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A review by meemawreads
Maybe You Should Talk to Someone: A Therapist, Her Therapist, and Our Lives Revealed by Lori Gottlieb
challenging
emotional
informative
sad
medium-paced
5.0
Lord-a-mercy, y’all, this one took me a while to finish! Largely because it was only available as an e-book and I hate loathe and despise reading on my phone, but also because it was a tough read. At one point, I got so introspective about my own mortality that I dissociated and had to nap to recover 😳 It made me cry in public (twice) and many more times in private. I’ll go ahead and tell ya, this was a five-tater read.
I came to know of Lori Gottlieb through reading her “Dear Therapist” column in The Atlantic. I always appreciated her insights so when I learned she also has a podcast AND this book, I jumped on both. This book is partially memoir, partially an anonymous mosaic of clients she’s mashed into unforgettable characters. You learn how she unconventionally came to the role of Therapist while getting to know these clients and their struggles; then you meet her therapist and watch her own transformation after a devastating breakup. The whole book moves chronologically to her “termination” with several clients and her own therapist, and her heartwarming quote, “In the best goodbyes, there’s always the feeling that there’s something more to say,” sticks out to me. So much of what we struggle with in life (and then go to therapy for) is loss, change, goodbyes. It can be hard to let go of relationships, experiences, anger, etc. but “we can’t have change without loss.” I learned a lot from this book and took away a new gratitude for my ability to attend therapy, and appreciation for the people who do this hard work. Having a heart is hard, sweet babies. Take care of yours.
Like I said, 🥔🥔🥔🥔🥔/🥔🥔🥔🥔🥔
I came to know of Lori Gottlieb through reading her “Dear Therapist” column in The Atlantic. I always appreciated her insights so when I learned she also has a podcast AND this book, I jumped on both. This book is partially memoir, partially an anonymous mosaic of clients she’s mashed into unforgettable characters. You learn how she unconventionally came to the role of Therapist while getting to know these clients and their struggles; then you meet her therapist and watch her own transformation after a devastating breakup. The whole book moves chronologically to her “termination” with several clients and her own therapist, and her heartwarming quote, “In the best goodbyes, there’s always the feeling that there’s something more to say,” sticks out to me. So much of what we struggle with in life (and then go to therapy for) is loss, change, goodbyes. It can be hard to let go of relationships, experiences, anger, etc. but “we can’t have change without loss.” I learned a lot from this book and took away a new gratitude for my ability to attend therapy, and appreciation for the people who do this hard work. Having a heart is hard, sweet babies. Take care of yours.
Like I said, 🥔🥔🥔🥔🥔/🥔🥔🥔🥔🥔
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death and Mental illness