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We are proud of the many GWSCSW
members who have enhanced our profession with their books or chapters of books.
The GWSCSW Book Corner, launched in December 2005, will feature a member book
and author, in each newsletter and then in this archive.
Our Book Corner celebrates the works of GWSCSW member authors. Please contact us
at gwscsw.gmail.com with information about your publications – and those of your
too-modest colleagues. GWSCSW Book Corner author, Erin Gilbert, LGSW, is a
school social worker with the Family Support Center. Erin can be reached at
gilberel@hotmail.com.
Vivien Deitz, LCSW-C, BCD
The Doing and Being Room
Vivien Deitz, LCSW-C, BCD, stated that
her imaginary friend, Mr. Neethnawther, was a constant companion in her life
when she was four years old. She noted that her family moved when she was eight
years old and afterward Mr. Neethnawther did not visit her—that is, until about
four years ago, when Deitz was at a clinical seminar. Deitz explained how Mr.
Neethnawther surfaced in her mind in time to play a role in a story she
developed that day.
In a recent phone interview, Dietz said that this story ultimately became The
Doing and Being Room, a book she created with the aid of Linda McIntyre Mansy,
art editor and interior designer, and Tineke Noordegraaf, contributor and
therapist. Dietz described how the book, targeted to four to eight year olds,
considers the early stages of connection to oneself and others. She explained
that The Doing and Being Room explores how the imagination deals with the
issues of childhood loneliness and fear, and is a testimony to the spirit and
resilience of a child’s imagination. Specifically, Aviva, a little girl living
in the Sahara Desert, wishes for a friend as she gazes into the night sky. She
hears a noise in the next room and eventually discovers that Mr. Neethnawther
traveled from a star to be her friend.
Deitz discussed how she crafted The Doing and Being Room over four years,
working intermittently until the story felt complete. She then focused her
attention on the need for illustrations, and she described a party at which she
read the tale to her young grandchildren prior to inviting them to create
artwork to accompany the text. She stated that the illustrations are fairly
general in scope, allowing readers to exercise their own imaginations.
Both an individual and group practitioner, Deitz affirmed that she has used the
book in her clinical work, particularly with children, whom she might ask to
draw or discuss reactions to the story depending on age. She stated that the
book would be valuable with more imaginative and open-minded adults when using
techniques such as guided imagery.
Deitz confirmed that she is
endeavoring to publish The Doing and Being Room; in the meantime, she is selling
copies for $20. Orders or questions may be sent to her email address,
vivdeitz@mac.com.
Joel Kanter, LCSW-C,
Editor
Face to Face with Children: The Life and Work of Clare Winnicott
It was in 1990 that Joel Kanter, LCSW-C, noted that renowned psychoanalyst
Donald Winnicott’s writings included references to social work interventions and
to written materials by Donald’s wife, Clare Winnicott. As Donald was not a
social worker by training, these references piqued Kanter’s interest. Kanter
began hunting for writings by Clare Winnicott, who happened to be a moderately
well known social worker in her home country of England. After several fruitless
searches in various libraries, he discovered a 100-page monograph written by her
while he was visiting the University of Chicago’s School of Social Work. He
spent ten minutes reading in the stacks and was intrigued enough to photocopy
the entire book for later reading.
Kanter eventually sought additional writings by Clare. Over time he became
convinced that these writings were so compelling both historically and
clinically that they should be published for American audiences. He wrote
letters to contacts in England but little came of his queries.
In 1995, Kanter was working on another project when he spoke with a woman in
England who revealed that she had been a friend of both Winnicotts, and indeed
her husband had owned the publishing company that had produced Clare’s
monograph. Shortly thereafter, Kanter traveled to England and within a matter of
days, uncovered a wealth of material about Clare and authored by Clare. By 1996,
Kanter had collected the materials that he intended to include in a volume about
her, and he began working with publishers to bring this book to market. In 2004,
his 14-year journey ended as Face to Face with Children: The Life and Work of
Clare Winnicott was published.
In a phone interview, Kanter explained why he had devoted so much time and care
to the pursuit of Clare’s work. He said that he learned that a collaboration
existed between the spouses, and he stated that Donald appeared highly
influenced by Clare’s work—the concept of “holding” was used by Clare six years
prior to its appearance in Donald’s writings. In addition, Kanter explained that
Clare described similar concepts to Donald in some of her writings, and her use
of evocative language was accessible and highly descriptive—while Donald created
jargon such as “transitional object,” Clare described a “first treasured
possession.” Finally, he stated that she elucidated some powerful ideas about
working with children—in particular, how best to communicate with them and also
how to examine their internal worlds within the context of ordinary
environments.
Kanter wrote the book’s introduction, which serves as a brief biography of
Clare. The following chapters are comprised of published articles, transcripts
of interviews and talks, and various letters. To learn more about the life and
works of Clare Winnicott, Face to Face with Children: The Life and Work of
Clare Winnicott is available for purchase on
http://www.amazon.com.
Linda Perlman Gordon, LCSW-C,
M.Ed.
Mom, Can I Move Back In With You?
During your hectic morning, you
notice that your daughter who is away at college called your cell phone. You
return the call, mindful of potential emergencies. Your worst fears are
confirmed—she is frantic. “Please! I need your help!” Your heart rate increases
and you just manage to catch the end of her statement. “Look up my class
syllabus online and tell me what is due today! I’m walking to class and need to
know.”
Nowadays, such requests may be commonplace for parents of 20-somethings due to “adultesence,”
Linda Perlman Gordon explained in a recent interview. She uses this phrase to
describe the relatively new phenomenon of 20-somethings who remain dependent on
parents at a time in their lives when past generations were already
self-sufficient. Gordon stated that she first noticed adultesence both in her
personal life and in her clinical work, and eventually she and Susan Morris
Shaffer wrote Mom, Can I Move Back In With You?, an in-depth exploration of the
concept of delayed adulthood.
Gordon stated that she and her
co-author had several goals in writing Mom, Can I Move Back In With You?,
including identifying and describing the phenomenon of delayed adulthood. In
addition, she stressed that she would like to normalize adultesence for parents
who may be wondering why their 20-somethings did not become self-sufficient
automatically upon leaving home at 18 years old. Gordon reported that the book
lists characteristics of the new adulthood, a necessary task since past notions
of adulthood may not be relevant for today’s 20-somethings, and she urges
parents to measure adulthood not by demographic transitions but by these
qualities instead. Also, she explained that parents should be aware that new
methods of parenting are necessary in this often unanticipated but important
final stage in the process of parenting, and she encourages parents to use these
new methods to help rather than hinder 20-somethings at this crucial point in
their lives.
Gordon and Shaffer have written three books together, and these books, including
Mom, Can I Move Back In With You?, are available for purchase via the authors’
website,
http://www.parentingroadmaps.com. When asked about plans for a new book,
Gordon stated that she currently is occupied with speaking engagements, though
she may write something in the future on the topic of grandparenting.
Kate Scharff, LCSW-C, LICSW
Therapy Demystified: An Insider’s Guide to Getting the Right Help, Without Going
Broke
How do people view psychotherapy and how can they find the help they need? Kate
Scharff, LCSW-C, LICSW, explained in our recent interview that the inspiration
for her book, Therapy Demystified: An Insider’s Guide to Getting the Right Help,
Without Going Broke, was a conversation overheard between her eight-year-old
daughter and a friend. Her daughter smoothly described what Scharff does for a
living—“She’s a psychotherapist. She helps others with thoughts, feelings and
problems by talking to them.” Scharff, however, observed that she had awaited
her daughter’s response with some apprehension: though both her parents are
therapists, she realized that she still feels uncomfortable when talking about
her work with others outside the field.
Scharff said that this discomfort highlighted the need for clear, common sense language in the field. She saw a fog of uncertainty cloaking the field of therapy that would not be accepted in other helping professions. Scharff avowed that educating consumers about therapy would alleviate the feeling that treatment involves “falling down a rabbit hole.” She asserted that while parts of the therapeutic process might resist explanation, therapy is not a mystical experience, and the areas that we do understand should be discussed with clients.
Professionals might be able to
garner different insights from Therapy Demystified than consumers. In
particular, Scharff explained that Therapy Demystified will give professionals a
clearer conception of the work that they do and a motivation to develop shared
language to talk about work with clients in a lucid way. Some professionals have
kept the book in their waiting rooms, and it has proven to be a great
springboard for discussion about therapy and the process of change.
Scharff currently is working on a book about high conflict divorce. Therapy
Demystified: An Insider’s Guide to Getting the Right Help, Without Going Broke
is available for purchase on http://www.amazon.com for $14.95.
Rob Scuka, LCSW-C, PhD
Relationship Enhancement Therapy: Healing through deep empathy and intimate
dialogue
Rob Scuka, LCSW-C, PhD, told me, in our interview this summer, that working with
couples is his passion. Following this closely is his enthusiasm for the
relationship enhancement (RE) model, which he has been using since 1993. He was
fortunate, he said, that early in his clinical training, he encountered Bernard
Guerney Jr., PhD, leading authority in RE therapy; this experience helped shape
much of his practice.
One of Guerney’s key insights involves the skills training approach. The
therapist helps each of the partners to learn more effective interpersonal
skills that can be incorporated into daily life and used continuously in the
couples’ daily life. Scuka describes the goal as the restructuring of the
relationship and patterns of interaction in order to help the couple address the
issues at hand and future issues as well. Therapy using this perspective, he
says, can have a profound effect on couples.
As a result of his twin passions for couples work and for the RE model, and in
keeping with the skills training approach, Scuka authored Relationship
Enhancement Therapy: Healing through deep empathy and intimate dialogue. He
describes the book as a working manual for clinicians interested in using the RE
model in their practice with couples. Someone inexperienced with the model can
read this book, he says, and be able to implement RE afterward.
Scuka’s book includes an overview of the RE therapy process, including theory,
research, methods and techniques. There are step-by-step descriptions of each of
the various phases of the RE model, from intake to skills teaching to the
dialogue phase.
Six clinical vignettes are interspersed throughout the text. Three of them focus
on using the RE model for the treatment of infidelity. Extensive case
descriptions and dialogue are included.
Relationship Enhancement Therapy: Healing through deep empathy and intimate
dialogue, published by Routledge, is available for purchase on http://www.amazon.com for $39.95. Learn more about the RE model on
the National Institute of Relationship Enhancement’s website at
http://www.nire.org.
Jon Frederickson
Psychodynamic Psychotherapy: Learning to Listen from Multiple Perspectives.
This writer caught up with Jon Fredrickson following his recent workshop (see
page 9) to learn about the writing of his book, Psychodynamic Psychotherapy:
Learning to Listen from Multiple Perspectives.
Jon revealed that he was inspired to write on this topic because he found most
training experiences to be very theoretical, with only vague or fragmented
information about the practical application of theory. Novice therapists often
find the therapeutic process very mysterious: a definition of transference is
helpful, but how does one listen for it?
Jon likened Psychodynamic Psychotherapy to a workbook in that it is
understandable, explicit and practical. Session transcripts are included, so
readers have the opportunity to study the ways in which therapists collect
information, generate interpretations and make interventions. They will learn
about different kinds of reflection, resolving conflict, the analysis of
transference and defense, flexibility, and why and when to intervene. One
chapter is dedicated to the practical analysis of a case from several different
perspectives.
When queried about books that were instrumental to his career and writings, Jon
immediately listed Herbert Strean’s Resolving Resistances in Psychotherapy,
Leston Havens’s Making Contact: Uses of Language in Psychotherapy and
Leigh McCullough Vaillant’s Changing Character: Short-Term Anxiety-Regulating
Psychotherapy for Restructuring Defenses, Affects, and Attachment. He noted
he found these books to be practical and informative while addressing common
therapeutic issues.
Psychodynamic Psychotherapy: Learning to Listen from Multiple Perspectives
is available for purchase on
http://www.amazon.com for $36.95.
Grace Lebow and Barbara Kane
Coping with Your Difficult Older Parent
GWSCSW members Grace Lebow and Barbara Kane launched Aging Network Services in
1982, offering care management, counseling and referrals for adults and older
generations. Throughout the provision of these services, Lebow and Kane observed
the frustration, guilt and anger displayed by adults providing care for older
parents with particularly difficult behaviors. Dubbing the frustrated caregivers
“grownchildren,” the pair embarked on a journey to aid these clients.
Lebow and Kane coauthored Coping with Your Difficult Older Parent with
Irwin Lebow, which was published by Avon Books in 1999. Reflecting over two
decades of experience in the field, it provides grownchildren with practical
tips and problem-solving techniques to handle the behaviors of difficult
parents, including case examples from their practices and sample role-plays.
Readers are able to take a Difficult Parent Questionnaire, designed by the
authors to indicate severity of difficulty and six demonstrated problem areas,
such as dependency behaviors, self-destructive behaviors and self-centered
behaviors. These problem areas are explored in-depth throughout the following
chapters. Other featured topics include grieving and mourning, and how to avoid
becoming a difficult older parent. An extensive list of books and articles
addressing various topics related to eldercare is also included.
Reviewers laud this book as a comprehensive resource for all caregivers and
caregivers-to-be. Indeed, Lebow and Kane assert that the book fills a gap in
eldercare literature, as many sources discuss ways to treat difficult
personalities, but do not provide advice for grownchildren about responding to
and coping with their parents’ challenging actions. With its common-sense
approach and encouraging words, Coping with Your Difficult Older Parent
may help readers make considerable positive changes in their relationships with
their parents, allowing these readers to be less frustrated and more empathetic
in the long run.
Coping with Your Difficult Older Parent is available for purchase on
http://www.amazon.com for $12.95.
GWSCSW Book Corner is written by Erin Gilbert, MSW. Please contact Erin with
information about your publications (and those of your too-modest colleagues) at
gilberel@hotmail.com.