparently to erase them. This is work captured in the text Unlocking the Emotional brain by Bruce Ecker and colleagues.It would be enlightening to hear his thoughts about this.In summary buy the book. Great value in every way. The field is so fortunate to have a writer, a practitioner and someone with a neuroscience background who can bring simplicity to complex emerging research.

Easy for anyone to read, it does not have an academic or specialist tone. It isn't a self-help book (it focuses on the interaction between two people), so it is probably aimed largely at therapists, but would help clients - as long as they can find a therapist who believes in the book, to co-operate with. I've had one short instance of helpful therapy (which did fit the book) and 8 long attempts at therapy which achieved nothing (and didn't fit the book), so I read it in a search for optimism.

I enjoy reading Cozolino's books because he is a very engaging writer. This book in particular helped me reconcile narrative and talk therapies with somatically oriented models of therapy.