Counseling for the Soul in Distress

Learn how to help your congregants work cooperatively with mental health professionals!

This revised edition of The Soul in Distress i is a reader-friendly overview of the full range of adult psychiatric disorders. Updated with new information on genetics, brain scans, heredity, developmental concerns, new medications, and stress, it suggests ways for clergy to assist their congregants suffering from these illnesses and provides ethical guidance and clinical examples, often illustrating how physical disease can affect mental health. It also examines new short-term therapies and ways to handle difficult personalities.

From author Richard W. Roukema, MD, FAPA:
With the recent events of terrorism in our country, the need for the clergy to be alert to the fallout on the lives of their congregants is clear. Anxiety, depression, prolonged grief, and post-traumatic stress disorder will be increasingly evident as the threat of terrorism continues. Now more than ever, the clergy should obtain a basic overview of the emotional and mental disorders they may encounter in their congregations. This book will update the clergy to the current state of knowledge in the field.

With fascinating case studies, and practical suggestions for dealing with various psychiatric disorders, Counseling for the Soul in Distress: What Every Religious Counselor Should Know About Emotional and Mental Illness, Second Edition examines:

• new trends in psychotherapy such as EMDR and Christian counseling
• the art of providing appropriate referrals to psychiatrists
• the aftermath of the September 11 attacks
• the ways that loss and grief affect the personality
• personality disorders
• depression and other mood disorders
• eating disorders such as anorexia, bulimia, binge eating, and obesity
• stress and its implications
• schizophrenia and other psychotic disorders
• neuroses
• organic mental disorders
• sexual problems
• drug abuse and alcoholism

Written specifically for the clergy by a well-respected psychiatrist, this new edition of Counseling for the Soul in Distress is an essential addition to your reference shelf!