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Author Epstein, Mark, 1953- author.

Title The Zen of therapy : uncovering a hidden kindness in life / Mark Epstein, M.D.

Publication Info. New York City : Penguin Press, 2022.

Copies

Location Call No. Status
 Avon Free Public Library - Adult Department  294.3 EPSTEIN    Check Shelf
 Bloomfield at the Atrium  294.3 EPS    Check Shelf
 Cheshire Public Library - Adult Department Lower Level  294.3361 EPSTEIN    Check Shelf
 East Hartford, Raymond Library - Adult Department  294.33 EPSTEIN    Check Shelf
 Glastonbury, Welles-Turner Memorial Library - Adult Department  294.3 EPSTEIN    Check Shelf
 Manchester, Main Library - New Materials  294.336 EPSTEIN    DUE 04-12-24
 Middletown, Russell Library - Adult Nonfiction  294.3361 EPS    Check Shelf
 New Britain, Main Library - Non Fiction  294.3 EPS    Check Shelf
 Newington, Lucy Robbins Welles Library - Adult Department  294.3361 EPSTEIN    Check Shelf
 Simsbury Public Library - Non Fiction  294.3361 EPSTEIN    Check Shelf

Description 303 pages ; 25 cm
Bibliography Includes bibliographical references (pages 293-296) and index.
Contents Introduction -- Part I. Into the Mystic: 1. Inner Peace -- 2. The Path of Investigation -- Part II. A Year of Therapy: 3. Winter: Clinging -- 4. Spring: Mindfulness -- 5. Summer: Insight -- 6. Fall: Aggression -- Part III. The Gate of Oneness: Kindness -- Acknowledgements -- Notes -- Index.
Summary "A remarkable exploration of the therapeutic relationship, Dr. Mark Epstein reflects on one year's worth of therapy sessions during which he brought together his years of experience with Western psychotherapy and his equally long investigation into Buddhism to understand how the practices, in tandem, can lead to even greater awareness - for his patients, and for himself. For years, Dr. Mark Epstein was careful not to let his spiritual leanings as a Buddhist overtly intrude into his work as a psychiatrist. Content to use his training in mindfulness as a private resource, letting it guide the way he listened to his patients, he hoped that the Buddhist influence on his work would remain invisible. But as he became more forthcoming about the spiritual aspects of his thinking, he was surprised to find that many of his patients were in fact eager to learn more, and he soon realized that the divisions between the psychological, emotional, and the spiritual were not as distinct as one might think. In THE ZEN OF THERAPY, Dr. Epstein reflects on a year's worth of selected sessions with patients and examines how, in the incidental details of a given hour, his Buddhist background influences the way he works. In this cross-section of life in his office, he emphasizes how therapy, an element of Western medicine, can in fact be seen as a two-person meditation. Meditation and psychotherapy each encourage a willingness to face life's difficulties with courage that can be hard to otherwise muster. Mindfulness, too, much like a good therapist, can "hold" our awareness for us - and allow us to come to our senses. With practice and patience, as awareness becomes dominant, and the observing mind becomes stronger than that which is being observed, a change can occur, and with it a wellspring of positive and life affirming energy. Diving deep into dialogues with his patients, describing sessions in real time, and then explaining the thinking behind his own words and behavior, Epstein shows how the actuality of our being is not always something we have an easy time making room for. But the Buddhist practices of meditation and mindfulness, like therapy, can help us find peace. A chronicle of deeply personal inquiry, one which weaves together the wisdom of two worlds, Dr. Epstein illuminates the therapy relationship as spiritual friendship, and reveals how a therapist, as a spiritual friend, can help patients cultivate the sense that there is something magical, something wonderful, and something to trust running through our lives, no matter how fraught they have been or might become. For when we realize how readily we have misconstrued our selves, when we stop clinging to our falsely conceived constructs, when we touch the ground of being, we come home"-- Provided by publisher.
Subject Buddhism and psychoanalysis.
Psychotherapy -- Religious aspects -- Buddhism.
Buddhism and psychoanalysis. (OCoLC)fst00840115
Psychotherapy -- Religious aspects -- Buddhism. (OCoLC)fst01081792
Other Form: Online version: Epstein, Mark, 1953- Zen of therapy New York City : Penguin Press, 2022 9780593296622 (DLC) 2021013935
ISBN 9780593296615 (hardcover)
0593296613 (hardcover)
9780593296622 (ebook)
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