Synopses & Reviews
Today’s gay man enjoys unprecedented, hard-won social acceptance. Despite this victory, however, serious problems still exist. Substance abuse, depression, suicide, and sex addiction among gay men are at an all-time high, causing many to ask, “Are we really better off?” Drawing on contemporary research, psychologist Alan Downs’s own struggle with shame and anger, and stories from his patients, The Velvet Rage passionately describes 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. Updated to reflect the effects of the many recent social, cultural, and political changes, 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.
Review
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.”
Synopsis
“The Velvet Rage is becoming a touchstone in gay culture just as Goodbye to Berlin was in the 30s, A Boy’s Own Story in the 60s and Faggots in the 70s.”--Observer (UK)
Synopsis
This groundbreaking and empowering book examines the impact of growing up and surviving as a gay man in a society still learning to accept all identities. 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.
Synopsis
In this moving guide, a gay man shares his personal journey of letting go of shame and moving forward with self-compassion and healing. Even though an entire generation of men have openly and freely come out of the closet, gay men still struggle with self-acceptance. Sexually transmitted diseases, depression, and suicide occur more frequently for gay men than straight men. It doesn't have to be this way.
Through brave individual stories and compassionate analysis, The Velvet Rage explores how shame is insidious, and can be traced back to childhood feelings of "otherness". Drawing on contemporary psychological research, Alan Downs offers a path to emotional well-being and an end to self-defeating behavior.
Velvet Rage is an empowering book you'll wish you read long ago. It's not too late to begin the healing process.
About the Author
Alan Downs, PhD, is a clinical psychologist practicing in Beverly Hills, California. The former CEO of Michael’s House Treatment Center, Downs now maintains a thriving private psychotherapy practice and an intensive outpatient addiction program.