It's Not Always Depression by Hilary Jacobs Hendel

It's Not Always Depression is a book by Hilary Jacobs Hendel. It explores an approach to psychological suffering that focuses on understanding emotions alongside thoughts.

Key details

• Author: Hilary Jacobs Hendel
• Introduces accelerated experiential dynamic psychotherapy
• Discusses core emotions including joy, sadness and fear
• Explains defences as ways of avoiding feelings
• Covers inhibitory emotions such as anxiety, shame and guilt

Synopsis

The book challenges the idea that thoughts primarily drive emotions, arguing instead that experiencing emotions can be essential to understanding thoughts and the self. It suggests that addressing psychological suffering should involve attention to emotions as well as approaches such as cognitive behavioural therapy or medication.

Drawing on stories from the author’s practice, it outlines core emotions, defences and inhibitory emotions, and describes how their interaction can be understood. This framework is presented as the basis of accelerated experiential dynamic psychotherapy, which focuses on emotional experience in the present moment.