Book Review
The Anatomy of Experiential Impact Through Ericksonian Therapy
By Jeffrey K. Zeig, Ph.D.
Reviewed by Roxanna Erickson-Klein, RN, Ph.D.
Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes, 37 seconds
The Anatomy of Experiential Impact Through Ericksonian Therapy is one in a trilogy written by Jeffrey Zeig. The other two books in the trilogy — The Induction of Hypnosis (2014), and Psychoaerobics (2015) — emphasize different elements of the psychotherapeutic connection, but I enjoyed The Anatomy of Experiential Impact the most. Each of the three books stand on their own in content but reading them in sequence has greater impact and offers the reader more insight.
In the Preface of The Anatomy of Experiential Impact, Zeig recalls his own professional journey. In 1973, after earning his master’s degree in clinical psychology, he met Milton Erickson, and that meeting changed the trajectory of his life in ways that were unimaginable to him at that time. Even today, 45 years later, Zeig continues to be fresh and full of ideas, and hungry for wisdom to fulfill a greater vision. What seemed beyond reach to him in 1973, has been surpassed many times over, more quickly and expansively than initially envisioned. Now it is Zeig who reaches out to those who seek wisdom, and he offers this by artistically drawing from his own experiences. His deep familiarity with the concepts and expansive awareness of other approaches to psychotherapy, as well as his artistry as a teacher, come together with his vision and clarity to offer his students and intellectual heirs the best of Erickson — past and present.
This book is fundamentally Ericksonian — meaning that it is based on the principle ideas of Milton Erickson — but it also goes beyond Erickson’s foundations and style. Zeig does a beautiful job of graciously crediting Erickson for all that he learned, although he has developed his own perspective on what Erickson taught and puts those ideas into a pragmatic form. Zeig uses a plethora of ways to explain the concepts in this book — through models, examples, exercises, constructions and deconstructions, discussions, comparisons, reflections, and even a transcript. Each approach offers different facets of the larger whole. Readers are given a buffet of choices from which to learn. What shines throughout this book, and the entire series is Zeig’s strong intellect and his exceptional ability to absorb new ideas, ponder a diverse input of phenomenological perspectives, and bring together opportunities to learn. And, his depth and clarity in doing this is rare.
At 269 pages, this book is surprisingly comprehensive. Zeig efficiently ties together his explanations of hypnosis, therapy models, and Ericksonian principles. Both the seasoned clinician and novice can glean information, food for thought, and ideas and techniques to enhance clinical practice. Erickson became more efficient with age, and it is evident that Zeig also illustrates the beauty of honing and refining what he has learned over the years.
What is presented in this book may seem simple and perhaps easy, but it is Zeig’s mastery that creates such an impression.
The Anatomy of Experiential Impact Through Ericksonian Therapy is part of The Empowering Experiential Therapy Series, which can be found here.
This book review has been extracted from Volume 38, Issue No. 1 of The Milton H. Erickson Foundation Newsletter.
You may also like…
Personal Perspectives
by Jeffrey Zeig
An Epic Life Vol. II is the second biography on Milton H. Erickson written by Jeffrey Zeig. The first volume features professional perspectives on Erickson and this book offers a personal lens, as seen through Erickson’s family, friends, neighbors, students, secretaries, and patients. The reader gains access into the dynamic personal world of Milton Erickson, who was a one-of-a-kind communicator of unparalleled brilliance.
Erickson was known to work with patients to elicit in them the innate ability to “connect the dots” to discover their adaptive potentials. Readers will delight in also being able to connect the dots, piecing together the professional aspects of Erickson in the first volume with the personal ones in this volume. For Erickson, the line between his professional life and personal life was blurred. He was doctor, teacher, friend, and neighbor all at the same time. Readers will see how his therapy methods carried over into his personal life. Or was it perhaps the other way around?
An Epic Life II draws upon decades of interviews with those who knew Erickson on a more personal level. The incisive perspectives are interlaced with commentary from Zeig to clarify and contextualize. The images of Erickson that emerge are congruent, divergent, and myriad. In the end, readers will have a more complete picture of the man, his commitment, and his work. There is nothing simple in what is conveyed, and yet the impression it makes is coherent – and lasting.
Zeig prepares us for this stimulating journey by providing a comprehensive history of Erickson’s lineage, and background on the many contexts mentioned in the book.
Erickson was one of the greatest psychotherapists of the 20th century and the father of modern hypnosis and brief therapy. His professional contributions continue to influence the field and its practitioners and his personal life is inspirational.
As we strive to evolve personally and professionally, we should do as Erickson did: Leave the world a better place.