'This is a guide for real people living and struggling in real life, ordinary circumstances! It is full of humane, creative compassion for those who would like to change' - "Counselling Psychology Review"."Change for the Better, Third Edition" is a popular, practical guide for therapists and clients which describes in ordinary language how learned patterns of response contribute to psychological problems such as depression, anxiety, phobia, and relationship difficulty. Presenting an easy-to-follow programme, leading psychotherapist, Elizabeth Wilde-McCormick shows readers how to identify their own different inner dialogues, and the traps, dilemmas, snags, and unstable states of mind that lead to things going wrong. Exercises feature throughout the book to enable self-reflection and help the reader achieve lasting change.Based on Cognitive Analytic Therapy, a focussed short term therapy pioneered and developed at Guy's and St Thomas' Hospitals in London, "Change for the Better, Third Edition" can be used as a self-contained self-help programme or as preparation for clients entering therapy. It is also recommended to students on CAT courses and many therapists find the book helpful in their own development and as a source of material to use directly with clients. In response to its continuing popularity, this third edition has been published, including the most recent development in CAT practice. The new edition also places emphasis upon the transformation of unhelpful learned reciprocal role procedures that underlie our relationship with ourselves and other people.It also features new chapters on unstable states of mind seen in people given a borderline personality diagnosis, on dissociation, eating problems, and stress. Elizabeth Wilde McCormick has been in practice as a psychotherapist for over twenty five years. She is also a teacher, trainer and writer. She is a founder member of The Association for Cognitive Analytic Therapy at Guy's Hospital, London, and the author of a number of best-selling self-help books.

Table of Contents

PART ONE: ALL ABOUT CHANGE Change Is Possible PART TWO: FEELINGS, EMOTIONS AND RELATIONSHIPS: WITH OURSELVES, OTHERS AND SYMPTOMS Reciprocal Role Relationship Procedures Emotional States, Depression and Eating Disorders Problems and Dilemmas within Relationships PART THREE: GETTING OFF THE SYMPTOM HOOK: NAMING THE PROBLEM Traps Dilemmas Snags and Self Sabotage Difficult and Unstable States of Mind PART FOUR: GATHERING INFORMATION Examining the Impact of Our Beginnings PART FIVE: MAKING THE CHANGE Writing Our Life Story Targeting the Areas That Create Problems and Deciding on Aims for Change Putting a Diagram in Your Pocket Techniques for Working through the Process of Change PART SIX: CHANGING WITHIN A RELATIONSHIP Love Is Not Enough PART SEVEN: HOLDING ON TO CHANGE How to Hold on to Change