Letters to a Young Therapist - Hardcover

Intimate and inspiring lessons from beloved author and therapist Mary Pipher. Mary Pipher's groundbreaking investigation of America's "girl-poisoning culture," Reviving Ophelia , has sold nearly two million copies and established its author as one of the nation's foremost authorities on family issues. In Letters to a Young Therapist , Dr. Pipher shares what she has learned in thirty years as a therapist, helping warring families, alienated adolescents, and harried professionals restore peace and beauty to their lives. Letters to a Young Therapist gives voice to her practice with an exhilarating mix of storytelling and sharp-eyed observation. And while her letters are addressed to an imagined young therapist, every one of us can take something away from them. Long before "positive psychology" became a buzzword, Dr. Pipher practiced a refreshingly inventive therapy--fiercely optimistic, free of dogma or psychobabble, and laced with generous warmth and practical common sense. But not until now has this gifted healer described her unique perspective on how therapy can help us revitalize our emotional landscape in an increasingly stressful world. Whether she's recommending daily swims for a sluggish teenager, encouraging a timid husband to become bolder, or simply bearing witness to a bereaved parent's sorrow, Dr. Pipher's compassion and insight shine from every page of this thoughtful and engaging book.

Mary Pipher has explored the influence of culture on mental health in five books, including the best sellers The Shelter of Each Other, Another Country, and the landmark Reviving Ophelia: Saving the Selves of Adolescent Girls, which spent 154 weeks on the New York Times best-seller list and has been translated into nineteen languages. Her most recent book, The Middle of Everywhere: The World's Refugees Come to Our Town (Harcourt, 2002), explores the effects of globalization on American society. Dr. Pipher has traveled all over the world lecturing to students, health care professionals and community groups. She lives in Lincoln, Nebraska.