Main description:

*Clear, pragmatic, and realistic direction from a distinguished therapist--a portable supervisor in a book.
*Wachtel is known for her strengths-based approach.
*Interweaves systemic, CBT, experiential, and psychodynamic principles to focus on doing what works rather than theoretical purity, which sets it apart from other books.
*Addresses the unique challenges of moving therapy forward with distressed couples and the particular skills therapists need to develop.
*Highlights include an epilogue by award-winning therapist Paul Wachtel that situates this work's flexible approach within current scholarly discourse about effective treatment.

Contents:

1. Introduction: Dilemmas and Choices in Couple Therapy
2. What Is a Good Relationship?
3. Principles and Methods
4. The First Session
5. The Individual in the System: A Critical Pathway to Change
6. Common Underlying Relationship Issues and How to Address Them
7. From the First to the Second Session: Clinical Illustrations
8. The Genogram: A Window into the Psyche
9. "The Things They Carry": Working with Legacy Issues
10. Deepening Connections
11. Troubleshooting Common Challenges
Epilogue. Principles of Change in Individual and Couple Therapy, Paul L. Wachtel
References
Index