Good Morning, Monster: Heroic Journeys To Recovery - Catherine Gildiner

Non-Fiction

Rating: 7/10

I hope you are sitting down for this…the shocking truth is out.  Parents are really the worst culprits in terms of inflicting the damage done to grown children who enter therapy.  At least as far as the adults whose stories are told in this book.

The author brought together this particular grouping of cases to share with us because she considered them all memorably courageous in their journey towards self-discovery and healing. As you delve into these deeply personal portraits nothing she writes will sway you from sharing in that belief.

One of the most profoundly impactful observations for me was this…whatever role we are loved for in our young life will be the one we continue to enact into and through adulthood. We will be resolute in our belief that it is anything other than normal. Read that again and let it sink in.  And then try to deny the truth of it. 

The therapist’s job is to disrupt that dynamic in order to change course, all while dealing with what is by the fact that it is one sided, the unreliable narration of the patient.

A moving, compassionate and insightful book.

Footnote: Without question there is a potential minefield of triggers in this book.  Even if not direct, some of the cases are achingly painful to hear.  I persevered as I didn’t want to pass over anything just because it made me uncomfortable. But be warned.