You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.69 AVERAGE
3.69 AVERAGE
Despite the sometimes heavy subject matter, I found the book easy to read. I am often drawn to stories with mental health challenges or therapy in the plot, and although this wouldn’t be the book to read to learn about a typical experience, I find it comforting to be reminded everyone is going through something. The book certainly wasn’t boring, and I lost sleep a couple of nights reading “one more chapter” that turned into multiple because the chapters were short. Ultimately, I think the reminder from the book that we are enough, that thinking about what we need in life and expressing those needs is critical, and that we all should find people who love and support us as we are.
emotional
reflective
sad
There are parts of the book that I found difficult or uncomfortable to get through. Sometimes the actions of the therapist felt a little unethical.
I really felt for the author and the many traumas/issues she was working through - and found her way of describing her journey engaging - but was so profoundly uncomfortable with what she described as “unconventional” therapy techniques. There were so many ethical issues, boundary-crossing moments, and seriously wrong ways with the way the therapy was practiced that I am shocked things didn’t go more wrong. I’m glad she has arrived at happiness and fulfillment in the end, but there were so many ways it could have gone sideways or dangerously. Please do not view this style as the way that ethical therapy (group or otherwise) should be practiced.
dark
hopeful
medium-paced
I vacillated between interest in the author’s growth and concern that the therapeutic situation was somehow inappropriate or exploitative.
As a therapist myself, I cringed throughout this whole book. I'm all for unique therapy approaches, avoiding one size fits all treatment, but the group and psychotherapist described in this book feel completely unethical. Absolutely no boundaries, he feels a bit like a narcissistic puppet master creating codependency among group members and on himself. The author was very unlikeable, whiny, possibly having a personality disorder, completely lacking in any emotional regulation abilities. After 5 years of therapy still engaging in dramatic self injury and destructiveness and other "cries for help" in her group? I didn't see much personal growth, though she feels she has grown a lot. But basically every time a guy breaks up with her she slips into self destructiveness until she finally meets "the one." I really hope if someone reading this book is considering therapy that they don't assume this is the norm. I hate portrayals of therapists in books and movies/TV as unethical and without boundaries. I understand that this is what makes this book sell, but it angers me. I listened to the audiobook version of this read by the author. Her performance was very flat. Not a fan.
I'm genuinely shocked by how many two and three star reviews this has! I'm not at all a memoir person and I loved this book. It hit me a lot harder than I expected it to (and I absolutely could not get through it all in one sitting) but I loved every chapter. Dr. Rosen's approach to therapy is far from traditional, but it worked for the author and it absolutely works for a fantastic memoir.
dark
emotional
funny
sad
medium-paced
This was a DNF for me. While I really wanted to like it; I had issues with it from the beginning. From the odd “prescriptions” the therapist prescribed to the main character in the story to the way in which some of it hit just too close to home…it just wasn’t what I was expecting. While it was a 1 star read for me, maybe it’ll be a 5 star read for you.