Reviews

A Shining Affliction: A Story of Harm and Healing in Psychotherapy by Annie G. Rogers

iamshadow's review

5.0

I really liked it. It was beautiful and poetic, strange and ambiguous. I feel I'll need to read it a few more times to understand it properly. It put me in mind of Dibs In Search of Self and I Never Promised You A Rose Garden, but I haven't read either of those for years, so I don't know how close it really is to either, my brain just wanted to file it with them. Read if you like unconventional books about psychotherapy, child therapy, attachment trauma, child abuse, multiplicity and madness.

barbaramanatee14me's review against another edition

5.0

INCREDIBLE book. This book was recommended to me by a counselor and I had it low on my to-read list for awhile, but I'm so glad I got around to it. It's super honest, relatable, beautifully written, and often heart-breaking. Just don't read it if you're about to do something for which you need to be super emotionally composed. If you've ever worked as or with a mental health professional, I'd recommend it.

siattlerose's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional inspiring reflective sad slow-paced

5.0

asimoni's review against another edition

4.0

This is a courageous and beautiful account of trauma which blurs the line between patient and therapist. Should be a must-read for therapists.

ninjasunknown's review against another edition

emotional reflective slow-paced

4.25

mxballin's review against another edition

4.0

Incredibly well written, and a fascinating look at the two sides of the therapeutic equation from one person's perspective. I avoided reading this book for a while due to fear of the seriousness of the subject matter, but once I started reading I was hooked.

I struggled to be able to pick this book apart as much as I needed to for school because it was so self-analytical and well explained, that I didn't feel like I was able to add additional analysis. I'm pretty sure that's a good sign...

jmarsh's review

challenging emotional informative inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

4.0

smungalez's review against another edition

5.0

This book was so hard to read and so important (as a psychotherapist) for me to read. Rogers brings you deep into her soul and psyche, and at times, it’s hard to find your way out. But in that way, she brings us into her very experience.

emeraldberkowitz's review

5.0

I read this book at the suggestion of my then-therapist who said it was life-changing for her. I loved it, was so absorbed by it that I almost forgot to get off the train in Vermont at the end of an 8 hour trip. this is a great book about the long unwinding of trauma, and re-learning trust, among other things.