Group: How One Therapist and a Circle of Strangers Saved My Life – Christie Tate
Here are the stages of reading/listening to Christie Tate’s voyeuristic memoir about her life in group therapy:
Intrigue
Shock
Sadness
Confusion
Compassion
Anger
Annoyance
Boredom
Amiability
The premise is akin to rubbernecking past an automobile accident. There’s something cathartic in knowing that you’re safe, but you still want to see blood. And, there’s plenty of emblematic (and real) blood here, as Tate recounts decades of mental health challenges.
She spent much of her teens through mid-30s void of deep attachments, engaging in disordered eating, struggling with suicidal ideation and balancing body dysmorphia and imposter syndrome — all while finishing first in her class at law school and securing a job at a high-profile firm. Eventually she finds her way to Dr. Rosen and his therapy groups, giving him five years to help her make strong connections with others.
Through much of “Group,” I was alternately intrigued and uncomfortable. Tate experienced trauma early in life that impacted her in ways she — and other health professionals — didn’t fully understand. It wasn’t until she began working with Dr. Rosen and the other group members that she was able to fully connect the dots and begin healing.
The two chapters where she recounts this event and the aftermath — first-hand experience with the drowning death of a friend’s father while on vacation in Hawaii — were the strongest and most engaging parts of the novel. But, as she gets deeper into group therapy, it felt like privileged champagne problems became more of a focus, and I had a difficult time caring about Tate and her journey.
Then there’s Dr. Rosen.
While the one person who was able to help Tate, he employed tactics that could best be described as cult-like. This even becomes a running joke among group members. While portrayed as a dorky and unassuming presence, his actions at times felt like those of a controlling abuser.
His groups are incestuous and confrontational, and he lords over them with a faux New Age attitude about embracing your secrets and honoring your emotions. Everything seemed to center around sex and intimacy, which makes me believe he was possibly aroused by grooming and controlling others.
There are too many WTF moments that Dr. Rosen put Tate through to recount here, but I want to highlight a couple, so people understand the type of story this is. One “prescription” was for Tate to call a fellow female group member before and after she masturbated, another had her telling a classmate she was a “cock tease.”
This pattern of action — assigning tasks framed as treatment, many involving different group members — makes them solely reliant on one another for emotional and physical support. This comes to a head at about the 50 percent mark when Tate dates one of Rosen’s patients from another group – a severely depressed man who also struggles to make connections with others.
Even though Rosen knows the relationship isn’t working, he continues to assign prescriptions, which culminates with Tate performing oral sex on him after he hasn’t bathed in days. This leads to a declaration that becomes a running joke throughout the rest of the novel — and will make you blush.
After that I began to lose interest in the story. Yes, these possibly unethical actions were leading to true breakthroughs for Tate, but I started to feel sorry for her, and the others, who put faith in an Ivy-league charlatan that kept patients embarrassed and angry while cashing their checks.
I struggle with how to feel about “Group.” Dr. Rosen’s treatment felt wrong and dirty, but Tate still sees him and credits his unconventional approach with changing her life. In that respect, it seems unfair to judge the means to an end. Also, I’m not a mental health professional, so I can’t speak to whether his actions are above the board.
All that to say, the story is still too long and seems without purpose at points. I didn’t know anything about Tate before picking this up (although it appears, she’s a lightning rod), so I simply wasn’t interested, or couldn’t relate, to some issues. In the end I was bored, and her one-note narration didn’t help.
Many people seemed to enjoy “Group,” and I think your perception of the events is shaped solely by personal experience. Read the description and a few reviews before deciding if it’s right for you.
Rating (story): 2/5 stars
Rating (narration): 1/5
Formats: Audiobook (library loan)
Dates read: March 8 - 14, 2021
Multi-tasking: Good to go.
