This book offers a fresh and inspiring approach to personal growth, one that taps into our inherent creativity and the versatility of poetry. In Being True to Life , psychotherapist David Richo explains how writing and reading poetry can be a rich path of self-exploration and emotional healing for anyone, no matter one’s poetic abilities. Richo offers a range of practical exercises for exploring how poetry can help us to become more aware, to heal, and to grow emotionally and spiritually. Exercises include free writing; composing autobiographical poems; writing a poem to your fears; and, composing poems based on childhood memories, significant experiences, and dreams. Richo also offers guidance on how to read poetry in a way that can be personally transformative. Praise for previous books by David Richo: ‘Richo gently and compassionately coaches readers. His book will help those seeking personal transformation’ - Publishers Weekly . ‘Lucid, thought-provoking, and illuminating’ - Martha Beck, author of Finding Your Own North Star . ‘As useful a self-help book as one is likely to find’ - Huston Smith.