Maybe You Should Talk to Someone by Lori Gottlieb

 Although this was the June book club choice, I did not get to the meeting to discuss it, and just finished it.  I would have loved to hear the opinions of my friends, as I did not love it as much as I had hoped.  Lori is an actual therapist in CA who also writes a "Dear Therapist" column in The Atlantic.   She is knowledgeable, articulate and humorous.  This was way better than most non-fiction books on psychology since she shared stories from her own life and those of her clients.  I generally enjoy this type of "learning" and analyzing of human behaviors, but I found myself just trying to "get through it". 

Here are my takeaways:  we are all a hot mess if we will honestly admit it;  we carry a lot of baggage from our childhood whether we realize it or not; it's wise to engage a therapist at some points/points in our lives; we only grow in connection with others (hence the need for a therapist if we don't have a "somebody"); our feelings need to be felt-acknowledged-shared... not stuffed as was the pattern in my childhood home (and carried forward into ours); we cannot experience full JOY if we haven't embraced full PAIN. 

At my recent Girlfriend Weekend, a friend said to us that each one of the 7 friends there had added to her life in some way, and made her who she is today.  I loved that!! This author clarified that concept, even going so far as to explain that even a bad relationship can be a growth stimulus to take the next positive step...thus being a contributor to who we have become today!!  I love to think back over the people in my life who I desperately needed during different seasons.  Sometimes we lose connection with them, or move on in our lives...but we think fondly of one another and the role they had in shaping us.  I believe deeply that God strategically places these "therapist friends" and "thorns" in our lives to grow us up for the next phase in our journey.  Grateful.

PS  I remembered one last paragraph that struck me--it identified the many fears that grip us at various times of our lives...I guess I got a lot more out of this book than I realized!!  Ha!