Product Description

Journalist Lorna Martin had always thought that therapy was an outrageous con, a fraud designed for people to “whine about their weight/ self-esteem/ alcohol/ commitment problem while blaming their emotionally absent father and/or overly critical mother.” If you have a problem, Martin believed, you just deal with it–pray, get drunk, pop some pills, or listen to ABBA. But after yet another disastrous relationship and an embarrassing misstep at work, plus a spate of uncontrollable sobbing, Martin was running out of solutions for dealing with it. In an uncharacteristic move, she sat down on the couch of Dr. J., where she spent the next year talking, listening, and learning more than she ever expected. The result, Girl on the Couch, is Martin’s warm, funny, and intimate diary of her voyage into the world of therapy–what she calls “the strangest journey of my life”–and the incredible discoveries she made along the way.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #606267 in Books
• Published on: 2009-02-24
• Released on: 2009-02-24
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 352 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780345503602
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

From Publishers Weekly
Inspired by her weekly column Conversations with My Therapist, Scottish journalist Martin takes a captivating look at one woman's adventure in psychotherapy. Heading into her mid-30s, Martin felt as though time were running out; with most of her friends married with children, Martin wanted to love life again rather than feel it is an unbearable uphill struggle. Shortly after this revelation, she committed to one year with a therapist she calls Dr. J and began to peel back the layer of armor that she had spent her whole life building to protect herself. While most of her therapy time is spent obsessing over past, present and possible future relationships (including her relationship with Dr. J), Martin also explores the effect her therapy has on her everyday life and her relationship with her family. Skillfully dodging the possibility of becoming yet another memoir of unrelenting self-praise, Martin's narrative is shamelessly funny, and she misses no opportunity for self-deprecating humor or cringe-inducing scenes. It's impossible not to root for Martin as she creates her own happy ending. (Feb.)
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Review
“Lorna Martin’s fantastic journey of self-awareness is heartbreaking and hilarious. Anyone who doesn’t love this book should have their head examined.”
–Julie Klam, author of Please Excuse My Daughter

“Hilarious . . . A cross, if you will, between HBO’s In Treatment and Bridget Jones’s Diary.”
–The Guardian (London)


From the Trade Paperback edition.

Review
“Lorna Martin’s fantastic journey of self-awareness is heartbreaking and hilarious. Anyone who doesn’t love this book should have their head examined.”
–Julie Klam, author of Please Excuse My Daughter

“Hilarious . . . A cross, if you will, between HBO’s In Treatment and Bridget Jones’s Diary.”
–The Guardian (London)

Customer Reviews

excellent, entertaining look at one woman's analysis
Like a previous reviewer, I purchased this book after reading the excellent review in Entertainment Weekly. As someone that enjoys popular culture from the UK, it was great fun to read references to various musical artists and other Glasgow locales that may not be familiar to the typical American reader. The author mentions a few times that she didn't have a major trauma occur during childhood, but wants to work on issues in her relationships. I found her journey very enlightening and educational. I have experienced a severe childhood trauma and could relate to her opinion of cognitive behavioral therapy as not being very useful. For those that have found medications and CBT lacking in the healing process, this memoir offers a fresh perspective. It greatly helped me understand certain things in my own life that years of CBT and trying various SSRIs and other anti-anxiety meds never helped to clear up for me. I think it makes a convincing argument for greater availability and affordability of alternative forms of therapy for those in need of something more than traditional CBT and pharmaceuticals.

Engrossing and well-written
Girl On The Couch roused my curiosity because these days I meet more people with life coaches than people with therapists. Do people still go into therapy? And does it work? The answer seems to be "yes" and "yes."

This is the kind of book that could easily become sloppy and self-pitying. The author could come across as self-obsessed and egotistical. We could have gotten Too Much Information.

Instead this book reads rather like a novel. The author describes her experience in a straightforward, spare style. I suspect she benefits from her background as a journalist and her Scots culture. The British seem to take themselves less seriously than Americans.

I admire Lorna Martin's willingness to invest both time and money significantly in her own self-growth. I was intrigued with the UK system of entering psychotherapy. The author first met with a psychiatrist who assessed her situation, then was referred to a psychoanalyst who would work with her.

And I can't help thinking the author was extremely lucky. Her analyst seems totally professional, never once slipping out of her role or making a mistake. I would have liked to learn more about the mysterious Dr J's credentials. Definitely a tougher, less vulnerable therapist than "Dr Melfi" on the Sopranos!

Martin was especially fortunate because her sister and good friend were therapists. They were able to give support and context that would not be available to most therapy clients. Indeed, Martin's whole family seems alarmingly well-adjusted and supportive. She doesn't seem to have much background trauma so her role as "normal neurotic" fits well. It's hard to tell how much this background contributed to her good experience with therapy.

Regardless, it's a good read if you're looking for something a cut above chick lit. It could pass for a novel, right up to the realistic yet satisfying ending.

I must say I like this book
The author tells a cringe-worthy story about her recovery from a misguided, destructive affair with such humor. Difficult to pull off. I almost dismissed this as chick lit, but glad I didn't. It was well worth the time.