#Staring at the sun overcoming the terror of death trial#
To the Editor: Dr Andrade’s analysis of the Bacloville trial in a recent Clinical and Practical Psychopharmacology column, in which he concluded that “individualized treatment with high-dose baclofen (30-300 mg/d) may be a useful second-line approach in heavy drinkers” and that “baclofen may be particularly useful in patients with liver disease,” deserves comment.1įirst, Andrade failed to recall that the first pivotal trial of baclofen, ALPADIR (NCT01738282 320 patients, as with Bacloville), was negative (see Braillon et al2). Staring at the Sun is the teaching of a master psychotherapist, and I highly recommend it to all psychiatrists and other mental health professionals.īaclofen, a French Exception, Seriously Harms Alcohol Use Disorder Patients Without Benefit The argument of this book is clearly based on philosophy and anecdotes rather than on scientific evidence, but it contains much clinical experience to stimulate our thought and practice. Yalom makes the case that existential therapy often complements the needs of religious patients and of those who ascribe to the ideas of Christian thinkers such as Kierkegaard and Maritain. His techniques may be useful for dynamically, cognitively and pharmacologically oriented therapists-not as a school of thought, but as a "sensibility for existential issues." These principles could be helpful in 20-minute sessions with patients, for those fearing death and dying, and, ironically, even for some patients who are suicidal.
Although he addresses existential psychotherapeutic practice, he emphasizes commonalities among all therapies as does his mentor Jerome Frank. Yalom provides instruction for therapists in his last chapter.
Like Paul Tillich, Yalom focuses on ultimate concerns of death, isolation, meaning in life, and freedom.
Epicurus suggests that there is nothing to fear after death, as it is similar to antenatal "nothingness." He urges direct confrontation with the reality of death rather than remaining in denial, masking death with "excessive religiosity," or the accumulation of wealth, honor, and power. Unlike Plato and Christian writers, Epicurus did not believe in an ongoing existence of the soul. The Greek philosopher Epicurus offers a major foundation for Yalom’s thought and practice. What is not considered is the hope for an afterlife. This has been dramatically presented in Yalom’s previous work with patients who are dying of breast cancer. The rippling effect (the impact our good works have on people after we die), the importance of connecting with others, and the fulfillment of one’s potential are also emphasized in this therapy. The book is beautifully written with numerous presentations of philosophical and literary existential thought as well as detailed clinical vignettes.Įxistential psychotherapists provide a genuine, authentic relationship for patients focusing on the here and now and offer appropriate self-disclosure. Yalom discusses his own experience of death anxiety, which is often associated with significant losses, and describes his therapy with Rollo May. In this excellent book, Irvin Yalom is most ambitious: he clarifies "death anxiety," develops the underlying theory, and shows how it and other existential concerns are managed clinically. Although in the 1980s Yalom, now 76, provided new insights into the human psyche with his innovative method of existential psychotherapy, this book recycles well-known philosophical insights, but Yalom's humane, calm voice may bring them to a new audience.Staring at the Sun: Overcoming the Terror of Deathīy Irvin D. In a final chapter, Yalom offers instructions for therapists seeking to help their patients overcome death anxiety. Through such experiences we can transcend our sense of finiteness and transiency and live in the here and now. Yet, he says, this anxiety can prompt an awakening to life and help us realize our connections to others and our influence on those around us. Drawing on literature and film, as well as conversations with his patients, Yalom demonstrates how the fear of retirement, concerns about changing jobs or moving to another city, or changes in family status (such as the empty nest) are rooted in our deepest, most inescapable fear: of death. Bestselling psychiatrist Yalom (Love's Executioner) attempts to put this principle into practice in a sometimes thoughtful, often repetitious book. The philosopher Martin Heidegger once remarked that we can live intensely only if we stare death in the face every moment of our lives.
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