The entire book includes stories from the author's psychotherapeutic practice. The last chapter is written specifically for therapists. I found this chapter to be moving and poignant. The second to the last chapter of the book is a memoir of the author's own personal encounters with death anxiety and his reflections in anticipation of his own death. The author writes, "Death awareness may serve as an awakening experience, a profoundly useful catalyst for major life changes." The book explores how this might be. Understanding and accepting death anxiety can bring us to a greater appreciation of life. ***** "Staring at the Sun" is the eminent psychiatrist Irvin Yalom's latest book based upon the premise that not just many, but all of our fears-fears that on the surface seem to be something else-are in actuality, the fear of death. Also, he brought up some other tantalizing angles that I wanted to hear more about, such as the illusion of upward mobility. Nihilism is a danger here, especially if the patient takes a wrong turn into Nietzsche's darker corners. I'm not certain that curing the fear of death automatically makes one more altruistic. Along those lines, does eliminating death anxiety make one a better person? Changing selfishness to selflessness is a whole different ballgame. I inferred that internal motivation is the major defining factor here, but I wish he would've made that idea clearer. However, I had a couple of minor blind spots with "Staring at the Sun." First, as part of treatment, the author recommends activities that his patients may already be doing - achievement, relationships, taking risks, etc. Indeed, if he practiced close by, I'd make an appointment with him.
#STARING AT THE SUN HEALTH BENEFITS FREE#
Finally, his tactics of "rippling" (positively influencing others with one's life), forming genuine connections with people, living free from regret (or using what regret you have to avoid more of it), and internalizing life-affirming philosophies to achieve a holistic strategy for living well makes sense to me. I got the sense that he truly cares about them, but still manages to maintain appropriate boundaries without being rigid or condescending.
In addition, I appreciated the personal touch he brings to his practice, including appropriate self-revelation and a commitment to help his patients even at inconvenient times. I admired the author's candor about his own fears of impending death at the age of 76, and how his struggles have enabled him to help others in the same boat. Yalom advocates some of the philosophical teachings of Epicurus, Nietzsche, and Schopenhauer to help his patients come to terms with their mortality and cultivate the ability to "create the fate that can love." There is much to like about this book. His treatment methods include guided dream interpretation, and encouraging awakening experiences as a form of existential shock therapy.
But he is a rationalist who is more in line with evolutionary thought and secular philosophy than with spiritual leanings. Yalom encourages his or her belief if it is helpful to the healing process. If his patient follows a certain faith, Dr. It should be noted up front that the author is not religious. I found "Staring at the Sun" to be an intriguing and readable book, not to mention helpful for my own battles with this issue. Therefore, he's based his practice on helping people overcome this issue and enjoy life to the fullest. Yalom believes that this is a key psychological problem, one that goes even deeper than Freud's emphasis on sexual repression. Yalom, people can be so consumed with their own mortality that they become crippled by "unmanageable death anxiety." This disorder manifests in ways that include anxiety attacks, bad dreams, and depression.
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