“My personal passion for continuing this work with the incarcerated is driven by my bearing witness to the transformational awakening of the empathic humanity within inmates who were unaware of the innate goodness that dwelt within them, awaiting discovery.”
“…it dawned on me how ridiculous it was that even though I’d had this body for so many years and took an interest in health and nutrition, I was unable to confidently point to my spleen, pancreas or liver. I thought to myself that if I’d learned these exercises as a child, not only would I have known more about my body but I’d have been able to help myself in those dark times when I felt pushed and pulled by my emotions.”
In this video series, Michael Mandelstam talks about his new book, How We Treat the Sick, which shows beyond question that neglectful care is a systemic blight,…
“We all spend much of our lives building up defenses against an unfriendly world, an uncomprehending universe. That surely is true of the men I met and taught in prison. They were like me. They were tough guys hoping that someone somewhere could reach that almost-forgotten part of them, break it loose, set it free and let them feel human again. After all, to portray a character is to find that character’s heart—and in the process to find your own.”
“I’ve found Human Givens to be especially useful with children and adolescents because they generally crave interactions with others who give them their full attention, and are interested in what they have to say. They take well to setting their own goals, and identifying their personal resources, which helps them to address their areas of difficulty. They also enjoy working creatively to build up their skills, and meet their needs, which the approach allows for.”
“I was humbled by the contributions [to this book]; the openness, willingness, and selflessness of the accounts are stunning. The stark reality of the experiences of the contributors is extremely powerful, and I can only hope that professionals reading the book really do take to heart what people are saying, and the devastating effect mental health can have on people with AS.”
“Parents felt that, with a few exceptions, social workers did not and could not understand what it was like for them as parents of children growing up in care. There was stigma to bear as well as the emotional loss. In contrast, social workers talked of being aware of the parents’ distress and loss, but often not having the time to see parents, because they were focussing on work with and for the child, or simply not knowing how to help parents.”
By Richard Bryant-Jefferies, a former counsellor in the UK and author of the book Counselling the Person Beyond the Alcohol Problem. I have become increasingly concerned…
“When I was invited to contribute a chapter to this important anthology, I knew that I wanted to focus on one prisoner [Larry]…[T]he second half of the chapter…relates his transformational journey through the works of Shakespeare, using his analysis of the characters to provide a self-analysis that was truly life-altering. As one example, we focus on the character of Macbeth, examining some parallels between that character and Larry’s early criminal experiences. While some of those parallels are disturbing, the chapter concludes with the celebration of Larry’s ‘salvation through Shakespeare.'”
In December, JKP author John Merges shared some thoughts about his passion: helping young people on the autism spectrum enjoy social interactions – an important skill…