Book Spotlight: The Other Side of the Couch by Dr. Gary Small and Gigi Vorgan
- Ever Human Therapy
- Jul 30
- 2 min read
This book offers something rare: a psychiatrist’s honest, behind-the-scenes look at the therapeutic process—not just through his patients’ struggles, but through his own evolving self-awareness.
Told through a series of unusual and memorable cases, The Other Side of the Couch: A Psychiatrist Solves His Most Unusual Cases (2011) explores what it means to sit with others in their pain while also wrestling with your own reactions, questions, and blind spots. It’s a book about people—but also about what happens when the clinician allows themself to be human too. (Yes, even therapists have feelings… shocking, we know 😉)
What it made us reflect on at Ever Human Therapy:
At our core, we’re a practice built on values that support healing not just for clients, but for therapists and collaborators too. This book reminded us of the commitments that shape our work every day:
Perspective Therapy gets juicier when we explore experience from multiple angles. Clients and clinicians both bring evolving stories. Staying open to those stories—even when they surprise or challenge us—is part of the magic.
Self-Awareness Therapist brains: full of insight and… occasionally, some spicy countertransference. We honor the inner world of the therapist just as much as the client’s. Self-awareness isn’t extra—it’s essential. It helps us show up fully, notice our patterns, and offer care without reenactment (or emotional whiplash).
Reflection Growth doesn’t stop with training. It happens in the pause—in supervision, in community, in the “uh-oh, did I just say that?” moments. We make space for that kind of learning every day. Sometimes awkward. Always worthwhile.
Interdisciplinary Collaboration Though written from a psychiatrist’s point of view, this book speaks to all of us. We love learning across roles—therapists, counselors, social workers, psychologists, med prescribers, astrology-inclined co-regulators. Everyone brings a piece of the healing puzzle.
Our Broader Commitment These aren’t just personal values—they’re collective commitments. At Ever Human Therapy, we’re here to support any human—clinician, client, or collaborator—who wants to grow in self-awareness, perspective, and reflective practice.
We’re proud (and sometimes delightfully weird) to do this work, together. Learn more about our trauma-informed, clinician-centered practice: everhumantherapy.com
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