Description
Book SynopsisMost of us walk through each day expecting few surprises. If we want to better ourselves or our lives, we map out a path of gradual change, perhaps in counseling or psychotherapy. Psychologists William Miller and Janet C'de Baca were longtime scholars and teachers of traditional approaches to self-improvement when they became intrigued by a different sort of change that was sometimes experienced by people they encountered--something often described as a bolt from the blue or seeing the light. And when they placed a request in a local newspaper for people's stories of unexpected personal transformation, the deluge of responses was astounding. These compelling stories of epiphanies and sudden insights inspired Miller and C'de Baca to examine the experience of quantum change through the lens of scientific psychology. Where does quantum change come from? Why do some of us experience it, and what kind of people do we become as a result? The answers that this book arrives at yield remarkable insights into how human beings achieve lasting change--sometimes even in spite of ourselves.
Trade ReviewBill Miller and Janet C'de Baca have written a wonderful book. Not since William James's Varieties of Religious Experience has there been such a psychologically penetrating book on spiritual experience. --George E. Vaillant, MD, Harvard Medical School
Although many people spend years struggling to fix personal problems, some people undergo sudden, dramatic, and nearly instantaneous change. This book tells their stories and identifies the core features of these transformational changes. The idea of quantum change is arguably among the most exciting in psychology, since it challenges both common sense and clinical lore. This book will appeal to anyone interested in psychological change, transformation, or the human condition. In other words, this book is for everyone. --Todd F. Heatherton, PhD, Associate Professor, Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College
Reading Quantum Change is a mystical experience of its own. This is an exceptionally well written book that I found inspirational, enlightening, and a 'must read.' After reading this book, don't be surprised if you think about change in a new way. --Monty Roberts, author of the New York Times best seller, The Man Who Listens to Horses
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Table of ContentsI. The Context
1. Something Old, Something New
2. The Landscape of Quantum Change
3. Before
II. Insights
4. The Insightful Type of Quantum Change
5. Boom
6. Taking the AA Train
7. A Mirror and Two Roses
8. Awakening
9. Ripples
III. Epiphanies
10. The Mystical Type of Quantum Change
11. The Reluctant Mystic
12. Something Like a Star
13. A Voice in the Fireplace
14. At Pecos
15. Trampoline
IV. Reflections
16. After
17. Are Quantum Changes Always Positive?
18. What Happened?
19. Messages to Humankind
Epilogue
An Invitation
Appendix. Values: What Matters Most to You?
Notes
