Celebrating recent staff and alumnus book releases

Books showcasing how psychotherapy continues to shape both clinical practice and leadership development have recently been published by Rodrigo Sanchez Escandon and Garath Symonds. 

The first book, Contemporary Developments in Supportive Therapy: Principles and Practice, has been written by Rodrigo Sanchez Escandon, course lead for our psychodynamic psychotherapy training courses.

The second book, The Anxious Leader, has been written by Garath Symonds, former student of our consulting and leading in organisations course.

Contemporary Developments in Supportive Therapy: Principles and Practice

Rodrigo’s book, which was published by Palgrave Macmillan in July 2025, explores open-ended supportive therapy, a psychoanalytically informed approach designed to offer a compassionate and flexible alternative to more rigid therapeutic methods.

Supportive therapy is especially useful for people who feel that traditional therapy is either too directive or not supportive enough, since it prioritises the relationship between therapist and patient.

Research discussed in the book shows that when patients suddenly quit therapy early, it’s often because therapists introduced interventions that patients are not ready for.

In supportive therapy, the therapist uses their understanding of transference, the patient’s feelings and reactions toward them, to create a supportive environment.

Rodrigo said:

“I wrote this book to give supportive therapy the attention and value it deserves. In our current clinical contexts, many patients need therapists who can provide emotional containment and stability as much as interpretation. My aim was to offer a clear and practical guide to how psychoanalytic ideas can be used to strengthen this kind of work.”

You can purchase his book from Springer Nature Link

The Anxious Leader

Garath Symonds has written ‘The Anxious Leader’, which examines how anxiety impacts leaders and the psychodynamic approach commonly known as the ‘Tavistock Tradition’, which views group dynamics as being formed and existing from unconscious processes.

The book, which has been published by Reconnect, argues that leaders are constantly burdened by anxiety and their management of this emotion determines their effectiveness.

Rational thinking and effective leadership, as Garath explains, occurs when leaders take the time to sit with the temporary discomfort, vulnerability and anxiety. When leaders refuse to acknowledge anxiety and engage with it, they create a “fantasy” and an imagined reality that provides temporary relief.

Speaking of how studying at the Tavistock and Portman impacts his work, he said:

“It has had a profound effect on me as a practitioner. It opened my eyes to the ways anxiety shapes leadership and organisational life in both subtle and powerful ways. The Anxious Leader grew out of that realisation. I wrote it to share what I had learned by telling my own story and by inviting a form of leadership that treats anxiety not as a weakness to be managed but as a prompt for reflection, and even personal transformation.”

Through engaging narratives and practical insights, this book explores the often-overlooked but crucial relationship between anxiety and effective leadership. It emphasises how understanding and embracing anxiety can enhance decision-making, foster resilience, and improve team dynamics.

You can purchase his book from Amazon or Waterstones.