Title: The Velvet Rage Pdf Overcoming the Pain of Growing Up Gay in a Straight Man's World, Second Edition
Author: Alan Downs
Published Date: 2012-06-05
Page: 272
Philadelphia Gay News bestseller, 5/11/12 "A groundbreaking examination of the psychology of homosexuality, why it leads to shame over one's identity, and how to overcome it.... This book has remarkable staying power."Artvoice, 11/26/15 "The clearest, most succinct delineation of the origins and consequences of internalized homophobia, and how to address them.""Those familiar with gay men will find a good deal of honest reporting here. Without being maudlin, Downs, himself a gay man, writes movingly."―Library Journal"Peppered with deeply personal reflections... There's no doubt that the men profiled in this sober call for "owning the injury" of growing up gay in a straight world were helped by their counseling, or that there are certainly some readers who will find their own lives reflected in that healing."―Q Syndicate"[An] excellent new book...The Velvet Rage is a chronicle of furtive pathos, anger, compensatory fabulousness, despair, sex addiction, and flickerings of hope as its wounded actors make their way by uncertain stages toward a light of authenticity and self-acceptance their culture does not want them to find or even see. In its pages, through anecdotal moments and analytical passages, one is constantly catching glints of people one has known, behaviors one has seen and heard firsthand and often been baffled and hurt by."―San Francisco Bay Guardian"Dr. Alan Downs has some words of wisdom....Although unnerving at first, readers might feel kinship with the case study subjects and ultimately, become empowered by the lessons learned and by the self-realizations experienced."―New City Chicago"While we can all hope that the collective experience will change in time, Downs' perspective is still all too relevant."―AOL's Book Maven
In The Velvet Rage, psychologist Alan Downs draws on his own struggle with shame and anger, contemporary research, and stories from his patients to passionately describe the stages of a gay man's journey out of shame and offers practical and inspired strategies to stop the cycle of avoidance and self-defeating behavior. The Velvet Rage is an empowering book that has already changed the public discourse on gay culture and helped shape the identity of an entire generation of gay men.
Peter Pan Grows Up Psychologist Alan Downs` guide to authentic living for the gay male, ‘The Velvet Rage,` is a valuable self-help tool for gay men struggling to break free from a life of insecurity, self-loathing, and most of all, shame. Downs` central thesis, one he presents convincingly, is that gay men start off life far more emotionally crippled than most other people.Downs makes the argument that we gay men suffer the effects of a toxic self-image, one that stems from a pit of shame embedded deep inside. He argues we must systematically and assiduously destroy this cancer if we ever entertain the notion of maturing into emotionally healthy adults. This deep-seated and long-enduring sense of shame inhibits us from showing our most genuine feelings and from being our most authentic selves. As a result, we develop a set of theatrical tricks to hide our true selves, to shield us from any chance of honest emotional disclosure. In short, we become master dissemblers, actors, actresses adept at the art of giving others what they want to see and hear from us. All this comes at a horrible cost. Downs states, “…we must hide, presenting to the world a fabricated version of ourselves until the day that we are free to express our sexuality and step out of the closet of shame.” Downs explains in great detail how we ‘compensate for’ rather than ‘confront’ our shame. We become obsessed with out-performing others in our chosen professions, obsessed with physical beauty above all, and perhaps most dangerously, become obsessed with the thrill of seemingly endless sexual conquest.Our ‘velvet rage’ comes out when these compensating strategies begin to weaken and crack, leaking out ferocious and foul bouts of poisonous rage, often directed at innocents. Downs provides a lot of first-hand testimony from other gay men as to how these compensation tactics work and yet, ultimately fail. These quotes are oddly placed in sidebar boxes adjacent to the text body. For the most part, these testimonies do little to strengthen the psychological points Downs strives to make. Rather, they are too general and not always well-fitted to the topic at hand. Furthermore, Downs frequently repeats many of his points throughout the first three-quarters of the book.Downs` shame thesis could have been delineated in a more engaging and meaningful way had he examined the roots of our toxic shame. Does it stem from feeling ‘different’ at an early age? Is it the fear of not fitting in? Is it internalized homophobia or fear of sex with men? Or perhaps is it the fear of being emotionally and physically vulnerable with another man that drives this shame? Or maybe it stems from all of these factors combined? Sadly, Downs never really analyzes this question to any great depth. His book could have been even more helpful and empowering had he done so. Finally, most of Downs` clients share experiences from relatively ‘problem-free’ coming out processes. Those who have struggled with both internal and external self-acceptance might not connect with the experiences presented here.These criticism`s aside, ‘The Velvet Rage’ finishes on a strong note. In fact, the last quarter of the book is the best part, worth the other three- quarters combined. Additions to the second edition, these ‘Skills for Living an Authentic Life’ impart some valuable life wisdom to the reader. Downs shares from his accumulated years’ worth of psycho-therapeutic experience for all to learn from. Each skill is succinctly presented in a short paragraph and then explained in greater detail. Even the titles themselves sound off as tiny snippets of healing help, “Inner peace above all else,` ‘Contentment over approval,’ ‘Accept reality on reality`s terms,` ‘Walk your way out of distress,` ‘Embrace ambivalence,’ ‘Default to forgiveness,’ are all just some of the practical, life-changing tips Downs gifts his readers. While gay men especially need to ‘do and live’ these lessons, anybody, straight or gay, could profit immensely from their common sense wisdom.While “The Velvet Rage’ is not quite the gay bible to life, it does go a long way in helping us understand why we are the way we are. Most importantly, it sheds light on why we ‘behave’ the way we do. Combined with his practical skills section, ‘The Velvet Rage’ is helpful therapy for the gay male. Understanding is the first step towards full self-acceptance and Dr. Alan Downs has done much to help us recognize the face in the mirror.
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