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endwithvosh's review against another edition
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
lestradez0's review against another edition
5.0
Looking at the title "Lying on the couch", the word "lying" here may very well have two meanings if you have read the book.
I'm currently taking an Ethics class, in which I'm learning about ethical dilemmas. I still clearly remember the assignment given to me about statutory rape. An underage boy who engages in a sexual relationship with a 22-year-old man. In this case, I was given two options, to report or not to report. As humans, we always desire the best. However, throughout this assignment, I have learned that there is no such thing as the "best". Every decision we make is always followed by consequences, it's just a matter of choosing the lesser evil out of the evil options.
I'm intrigued by this book. Throughout the story, many questions ran through my mind. Many a time, it challenged my thought. For instance:
"Whoever said that the point of therapy is to be truthful about everything? The point, the one and only point, is to act always on the patient's behalf"
We know that honesty is one of the main components of therapy. A client is encouraged to always be honest in order to develop an appropriate solution to their issue. However, what about the therapists themselves? shouldn't therapists also be honest? To what extent a therapist should be truthful?
What strikes me the most about this book is the conversation between two psychotherapists. Part of me agrees with Paul because working with a dying patient is a high-risk profession. One has to be masochistic to keep doing it. However, Ernest also brings a good point in this book. It doesn't have to be all dark and we can get something out of it. Working with dying patients helps us in many ways. Death allows us to appreciate our lives better, to make the most out of them. It helps us to re-prioritize our goals and values.
Working with dying patients is the career path that I've chosen since I was a kid. The thought of helping them to accept their death and live happily for their remaining life brings me joy. To see that I am able to make a change in people. This is the reason why I'm pursuing this career. I know the consequences, the mental capacity needed. However, I believe it is worth pursuing because, at the end of the day, it aligns with my value, which is "helping others". For me, making money is happiness, but making other people happy is super happiness. What about you?
Overall, this book by Yalom has given me a better understanding that ethical dilemmas affect people from all walks of life and in a variety of situations. It demonstrates the importance of paying attention, being aware of our own actions as well as the actions of those around us. We will all be better off in our careers as helpers if we follow the rules and ask for help when we don't know what to do.
I'm currently taking an Ethics class, in which I'm learning about ethical dilemmas. I still clearly remember the assignment given to me about statutory rape. An underage boy who engages in a sexual relationship with a 22-year-old man. In this case, I was given two options, to report or not to report. As humans, we always desire the best. However, throughout this assignment, I have learned that there is no such thing as the "best". Every decision we make is always followed by consequences, it's just a matter of choosing the lesser evil out of the evil options.
I'm intrigued by this book. Throughout the story, many questions ran through my mind. Many a time, it challenged my thought. For instance:
"Whoever said that the point of therapy is to be truthful about everything? The point, the one and only point, is to act always on the patient's behalf"
We know that honesty is one of the main components of therapy. A client is encouraged to always be honest in order to develop an appropriate solution to their issue. However, what about the therapists themselves? shouldn't therapists also be honest? To what extent a therapist should be truthful?
What strikes me the most about this book is the conversation between two psychotherapists. Part of me agrees with Paul because working with a dying patient is a high-risk profession. One has to be masochistic to keep doing it. However, Ernest also brings a good point in this book. It doesn't have to be all dark and we can get something out of it. Working with dying patients helps us in many ways. Death allows us to appreciate our lives better, to make the most out of them. It helps us to re-prioritize our goals and values.
Working with dying patients is the career path that I've chosen since I was a kid. The thought of helping them to accept their death and live happily for their remaining life brings me joy. To see that I am able to make a change in people. This is the reason why I'm pursuing this career. I know the consequences, the mental capacity needed. However, I believe it is worth pursuing because, at the end of the day, it aligns with my value, which is "helping others". For me, making money is happiness, but making other people happy is super happiness. What about you?
Overall, this book by Yalom has given me a better understanding that ethical dilemmas affect people from all walks of life and in a variety of situations. It demonstrates the importance of paying attention, being aware of our own actions as well as the actions of those around us. We will all be better off in our careers as helpers if we follow the rules and ask for help when we don't know what to do.
saulle's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
truputį trūko rišlumo tarp skirtingų veikėjų siužetų. buvo sunku susigaudyti, kuri istorija yra svarbiausia ir kas aplink ką sukasi veiksmas, nes pirmoji pusė knygos yra tik ilga įžanga su daug veikėjų. dalis jų staigiai tampa nesvarbūs kaip kerolės vyras ir jo nauja mergina, o kai kurie tik papildai be kurių būtų imanoma išsiversti (šelis). pabaigus knygą būtų sunku įvardyti pagrindinę mintį, nes net veikėjų, kurie iš pradžių pasirodo kaip pagrindiniai, siužeto linija greitai nutrūksta ir jaučiasi nepilnai užbaigta. romanas tave palieka su jausmu, jog atomazga neįvyko
anastasia_st's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
paulaliebtblumen's review against another edition
ein sehr interessantes buch - mit rotierenden ich-erzähler*innen. mir gefällt leider überhaupt nicht der ton, mit dem über sex und sexualität gesprochen wird. es geht die ganze zeit ums „bumsen“ „ficken“ „mösen“ „schwänze“ und „große brüste“. ich finde hier wird ein bild unserer gesellschaft gezeigt, in der gewalt, betrug und wie „männer frauen flachlegen können“ im vordergrund stehen. viele wichtige probleme wie vergewaltigung in der therapie werden angesprochen aber sprachlich nicht sensibel reflektiert.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Suicide attempt, and Sexual harassment
neptuneisblue's review against another edition
1.0
I’ve read lots of Yalom’s books and love many of them. When Nietzsche Wept is one of my all time favourite fiction books, so I was excited to give this a try. Gah! I really disliked it!
The characters were all pretty unlikeable, and with many of them I felt I just didn’t need to know such a long back story about them. There was a lot of inner-head dialogue that I had to just skip through. I’ve just finished his autobiography so I noticed quite a lot of the subplots were things in real life that had happened to him, which again I found a bit annoying as it would happen to different characters, not even just that one of them that was based on himself. But the absolute worst part about this book was the way women were written. “Birds, broads and an “enormous-bosomed Swede”. Just a few ways women were described. So many “this is a woman written by a man” moments. Yikes. So I had to rage read it.
The characters were all pretty unlikeable, and with many of them I felt I just didn’t need to know such a long back story about them. There was a lot of inner-head dialogue that I had to just skip through. I’ve just finished his autobiography so I noticed quite a lot of the subplots were things in real life that had happened to him, which again I found a bit annoying as it would happen to different characters, not even just that one of them that was based on himself. But the absolute worst part about this book was the way women were written. “Birds, broads and an “enormous-bosomed Swede”. Just a few ways women were described. So many “this is a woman written by a man” moments. Yikes. So I had to rage read it.
ina_fab's review against another edition
3.0
'Dacă încerci să înțelegi doliul folosind un model medical al bolii, atunci omiți exact ce este mai uman în noi. Pierderea nu e o invazie bacteriană, nu seamănă cu o traumă organică. Durerea psihica nu
este echivalentă cu o disfuncție somatică. Mintea nu e trup. Cantitatea și tipul suferinței pe care o trăim nu este determinata de (sau numai de) natura traumei, ci de semnificația traumei.'
Cartile lui Yalom le vad necesare in momentul potrivit al vietii, intr-o etapa in care te afli, in urma unor experiente pe care deja le-ai trait si raspunsuri pe care le cauti. Cartea aceasta mi-a placut mai putin decat ' Privind soarele in fata', in cea din urma am rezonat mai mult cu povestile pacientilor.
Psiholog sau pacient, cu totii gresim. Ne putem pierde in sentimente atat de usor, fara sa fie necesara o calificare atestata pentru asta. Ambii pot fi la fel de creduli in povestile pe care oamenii le spun. Suntem pana la urma oameni. Gresim si invatam prin propriile experiente. Fie ca mintim sau spunem adevarul, trecutul ne defineste si ne desconspira. Si pana la urma, trebuie sa-l acceptam si sa traim cu el.
Sunt curioasa sa citesc si alte carti de la acest autor si sunt convinsa ca din fiecare voi avea ceva de invatat.
este echivalentă cu o disfuncție somatică. Mintea nu e trup. Cantitatea și tipul suferinței pe care o trăim nu este determinata de (sau numai de) natura traumei, ci de semnificația traumei.'
Cartile lui Yalom le vad necesare in momentul potrivit al vietii, intr-o etapa in care te afli, in urma unor experiente pe care deja le-ai trait si raspunsuri pe care le cauti. Cartea aceasta mi-a placut mai putin decat ' Privind soarele in fata', in cea din urma am rezonat mai mult cu povestile pacientilor.
Psiholog sau pacient, cu totii gresim. Ne putem pierde in sentimente atat de usor, fara sa fie necesara o calificare atestata pentru asta. Ambii pot fi la fel de creduli in povestile pe care oamenii le spun. Suntem pana la urma oameni. Gresim si invatam prin propriile experiente. Fie ca mintim sau spunem adevarul, trecutul ne defineste si ne desconspira. Si pana la urma, trebuie sa-l acceptam si sa traim cu el.
Sunt curioasa sa citesc si alte carti de la acest autor si sunt convinsa ca din fiecare voi avea ceva de invatat.
ilinca_berinde's review against another edition
5.0
A book that made it hard for me to stop reading, both through plot, characters and construction.
Firstly, the psychiatry background of Irvin Yalom is obvious on every page. It is not only a novel but also a very real lesson of the therapy technique.
Secondly, the plot is complex. Not complex to the point that you cannot follow it unless you have a pen in your hand, but rather unexpected. It presents you with a number of apparently distinct narrative threads, which only come together in the last part of the book. This keeps the reader engaged and interested.
Lastly, rarely does it happen to me to find 'negative' characters so well constructed that I hate them to the point where they actually make me so angry. It happened in this book.
Firstly, the psychiatry background of Irvin Yalom is obvious on every page. It is not only a novel but also a very real lesson of the therapy technique.
Secondly, the plot is complex. Not complex to the point that you cannot follow it unless you have a pen in your hand, but rather unexpected. It presents you with a number of apparently distinct narrative threads, which only come together in the last part of the book. This keeps the reader engaged and interested.
Lastly, rarely does it happen to me to find 'negative' characters so well constructed that I hate them to the point where they actually make me so angry. It happened in this book.