This step-by-step guidebook offers a range of contemporary and popular brief treatments, suitable for a range of client groups and professional settings. Following a comprehensive introduction to the use of brief interventions in therapeutic practice, each chapter provides an introduction to the theoretical underpinnings and evidence-based brief intervention, followed by guidance on how to implement the approaches with useful ′top tips′, worksheets and examples from practice through case vignettes illustrating its application. The Handbook reflects current recommendations and guidelines of the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence and recommendations of accrediting professional bodies in the UK and US. A must have for any practitioner working to support the wellbeing of others.

The last two decades have seen unprecedented increases in health care costs and, at the same time, encouraging progress in psychotherapy research. On the one hand, accountability, cost-effectiveness, and efficiency have now become commonplace terms for providers of mental health services whereas, on the other hand, an increasingly voluminous literature has emerged supporting the effectiveness of a number of types of psychotherapies. There now exists the possibility for the design and delivery of mental health services that-drawing upon this literature-more closely approximate empirically established data concerning the appropriateness and effectiveness of psychotherapy. The Handbook of the Brief Psychotherapies is intended to capture one major thrust of this movement: the development of a group of empirically grounded, time-limited therapies all sharing a common interest in the clinical utilization of a structured focus and an emphasis on time and action. For many years, professional self-interest, competing theoretical para digms, and the vagaries of practice, wisdom, and clinical myth have influenced the practice of psychotherapy. A critical questioning of the resulting, predomi nantly nondirective, open-ended, and global therapies has led to a growing emphasis on action-oriented, problem-focused, time-limited therapies. Yet, ironically, this interest in the brief psychotherapies has not so much involved a radical departure from traditional therapeutic modalities as it has emphasized a new pragmatism about how time, action, and structure operate in life as well as in therapy.

`On a scale of 0-10 I would give the Handbook of Solution Focused Therapy a nine - it met my best hopes in terms of an insight into the theory and mechanics of SFT, and gave me ideas for extending my current use of the therapy. I found it engaging, readable and well-presented, with useful reference lists within each chapter to guide further reading′ - Solution News `This collection of fifteen chapters, each written by a different specialist in the SFT field, is a valuable contribution to the Solution-Focused therapist′s bookshelf. A must-read for any informed SF therapy practitioner - Mark McKergow, The Solutions Focus `This book has 14 chapters on diverse applications of Solution-Focus, between introductory and closing chapters by Bill O′Connell. The book relates to work being done in the UK and in Ireland, excepting Alasdair MacDonald′s piece on research in SFT, which is an up-to-date and welcome review of research findings world-wide. All the chapters are succinct and they convey a clear impression of the lightness and excitement of this approach, for service-users and therapists alike. The book is a good read for any therapist, professional helper or service manager′ - Robert Cumming , Nurturing Potential Solution-Focused therapy is an increasingly popular approach, used by practitioners in a wide range of contexts and settings. Illustrating the breadth and depth of contemporary practice, the Handbook of Solution-Focused Therapy brings together contributions from leading practitioners in fields such as social work, education and health care to show how solution-focused techniques can be effective in many different situations. Beginning with an introduction to the origins and theory of the approach, the book examines different areas of practice, explaining how and why the solution-focused approach is applicable and highlighting the issues specific to each context. Each chapter features a case-example, which demonstrates the practical advantages and difficulties, involved in using the solution-focused approach. The Handbook of Solution-Focused Therapy is an ideal text for training courses in solution-focused therapy and a source of new ideas for practitioners trained in other approaches who want to integrate solution-focused techniques with their existing practice. Bill O′Connell is a Senior Lecturer in Counselling at University of Birmingham and author of Solution-Focused Therapy (SAGE 1998) and Solution-Focused Stress Counselling (Continuum 2001). Professor Stephen Palmer is Director of the Centre for Stress Management and the Centre for Coaching, London. He has written and edited over 25 books.

This treatment guide is based on selected disorders taken from the American Psychiatric Association DSM-IV Diagnostic Classifications. The disorders selected are treatable or responsive to brief therapy methods. The therapist or student in training can use this book to identify the elements needed for formulating a treatment plan on disorders typically encountered in clinical practice. The approaches taken are based on cognitive behavioral principles and makes use of empirical findings. However, the case study format allows the reader to see how the assessment and treatment is implemented in a "real-life" patient, and not as a clinical abstraction distilled from research studies. Moreover, the treatment plan is outlined in a manner that makes reimbursement likely from managed care organizations and insurance companies. Effective Brief Therapies is useful as a reference for therapists and as a training guide for graduate students. Case Descriptions Treatment Conceptualization Assessment Techniques Treatment Implementation Techniques Concurrent Diagnoses and Treatment Complications and Treatment Implications Dealing with Managed Care and Accountability Outcome and Follow-up Dealing with Recidivism

This definitive guide for succeeding in an era of managed care offers mental health practitioners the tools for applying solution-focused brief therapy (SFBT) techniques.

Each chapter is thoroughly updated, and new chapters cover such topics as dialectical behavior therapy, multicultural practice, and mentalizing, as well as fresh approaches to intervention, such as telepsychiatry and Internet-based interventions. There are also new videos on dialectical behavioral therapy and motivational interviewing.

1. Come Again? From Possibility Therapy to Sex Therapy; 2. Multicontextual Sex Therapy with Lesbian Couples; 3. Getting "In the Mood" (For a Change): Stage-Appropriate Clinical Work for Sexual Problems; 4. Shining Light on Intimacy and Sexual Pleasure; 5. Premature Ejaculation of "Sexual Addiction" Diagnoses; 6. Out of My Office and Into the Bedroom; 7. Unique Problems, Unique Resolutions: Brief Treatment of Sexual Complaints; 8. Just Between Us: A Relational Approach to Sex Therapy; 9. Who Really Wants to Sleep With the Medical Model? An Eclectic / Narrative Approach to Sex Therapy; 10. How Do Therapists of Same-Sex Couples "Do It"?; 11. A Catalytic Approach to Brief Sex Therapy; 12. Don't Get Too Bloody Optimistic - John Weakland at Work; 13. Transforming Stories: A Contextual Approach to Treating Sexual Offenders; 14. Re-Membering the Self: A Relational Approach to Sexual Abuse Treatment.