Is ethical touch an oxymoron? Is the bias against touch in psychotherapy justified? Can the recovery process be complete without healing touch? Mental health professionals are entrusted with the awesome responsibility of providing appropriate treatment for clients in a safe environment that nurtures trust, a necessary ingredient for optimum movement through the therapeutic process. Though treatment approaches vary, most modalities are verbally based and, in theory, exclude physical contact. Fearing that any form of touch would likely lead to sexual feelings or interaction, clinicians tend to shy away from the topic. In The Ethical Use of Touch in Psychotherapy, however, authors Mic Hunter and Jim Struve skillfully demonstrate that touch--a most basic human need--is intrinsic to the healing process along with talk-therapy, regardless of the practitioner's theoretical orientation. While the use of touch is a given in other health care settings, it remains a benefit denied as taboo in psychotherapeutic relationships, due to transgressors whose unscrupulous use of a valuable technique have marred its reputation. This book encourages readers to conduct a meaningful self-reflection and explore possible misconceptions related to touch in order to rejuvenate its acceptance. Based on years of sound research and clinical experience, The Ethical Use of Touch in Psychotherapy promises to enrich clinical discussion and stimulate further empirical research. This insightful and progressive presentation is a must read for clinicians, interns, and advanced students, as well as lay readers interested in the dynamics and innovations in psychotherapy.

Is ethical touch an oxymoron? Is the bias against touch in psychotherapy justified? Can the recovery process be complete without healing touch? Mental health professionals are entrusted with the awesome responsibility of providing appropriate treatment for clients in a safe environment that nurtures trust, a necessary ingredient for optimum movement through the therapeutic process. Though treatment approaches vary, most modalities are verbally based and, in theory, exclude physical contact. Fearing that any form of touch would likely lead to sexual feelings or interaction, clinicians tend to shy away from the topic. In The Ethical Use of Touch in Psychotherapy, however, authors Mic Hunter and Jim Struve skillfully demonstrate that touch--a most basic human need--is intrinsic to the healing process along with talk-therapy, regardless of the practitioner's theoretical orientation. While the use of touch is a given in other health care settings, it remains a benefit denied as taboo in psychotherapeutic relationships, due to transgressors whose unscrupulous use of a valuable technique have marred its reputation. This book encourages readers to conduct a meaningful self-reflection and explore possible misconceptions related to touch in order to rejuvenate its acceptance. Based on years of sound research and clinical experience, The Ethical Use of Touch in Psychotherapy promises to enrich clinical discussion and stimulate further empirical research. This insightful and progressive presentation is a must read for clinicians, interns, and advanced students, as well as lay readers interested in the dynamics and innovations in psychotherapy.

For the practitioner working with adult survivors of sexual abuse, this book is a must. Offering useful treatment innovations, this volume opens with a clear review of dynamically based theories that provide a solid introduction to understanding and treating adult survivors of sexual abuse. What follows are three chapters dealing with various sexual problems of adult survivors, including sexual dysfunction and sexual compulsivity. The final section of this practical book examines clients with special needs: the very difficult survivor with personality disorders, chemically dependent survivors, male survivors, and the partners of survivors. Well balanced and written in a easy-to-follow style, this volumes provides concrete directions for interventions. Practitioners in the fields of clinical psychology, counseling, social work, and mental health--as well as advanced clinical students--will find this volume an indispensable resource. "From cover to cover, this book provides new and innovative strategies in the treatment of age-old abuse-related problems. Reading it was like taking in a breath of fresh air." --Peter T. Dimock, Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker,

For the practitioner working with adult survivors of sexual abuse, this book is a must. Offering useful treatment innovations, this volume opens with a clear review of dynamically based theories that provide a solid introduction to understanding and treating adult survivors of sexual abuse. What follows are three chapters dealing with various sexual problems of adult survivors, including sexual dysfunction and sexual compulsivity. The final section of this practical book examines clients with special needs: the very difficult survivor with personality disorders, chemically dependent survivors, male survivors, and the partners of survivors. Well balanced and written in a easy-to-follow style, this volumes provides concrete directions for interventions. Practitioners in the fields of clinical psychology, counseling, social work, and mental health--as well as advanced clinical students--will find this volume an indispensable resource. "From cover to cover, this book provides new and innovative strategies in the treatment of age-old abuse-related problems. Reading it was like taking in a breath of fresh air." --Peter T. Dimock, Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker,

If you're looking for new and innovative ways of working with survivors of child and adolescent sexual abuse--or child/juvenile perpetrators of sexual abuse--then look no further. Mic Hunter and a talented team of professionals begin by offering concise, practical discussions on topics related to survivors, including managing self-regulation disorders in sexually abused boys, treating ritual abuse survivors, and inpatient treatment of adolescent survivors of sexual abuse. Next, the contributors focus on treating the child/juvenile offender, examining such issues as treating abuse reactive children, parallel treatment for parents of abuse reactive children, societal responses to sexually aggressive children, and identifying and responding to juvenile sexual abuse offenders. For each issue examined, contributors offer concrete directions for intervention. Written both for practitioners and advanced clinical students, this accessibly written volume will serve as a valuable resource. "This book is like going to a conference and getting all the best presentations. . . . Models a nice concrete technique for use with a problem population." --Sandra K. Hewitt, Ph.D., Private Practice, Edina, Minnesota "This excellent short paperback contains well-written, well-referenced chapters by leading figures in the field of child abuse and neglect, covering an ambitious range of topics involving child survivors as well as children who sexually abuse other children. This small book is a timely and important addition to the sexual abuse literature, and will be of particular interest to those professionals working with children and young people who show sexually coercive or abusing behaviour towards other children." --Eileen Vizard in Young Minds Newsletter "The book is subtitled "treatment innovations" and this sets the tone for its whole approach. This is a readable and practical book written for clinicians, and is obviously based on much solid clinical experience. The chapter on ritual abuse is particularly good, being both readable and thought provoking. It is a very thorough examination of the difficulties which can arise in working with severely abused people, and tackles very realistically the potential risks for both client and therapist, when working with very damaged individuals. The thorny issues surrounding the validity of recovered memories are also tackled extremely well. Overall the book is an excellent review of current understanding and treatment of sexually abused children and adolescents. However, clinicians working with adult survivors of abuse will also find much that is useful in the book." --Carol Sellars in Clinical Psychology Forum