It’s Not Always Depression: Working the Change Triangle to Listen to the Body, Discover Core Emotions, and Connect to Your Authentic Self

We were all taught that our thoughts affect our emotions, but in truth, it is largely the other way around: we have to experience our emotions to truly understand our thoughts and our full selves. This is why we should think not only about cognitive behavioral therapy or medication but also about our emotions when addressing psychological suffering.

In It’s Not Always Depression, pioneering psychotherapist Hilary Jacobs Hendel reveals the most effective techniques for putting us back in touch with the emotions we too often deny – methods that can be used by anyone, any time, anywhere. Drawing on stories from her own practice, she sheds light on the core emotions (such as joy, sadness, and fear), defenses (anything we do to avoid feeling) and inhibitory emotions (anxiety, shame, and guilt), and how understanding their interaction can help us return to mental well-being.

This is the basis of ‘accelerated experiential dynamic psychotherapy:’ It accelerates healing through having an emotional experience in the here and now. It allows you to reacquaint yourself with your feelings, to recover a more authentic self, and to be more calm, curious, and connected.