Good Reads for Clients & Therapists
PERSONAL GROWTH & RECOVERY
Silently Seduced: When Parents Make Their Children Partners
Ken Adams
Understanding covert incest.
Feeling Good: The New Mood Therapy, Revised and Updated
David D. Burns
Learn how your faulty thinking causes you to feel sad, angry, hopeless…
Homecoming: Reclaiming and Championing Your Inner Child
John Bradshaw
A book that helps you understand how the different stages of your childhood influence your psychological health.
Healing the Shame That Binds You
John Bradshaw
A book that helps you understand how toxic shame is transferred to you through your family of origin, how it negatively impacts every aspect of your life, and how to overcome.
Stephen R. Covey, A. Roger Merrill, Rebecca R. Merrill
Learn how to better organize your time and procrastinate less.
Emotional Intelligence: Why It Can Matter More Than IQ
Daniel Golema
The Worry Trap: How to Free Yourself from Worry and Anxiety Using Acceptance and Commitment Therapy
Chad LeJeune
Learn how your faulty thinking causes you to feel sad, angry, hopeless…
The Dance of Anger: A Woman’s Guide to Changing the Patterns of Intimate Relationships
Harriet Lerner
Excellent book for people who over-function in relationships and who stuff anger.
The Emotional Incest Syndrome: What to Do When a Parent’s Love Rules Your Life
Dr. Patricia Love
When Anger Hurts: Quieting the Storm Within, 2nd Edition
Matthew McKay, Peter D. Rogers, Ph.D., Judith McKay
The Energy of Money: A Spiritual Guide to Financial and Personal Fulfillment
Maria Nemeth
Your relationship with money is a metaphor for your relationship with life.
Suze Orman’s Financial Guidebook: Put the 9 Steps to Work
Suze Orman
Mary Ann Hill
Dr. Judson Brewer
Women’s Issues
Bountiful Women: Large Women’s Secrets for Living the Life They Desire
Carmen Renee Berry
Robin Norwood
When being in love means being in pain…
Men’s Issues
Kenneth Adams, Alexander Morgan
For both the man and his partner.
I Don’t Want to Talk About It: Overcoming the Secret Legacy of Male Depression
Terrence Real
Fantastic book for men to understand the male form of depression–irritability and anger.
A Man's Guide to Partner Betrayal: Overcoming the Pain and Repercussions of a Cheating Partner
One of kind book addressing infidelity and sexual betrayal by a female partner of a heterosexual couple. A must read for men who suffer in their own shame and silence of this growing reality.
Adam Nisenson
Sex, Porn, and Love Addiction
Doug Weiss PhD, LCSW
Don’t Call It Love: Recovery from Sexual Addiction
Patrick Carnes, Ph.D.
This is one of two books I always recommend to addicts for themselves and co-addicts to understand the disease.
Out of the Shadows: Understanding Sexual Addiction
Patrick Carnes, Ph.D.
Sexual Anorexia: Overcoming Sexual Self-Hatred
Patrick Carnes, Ph.D., Joseph Moriarity
Dr. Gregory Crow, Dr. Ralph Earle, Kevin Osborn
Facing the Shadow [3rd Edition]: Starting Sexual and Relationship Recovery
Patrick Carnes, Ph.D.
This book is recommended to guide therapy with therapist addressing Carnes’ first 7 Tasks to Recovery.
The Betrayal Bond: Breaking Free of Exploitative Relationships
Patrick Carnes
For Female Addicts
No Stones: Women Redeemed from Sexual Shame
Marnie Ferree
Women, Sex, and Addiction: A Search for Love and Power
Charlotte S. Kasl
Great first book for female addicts and their co-addicts.
Facing Love Addiction: Giving Yourself the Power to Change the Way You Love
Pia Mellody, Andrea Wells Miller, J. Keith Miller
Robin Norwood
When being in love is being in pain.
Love Sick: One Woman’s Journey through Sexual Addiction
Sue William Silverman
Cybersex
Cybersex Unhooked: A Workbook for Breaking Free of Compulsive Online Sexual Behavior
David L. Delmonico, Elizabeth Griffin and Joseph Moriarity
Cybersex Exposed: Simple Fantasy or Obsession?
Jennifer Schneider, Robert Weiss
For Gay Addicts
Cruise Control: Understanding Sex Addiction in Gay Men
Robert Weiss
Partners of Sex Addicts
Mending a Shattered Heart: A Guide for Partners of Sex Addicts
Stephanie Carnes
So much of what partners need to know about various topics.
Back from Betrayal: Recovering from His Affairs
Jennifer Schneider, M.D.
This book is the original Sex Addiction Codepedency book by a recognized expert in her field.
Sex, Lies, and Forgiveness, Third Edition
Jennifer Schneider, Burt Schneider
The Betrayal Bind: How to Heal When the Person You Love the Most Hurts You the Worst
Michelle Mays LPC CSAT-S
Michelle Mays LPC, CSAT-S
Codependency
Codependent No More: How to Stop Controlling Others and Start Caring for Yourself
Melody Beattie
This is the cornerstone book for codependency, in my opinion.
Robin Norwood
When being in love is being in pain.
Healthy Dating
Easy Does It Dating Guide: For People in Recovery
Mary Faulkner
A Fine Romance: The Passage of Courtship from Meeting to Marriage
Judith Sills, Ph.D.
Absolutely the best book describing the interpersonal issues people deal with during the dating, going steady and decision to marry or have a lifetime commitment.
Guerrilla Dating Tactics: Strategies, Tips, and Secrets for Finding Romance
Sharyn Wolf
Some suggestions are far out, but the overall tone of the book is very good at helping shy folks to take the steps needed to meet their partner.
Marriage and Relationships
Loving Your Partner without Losing Your Self
Martha Baldwin Beveridge, Harville Hendrix, Helen Hunt
Open Hearts: Renewing Relationships with Recovery, Romance and Reality
Patrick Carnes, Debra Laaser, Mark Laaser
The Divorce Remedy: The Proven 7-Step Program for Saving Your Marriage
Michele Weiner Davis
Not “Just Friends”: Rebuilding Trust and Recovering Your Sanity after Infidelity
Shirley P. Glass, Jean Coppock Staehali
Why Marriages Succeed or Fail: And How You Can Make Yours Last
John Gottman, Ph.D.
The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work
John Gottman, Ph.D.
Getting the Love You Want: A Guide for Couples, 20th Anniversary Edition
Harville Hendrix, Ph.D.
Getting the Love You Want Workbook: The New Couples’ Study Guide
Harville Hendrix, Ph.D., Helen Hunt, Ph.D.
Keeping the Love You Find: A Personal Guide
Harville Hendrix, Ph.D.
Receiving Love: Transform Your Relationship by Letting Yourself Be Loved
Harville Hendrix, Ph.D., Helen Hunt, Ph.D.
How to Improve Your Marriage without Talking About It
Patricia Love, Ed.D., Steven Stosny, Ph.D.
The Truth About Love: The Highs, the Lows, and How You Can Make It Last Forever
Patricia Love
When Anger Hurts Your Relationship: 10 Simple Solutions for Couples Who Fight
Kim Paleg, Matthew McKay
How Can I Get Through to You?: Closing the Intimacy Gap Between Men and Women
Terrence Real
The Monogamy Myth: A Personal Handbook for Recovering from Affairs
Peggy Vaughan
Gay Relationships/Issues
Ten Smart Things Gay Men Can Do to Improve Their Lives
Joe Kort
Healthy Sexuality
For Yourself: The Fulfillment of Female Sexuality
Lonnie Barbach
Still one of the best books for helping women discover their sexuality.
For Each Other: Sharing Sexual Intimacy
Lonnie Barbach
The Couple’s Guide to Intimacy: How Sexual Reintegration Therapy Can Help Your Relationship Heal
Bill and Ginger Bercaw
The Sex-Starved Marriage: A Couple’s Guide to Boosting Their Marriage Libido
Michele Weiner Davis
Reclaiming Desire: 4 Keys to Finding Your Lost Libido
Andrew Goldstein, Marianne Brandon
Erotic Intelligence: Igniting Hot, Healthy Sex While in Recovery from Sexual Addiction
Alexandria Katehakis
Hot Monogamy: Essential Steps to More Passionate, Intimate Lovemaking
Patricia Love, Jo Robinson
This is not a how-to book–no explicit instructions–just the best book written for helping couples whose relationship has gotten dull.
Rekindling Desire: A Step-by-Step Program to Help Low-Sex and No-Sex Marriages
Barry McCarthy
Fantastic, compassionate book. Very helpful.
Erotic Mind: Unlocking the Inner Sources of Passion and Fulfillment
Jack Morin
Arousal: The Secret Logic of Sexual Fantasies
Michael J. Bader
(Excellent book on sexual fantasy from a psychoanalytic view. May be triggering to some sex addicts; please use caution)
Mating in Captivity: Unlocking Erotic Intelligence
Esther Perel
(Some chapters may be too triggering for Sex Addicts. A great book, but not for Sex Addicts)
Sex Smart: How Your Childhood Shaped Your Sexual Life and What to Do About It
Aline Zoldbrod, Ph.D.
Parenting
David Code
Harville Hendrix, Ph.D.
Love or Addiction?: The Power and Peril of Teen Sex and Romance
Brenda Schaeffer
Daniel Siegel, Mary Hartzell
Other Addictions
Behind the 8-Ball: A Recovery Guide for the Families of Gamblers
Linda Berman, Mary-Ellen Siegal
When Money Is the Drug: The Compulsion for Credit, Cash, and Chronic Debt
Donna Boundy
Bryan Robinson
Spirituality
Melody Beattie
Strength in the Storm: Creating Calm in Difficult Times
Eknath Easwaran
Sabbath: Finding Rest, Renewal, and Delight in Our Busy Lives
Wayne Muller
The Road Less Traveled: A New Psychology of Love, Traditional Values and Spiritual Growth
M. Scott Peck
A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life’s Purpose
Eckhart Tolle
Jeffrey Walker, Patrick Carnes
Essential Spirituality: The 7 Central Practices to Awaken Heart and Mind
Roger Walsh
A great book for people who are trying to learn about spirituality.