Experiential Psychotherapy with Couples

A Guide for the Creative Pragmatist

by Rob Fisher
Type: Softcover

Ever read a book or attended a workshop and thought that the ideas were great, but then were lost when you tried to apply them yourself? This phenomenon seems to be particularly common in the field of psychotherapy. The charisma effect: when the words sound convincing and the teacher teaches well, but the concepts disintegrate in practice.

Well, now Rob Fisher steps forward with a new book entitled Experiential Psychotherapy with Couples: A Guide for the Creative Pragmatist, in which he not only describes the approach, he explains step by step how to put it into action. Depth and brevity are the two guideposts of the writing, and ample case material and innovative exercises clarify the experiential techniques presented as well as their underlying principles. Fisher’s approach helps to move clients (and therapists) from insight to impact as it uncovers opportunities to access and then shift the couple’s negative interactive impulses – by engaging them thoughtfully rather than denying their purpose — toward creating a more satisfying and balanced relationship.

For therapists of any discipline, this book offers practical ways both to understand and to intervene with couples across several dimensions simultaneously. Since issues exist on many levels, so too should therapy if it is to be truly effective and enduring. Rob Fisher’s goal? For readers not only to find the book “interesting,” but for them to be able to customize and employ what they learn within their own clinical practice.

Rob Fisher has performed the delicate task of integrating classical theories & techniques of couples psychotherapy with such important innovations as non-violence, mindfulness, and bodymind holism. His advocacy of freeing ourselves from character strategies that cripple our capacity for relatedness rings true. Using lots of clear clinical examples, he guides the reader through experiential methods of assessing couples problems, and shares experiential means to unravel them. Accessible and imminently usable, this book can be used by therapist and couple alike to plumb the depths of relational intimacy. I plan on assigning it to both my students and clients. Christine Caldwell, Ph.D., LPC Director, Somatic Psychology Department Naropa University Boulder, Colorado author of Getting in Touch: The Guide to New Body-Centered Therapies.