Maybe You Should Talk to Someone: A Therapist, Her Therapist, and Our Lives Revealed

Summary:

One day, Lori Gottlieb is a therapist who helps patients in her Los Angeles practice. The next, a crisis causes her world to come crashing down. Enter Wendell, the quirky but seasoned therapist in whose office she suddenly lands. With his balding head, cardigan, and khakis, he seems to have come straight from Therapist Central Casting. Yet he will turn out to be anything but.

As Gottlieb explores the inner chambers of her patients' lives -- a self-absorbed Hollywood producer, a young newlywed diagnosed with a terminal illness, a senior citizen threatening to end her life on her birthday if nothing gets better, and a twenty-something who can't stop hooking up with the wrong guys -- she finds that the questions they are struggling with are the very ones she is now bringing to Wendell. (Summary and cover courtesy of goodreads.com)

Review:

This is a book that I can’t stop gushing about and keep bringing up in conversation.  Gottlieb is relatable, authentic and genuine in turn – even opening up to discuss the items that drove her to therapy in the first place.  As a therapist, I’m sure she’s seen it all, but still is able to address each of her patients in a fresh way.  I had a conversation with a friend as to whether this book would have as much of an impact for those who have regularly used therapy in their own life to address the snarls that come to life.  The answer was – I’m not sure.  I can imagine some of the aspects that seemed fresh or succinct to me may be an old hat to others, but such is the case with any book.

If I have one complaint it is that the book does present itself as fairly one-dimensional in scope when it comes to intersectionality.   My hopeful assumption is that this was an intentional decision since we have very little description of the patients in the stories.  There’s always the argument that there is only so much you can address in one book, but I could see how it would relate to some of the topics raised in a productive way.  That being said, I found the discussion interesting, thought-provoking and an interesting insight into human psyche.  I’d be very interested to hear what others thought!

Rating: 5 stars!

Who should read it? Honestly, I think it’s something that would be valuable for everyone to read and reset their thinking!