Customer Reviews

The Neuroscience of Psychotherapy: Building and Rebuilding the Human Brain

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Dr. Cozolino has effectively addressed the fragmentation of physiological and psychological approaches to clinical disorders, laying a groundwork for the inevitable meshing of these two broad approaches to dealing with human problems. Increasingly our growing understanding of brain physiology provides opportunities to look for psychological correlates to various brain states. Covering the spectrum of psychological disciplines and relating them to physiological research, he demonstrates cases where a two-pronged therapy makes sense. His book is interspersed with actual case history examples from his practice, and fascinating contemporary neuroscience research. Whereas there is an interesting summary of brain physiology and a broad view of research, the book is clearly written, nicely organized and absorbing in its coverage. Recommended for those who want a view of where treatment of psychopathology is headed, balancing and integrating the psyche and soma.

This book is simply a masterpiece in presenting neuroscience relevant to the both researchers in braod areas of psychological science and therapists. The presentation of brain specific information is assured, clear and reasonably well referenced. The book always connects brain regions with manifested behaviours and psychological symptoms. There is so much clarity in the text that it really deserves a very wide audience way beyond what its title suggests. The book embraces aspects of affective and evolutionary neuroscience, ties them to human consciousness development and identifies specific brain developments that cause us to be who we are. The piece of the development of the parietal lobes is one of the best I have ever read. The author has a gift for communication, and this is so rare in neuroscience books that the stands proud of the rest. The tripartite brian, psychology and psycotherapeutic connections are presented with out propagandising one at the expense of the other. There is a degree of good quality speculation in the book from time to time which could set its own research agenda. I will conclude by saying that do give a longer review would runs the risk of spoiling the lively and surprising erudition of the author. Definitely a book worth reading, worth keeping and certainly if you loan it out, you may have trouble getting it back.

I've been interested in the many books that have been published
recently about consciousness and the brain but until now
I haven't found one that is as comprehensive and well written as this one. The basic neuroscience is explained but the author's
focus on the relationship of neuroscience to what people experience in therapy, and in their own lives, makes this
book different than others out there. The book personalized
the scientific information in such a way that I feel I really
learned a lot about how psychotherapy works, and how the
brain works, and the relationship between the two.

As a psychotherapist opposed to the dominance of the medical model of human problems, yet intrigued by the developments in neuroscience, I welcome this book as an enlighted integration which traces causation in both directions, detailing what Roger Sperry called "top-down" as well as "bottom-up" causation.

"The neuroscience of psychotherapy" will probably be cited for years to come. It is a groundbreaking, good piece of work trying to integrate two traditionally opposing views: psychotherapy and neuroscience. The book is clearly written - mostly. There is also, as Cozolino himself points out, some speculations entangled with the research references. I would personally have wished that Cozolino would use more space to discuss more of the conflicting results in the neuroscientific field. Some places I was stuck with the feeling that this book presented the crosspoints of these fields to simple. However; this does not take ANY credit from Cozolino in writing a solid piece about an extremely important subject, a subject that will be more and more important in the coming years - hand in hand with the neusro-research.

This book is a great source for all cognitive behavioral therapists. One of the main things I got from this book is that we can see how the architecture of the brain is set up for us to manage things from the top down--that is, to manage our emotions from the seat of our cognitive faculties. There are almost 10 times more nerve fibers carrying sensory information from the top down rather than from the bottom up; TO the subcortex FROM the neocortex rather than the other way around. This gives us some idea of the amount of power available to us, once we learn how to access it, to get the cognitive part of our brain to manage the emotional part. The other important part of the book is how our thinking and behavior continue to make physical changes in our brain as long as we live. The book certainly supports the idea of "brainswitching" to the neocortex when the subcortex is agitated with anxiety or depression, which is what all cognitive behavorial therapists try to teach people to do. As the book shows, you can do that by thinking particular thoughts that stimulate neural activity in the part of the brain from which you wish to function. Then, thanks to the neuroplasticity of the brain, if you do this often enough you can actually re-wire your brain to get out of depression and anxiety at will. A. B. Curtiss, author of BRAINSWITCH OUT OF DEPRESSION

Cozolino's text presents a very complicated topic in an extremely accessible manner, owing to a straightforward writing style and a penchant for perfectly applicable example case studies. He breaks down the functioning of the brain into "digestible" chunks and builds throughout the text on earlier learning. If you work in the field of counseling or psychotherapy, you simply cannot go wrong by reading this book and supplementing your knowledge of neuroscience-psychotherapy connection.

The author explains how what we think programs our brain and how learning to think differently changes our brain: he explains the psyiology that underlies psychotherapy. He tells us what happens in the brain as we change our thoughts and feelings. (His thesis even explains why prayer and meditation work.)

As a neuroscience student, I found this book to be a very interesting read. It is very well organized and easy to follow. Anyone with a basic knowledge of introductory psychology and neuroscience should be able to keep up with this book easily. If you have a simple understanding of these fields and are interested in how the brain can be treated and adapted from a psychotherapist's perspective, then this book is for you. Also, the author relies on facts and actual scientific findings rather than his own opinions. Throughout the book, Cozolino uses real case studies to explain and supplement his points. In the event that an issue is unclear or still debatable, Dr. Cozolino makes sure to point out that the idea is not completely correct or accepted.

In his book, The Neuroscience of Psychotherapy: Building and Rebuilding the Human Brain, Dr. Louis Cozolino argues for the integration of neuroscience into the fields of psychology and psychiatry. He feels like not enough psychologist and psychiatrists embrace the usefulness and effectiveness of neuroscience in their therapies. Dr. Cozolino makes the argument that in all psychotherapies, no matter the methods used and perceived goals of the therapy, the deeper goal is to rewire the neural networks of the patient's brain in a positive way. The book relies heavily on the neuroplasticity of the brain, explaining how evolution has made the brain very adaptive and adjustable, even after early age.

From start to finish, the book flows in an organized and comprehendible manner. The book is divided into five parts, each of which addresses different concepts in neuroscience and/or psychotherapy. Part one includes a general history of neuroscience in psychotherapy, discussing in depth the contributions of Sigmund Freud and other psychologists. Dr. Cozolino claims that Sigmund Freud was indeed a neuroscientist, but because neuroscience was not a very appealing science at the time, Freud chose to focus on psychological models instead. This section also discusses the basics of neural networks and there is a whole chapter devoted to the different strategies used in psychotherapy. Regardless of the strategy, Cozolino argues that the goal is the same: to rewire the neural networks in a positive manner.

"The power of stress to trigger neural plasticity is a key element in the success of psychotherapy." This is a very important concept in psychotherapy because all the forms of therapy rely on some form of stress to induce the desired results. The book argues that not using stress is not very productive, and excessive stress is counter-productive. In other words, moderate stress is essential for optimal results, especially in psychotherapy.

The second part of the book contains more of the neuroscience essentials. It discusses all the parts of the brain and nervous system, and how memory is a key factor in the psyche. Although it is desirable to think that memories are stored in a specific location in the brain, this is not true. Memories are stored throughout the brain. The book then goes on to explain the relationship between implicit and explicit memories. Implicit memories are unconscious memories while explicit are conscious memories. Also, this part of the book goes in depth explaining the various process that go on in both hemispheres of the brain and how they are connected. For example, an important function of the left hemisphere is linguistics while the right hemisphere processes emotion. However, the process of communication is tied heavily to linguistics and emotion, so both hemispheres are used together.

Dr. Cozolino makes an interesting comparison that I feel is worth mentioning. He discusses how after World War II was over, some Japanese soldiers that had been abandoned on various islands in the Pacific Ocean were not aware that the war was over. Whenever someone would land on the island, the soldiers were ready to attack because to them, the war was still going on. They were fighting a war that no longer existed. These soldiers are compared to deep memories in the brain that are hard to get over. "Psychotherapists" are the people that land on the island and try to tell the soldiers that the war is over. This is analogous to psychotherapists trying to relieve a client/patient from a past memory that is rooted deep. The neural network must be rewired.

Part three of the book talks about how the brain is affected by experiences. Cozolino addresses key points to how the brain adapts and which parts of the brain are involved. For example, the book discusses the importance of the frontal and prefrontal cortices on behavior and emotion. This section of the book also discusses the importance and significance of social interaction the brain and psyche. The way we communicate and interact with other people has a profound effect on our neural networks. For example, eye contact and facial expressions are key signals in human communication.

Part four takes all the concepts from the first three parts and discusses their application to various psychiatric problems and disorders. Dr. Cozolino points out how early childhood relationships have an extraordinarily profound effect on the development of the psyche. "Each of us is born twice: first from out mother's body over a few hours, and again from our parents' psyche over a lifetime." This quote summarizes the importance of proper early childhood development and good parenting.

This section also discusses the concepts of fear and anxiety. The chapter discusses how fear and anxiety are processed and traces the "circuits" of fear. "Slow" fear is processed through the thalamus, cerebral cortex, and hippocampus, while "fast" appears to be processed by the amygdala, which is crucial in the processing of fear and anxiety. "The behavior of all organisms is based on approaching what is life sustaining and avoiding what is dangerous." This is a central belief on human behavior.

Part five ties all loose ends and strongly stresses the strength of neural plasticity. The idea that the brain is constantly changing and evolving is fundamental in this book and to psychotherapy. Dr. Cozolino explains that although deep knowledge of the inner functions of the brain is not completely available, neuroscience is a very valuable tool and perspective in psychotherapy. He encourages the reader and all psychotherapists to embrace neuroscience and not be afraid of its complexity.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading the book and I recommend it to anyone with an interest in psychology, neuroscience, or counseling. It is simple to read, does not use complicated jargon, and is very informative.

An excellent book combining the fields of neuroscience and psychotherapy and explaining the effects of emotional trauma on brain development.