Metaphor and Meaning in Psychotherapy

“I think it is a valuable book and only wish I had had it in my hands when I was a student in training to be a psychoanalyst nearly 50 years ago.”

–Marion Milner, Ph.D., Member, British Psycho-analytic Society; author of On Not Being Able to Paint

“This lucid presentation of the healing uses of metaphor comes from a Jungian psychotherapist who has not been afraid to learn from psychoanalysts. Psychoanalysis too has much to learn from her wise exposition of the musical method of creative symbolization as a process of moving personality forward.”

–John Beebe, M.D., Member, San Francisco Society of Jungian Analysts; editor, The San Francisco Jung Institute Library Journal

“Siegelman’s book on metaphor is a welcome addition to any therapist’s library because it cannot fail to sensitize the reader to the countless ways in which novel uses of language can function in a clinical setting. ”

–Donald P. Spence in Contemporary Psychology

“Superb….Gives us both a theoretical and clinical understanding of the uses of the poetic imagination in depth psychotherapy….Full of rich clinical examples….Metaphor and Meaning in Psychotherapy is a rare book in our field, one in which the medium and the message are in harmony. Siegelman’s prose is elegant, studded with stunning imagery and clearly articulated ideas.”

–Naomi Ruth Lowinsky in Psychological Perspectives

“An excellent work which can make the effective use of metaphor more conscious in our daily practice of psychotherapy.”

–Psychotherapy

“….Superb….Gives us both a theoretical and clinical understanding of the uses of the poetic imagination in depth psychotherapy….Full of rich clinical examples….Metaphor and Meaning in Psychotherapy is a rare book in our field, one in which the medium and the message are in harmony. Siegelman’s prose is elegant, studded with stunning imagery and clearly articulated ideas.”

–Psychological Perspectives (Psychological Perspectives 1993-10-17)

“One does not have to be psychoanalytic or dynamic to appreciate her thoughtful and compassionate look at the process of therapy. In fact, the connections she draws among language, affect, and perceived experience have something to offer therapists from a variety of orientations….Metaphor & Meaning depicts the art in therapy and, therefore, speaks to the artist. Her beautiful examples of therapy are interspersed with theory and discussion to provide sustenance for the intellect as well.”

–International Journal of Personal Construct Psychology (International Journal of Personal Construct Psychology 1993-10-17)

---

With 20 years experience as a psychotherapist and consultant, Ellen Y. Siegelman currently serves as a Clinical Professor of Medical Psychology at the University of California, San Francisco, and is an analyst member of the C. G. Jung Institute of San Francisco. In 1983, she received an American Psychological Association Citation for Distinguished Contribution to the Media for her trade book, Personal Risk, and she has authored numerous professional articles on object relations theory and on psychology and literature. Siegelman has a master’s degree in literature, a doctorate in psychology, and had post-doctoral training in psychoanalytic psychotherapy. She maintains private practices in Berkeley and San Francisco.

---