When You're Going Through Hell ...Keep Going: Trauma, Healing, Spirit, and Internal Family Systems

The quotes in this book are the harvest of more than half a century spent studying and working at the boundary of spirituality and psychotherapy.

We cannot heal deeply unless we find some spiritual basis for our lives. These quotes can help us build a bridge between these two realms.

“Have you ever wished that someone would curate a book of profound, witty, astute, arresting quotes that you can peruse at breakfast, peek at on your way to a nap, forage for a presentation, or memorize before taking a walk on the beach? Well, here it is—a book that abounds with the bright lights of the attuned mind. Thank you, Bob!”

— Martha Sweezy, PhD, Assistant Professor in Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, therapist in private practice, and author of several IFS books

“Bob Falconer has indeed gone through hell and kept going. Along that 50-year journey, he collected the pithy and wise quotes in this book. If you take them a few at a time and reflect on their meaning in your life, they can help you find the parts you need to heal, and connect more to Self, thereby enriching your journey.”

— Richard C. Schwartz, PhD, Founder of Internal Family Systems Therapy

“A treasure chest of quotes, aphorisms, and anecdotes that will inspire, awaken, and make you think. Falconer has a touch for finding those jewels that both amuse and move. Either way, these nuggets open our heart and stir our deepest self.”

— Frank Rogers Jr., PhD, Professor, Claremont School of Theology and co-founder of the Center for Engaged Compassion

“Timeless wisdom from across the ages from one of our finest therapy sages. May the luminous brilliance of this treasure trove of jewels reflect and illuminate your own true and deep Self.”

— Barney Jordan, PhD, Harvard Medical School–trained psychologist and former meditation teacher at MIT

“If you’re on a healing journey, this remarkable collection of quotes is a wonderful companion. There’s so much timeless wisdom to nurture wounds, feed your Soul, and inspire you on your path forward.”

— Stephen Chee, MD, MPH, MA, MTOM, LAc

Robert Falconer is best known for his deep involvement with Internal Family Systems therapy as a practitioner, teacher, and writer. For much of his long career, he has focused on the healing of childhood sexual abuse and other major trauma. He is now focused on placing IFS in a multicultural and historical context and working with the others within us --what we find in our minds that is not part of our systems, called unattached burdens and guides in IFS. Bob has come to recognize and appreciate that how we conceive of ourselves and the boundaries of our minds is vitally important not only as a substantial cause of personal suffering but also as an underlying factor in many of our modern social problems.