Author Jana Edwards brilliantly makes the case that the "crazy-making" we experience with our spouses is the best way to achieve positive permanent change in our lives.
Edwards offers a provocative fascinating look inside the dramas that anyone in a committed relationship experiences. Why dramas? Because our brains so badly need to express what they've held in since childhood "reliving those old emotions with someone who feels like family again."
Edwards uses real-life dramas chosen from the more than two hundred couples she's treated to illustrate how to harness and redirect these emotions toward change. She also clearly explains the science behind how our brains choose exactly the right partner for us and how our relationships will help us grow when we engage in rather than avoid marital conflict.
A licensed clinical social worker and board-certified diplomate in clinical social work Jana Edwards has specialized in treating couples in her private practice in Denver Colorado for over thirty years and she teaches a course she developed for couples therapists entitled "Neurodynamic Couples Therapy." She has twice been named Most Distinguished Clinician by the Colorado Society for Clinical Social Work and recognized as a Master Scholar by the University of Denver Graduate School of Social Work. Ms. Edwards has been married for thirty-three years and has two married stepchildren and five stepgrandchildren.
"This book is a gift! Ms. Edwards is giving you the result of her many years of hard work her dedication to professionalism and her thorough pursuit of truth. It is a rare blend of scholarship the practice of psychotherapy and the ability to teach in an understandable manner. It brims with countless valuable insights and is a remarkable synthesis of key elements to marital relationships that heretofore have been treated separately. It sets the stage for your and your partner's journey of self-discovery and mutual healing and will touch a chord within you that makes it hard to put down. You will want to read it over and over because you learn something new each time. It will greatly benefit every couple who reads it." -William E. Schneider PhD Clinical and Organizational Psychologist President Corporate Development Group Author of The Reengineering Alternative
"Another book on unhappy marriages? Yes but a really good one! Jana Edwards writes with warmth and wisdom about the repetitive quarrels that turn many marriages into battlegrounds. Drawing on years of experience treating couples family systems theory and a wide-ranging knowledge of personality dynamics Edwards does a remarkable job of dissecting marital conflicts -- and offering practical advice for dealing with them." -Michael P. Nichols PhD Professor of Psychology The College of William & Mary Author of The Lost Art of Listening and Stop Arguing with Your Kids
"Jana Edwards has achieved several important tasks in this book. She uses case examples theory and experiences to provide practitioners with an excellent combination of knowledge and skills to enhance their effectiveness. Ms. Edwards has written with clarity and her use of case scenarios affords accessibility to students and practitioners with varied levels of practice experience." -James Herbert Williams PhD MSW Dean and Milton Morris Endowed Chair Graduate School of Social Work University of Denver
