Sacred Unraveling

"Through wisdom, evidence, practical experience, and wholehearted care, Daryl and Sara offer readers a much needed and timely resource in Sacred Unraveling. The authors masterfully weave their expertise, sensitivity, and humility into the book, while honoring the nuance and complexity of walking alongside clients navigating religious change. Whether you are a mental health practitioner, educator, student, or someone reflecting upon your own spiritual or religious journey, I highly recommend this book." - Holly K. Oxhandler, PhD, MSW, Professor and Associate Dean for Research, Diana R. Garland School of Social Work, Baylor University, Waco, TX, author, The Soul of the Helper: Seven Stages to Seeing the Sacred Within Yourself So You Can See It in Others

"A long-overdue book that bridges the gap between spiritual and existential perspectives in psychotherapy. This very timely, innovative, and illuminating contribution speaks to the growing numbers of people who struggle with the "existential chasm" that arises when they disengage from religious life. Drawing on recent empirical research and clinical wisdom, the Van Tongerens provide valuable perspectives and tools to help clients who are grappling with profound existential concerns—meaninglessness, isolation, freedom, death anxiety, loss of self—as they deal with religious and spiritual change. An important addition to any clinician's library." - Kenneth I. Pargament, PhD, Professor Emeritus, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH; author, Spiritually Integrated Psychotherapy: Understanding and Addressing the Sacred, and coauthor, Working With Spiritual Struggles in Psychotherapy: From Research to Practice

"Therapists who want guidance for the complexities of the current religious and existential landscape will benefit from reading Sacred Unraveling. The authors combine clinical wisdom, scientific research, and authentic understanding to offer a well-grounded model of therapeutic care for clients experiencing changes in religious identities. This is the best book in this growing clinical domain." - Steven J. Sandage, PhD, LP, Albert and Jessie Danielsen Professor of Psychology of Religion & Theology, Boston University, Boston, MA

"Many people who do not identify as religious still carry deep spiritual, even religious, needs into psychotherapy—a pattern we have observed for years in our research at McLean Hospital and Harvard Medical School. Sacred Unraveling thoughtfully addresses this phenomenon, integrating clinical insight with social psychological science in a way that is both rigorous and deeply practical." - David H. Rosmarin, PhD, ABPP, Associate Professor, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA; Director, Spirituality & Mental Health Program, McLean Hospital, Belmont, MA

"How should a clinician engage a client who is undergoing existential anxiety when the once relied upon resource of traditional religion no longer seems to work? This team, through a skillful blend of psychological science and clinical relevance, provides a convincing answer. Two thumbs up!" - Peter C. Hill, PhD, Rosemead School of Psychology—Emeritus, Biola University, La Mirada, CA

"Deeply grounded in empirical research and woven together with clinical wisdom, Sacred Unraveling is an indispensable guide for those seeking to help people navigate the complexities of religious change." - Julie J. Exline, PhD, Research Director, Division of Perceptual Studies, Department of Psychiatry and Neurobehavioral Sciences, University of Virginia Health System, Charlottesville, VA