Doing Psychotherapy: A Trauma and Attachment-Informed Approach

How to start, do, and complete psychotherapy that is trauma-and attachment-based as well as culturally informed.

Most books about doing psychotherapy are tied to particular psychotherapeutic practices. Here, seasoned clinical author Robin Shapiro teaches readers the ins and outs of a trauma- and attachment- informed approach that is not tied to any one model or method.

This book teaches assessment, treatment plans, enhancing the therapeutic relationship, and ethics and boundary issues, all within a general framework of attachment theory and trauma. Practical chapters talk about working with attachment problems, grief, depression, cultural differences, affect tolerance, anxiety, addiction, trauma, skill- building, suicidal ideation, psychosis, and the beginning and end of therapy. Filled with examples, suggestions for dialogue, and questions for a variety of therapeutic situation, Shapiro’s conversational tone makes the book very relatable. Early- career therapists will refer to it for years to come, and veteran practitioners looking for a refresher (or introduction) to the latest in trauma and attachment work will find it especially useful.

Robin Shapiro, LICSW, is known for her clear, accessible, and practical style in writing, teaching and clinical consultation. She edited and contributed to EMDR Solutions: Pathways to Healing (Norton, 2005) and EMDR Solutions II: Depression, Eating Disorders, Performance & More (2009) and wrote Trauma Treatments Handbook (2010), and Easy Ego State Interventions (2016). She loves her work: writing, presenting about ego states, EMDR topics, and suicide prevention, doing clinical consultation, and thirty-eight years of psychotherapy practice, especially around issues of trauma, anxiety, and attachment.