Diagnosing and Treating Co-Dependence : A Guide for Professionals Who Work with Chemical Dependents, their Spouses, and Children

For every chemically dependent person, it's estimated that there may be from five to ten co-dependents. More and more, professionals are being called on to help co-dependents in treatment centers, family counseling clinics, mental health agencies, doctors' offices, school settings, and even in business and industry.But is co-dependence a didactic tool, a psychological concept, or a disease entity? There are so many different definitions of it-which one is the right one? And how can a professional be sure that the problem is really co-dependence?Timmen Cermak answers these questions and more. He presents clear diagnostic criteria and illustrates them with examples. He describes ways of treating co-dependence that go far beyond the approaches currently in use. And he speaks to all helping professionals, not just to those in the field of chemical dependence.