Advance Acclaim for the

The Developmental Needs Meeting Strategy:

An Ego State Therapy for Healing Adults
With Childhood Trauma and Attachment Wounds

By Shirley Jean Schmidt, MA, LPC

First Edition        February 2009        261 Pages        Illustrated        $35.00
DNMS Institute, LLC        San Antonio, Texas

Endorsements below from Nancy Napier, Christine Courtois, Laurel Parnell,
Ricky Greenwald, David Grand, Carol Forgash and more...

“During the 78 years of my life I have devoted 52 years to the practice of psychotherapy. Down through these years I've had the wonderful personal experience of knowing and being trained by Carl Rogers, Eric Berne, Fritz Pearls, John and Helen Watkins, Mary and Bob Goulding, and Milton Erickson, to name a few. I'm highly impressed with the way this book incorporates the evolution of ego state theory and trance work into the practice of psychotherapy in such a simplistic way that the average layperson can understand and benefit from this treatment approach. I'm simply overwhelmed by Schmidt’s skill in integrating these theories of giants into an outstanding treatment program.”

—GERALD W. HUFF, PhD, Private Practice

“I’ve been an enthusiastic practitioner of the DNMS since 2001 – because it gives me, simply and profoundly, the best treatment results I've ever achieved. This book describes, in clear and simple language, important ego state therapy innovations for healing trauma and attachment wounds. This book’s reader-friendly style will make it easy for therapists to learn and apply this highly innovative model.”

—JOAN BACON, MA, Psychologist, EMDRIA-Approved Instructor and Consultant,
Former Graduate Faculty Chestnut Hill College

“Shirley Jean Schmidt's latest book is an astounding accomplishment – profound in its scope, clarity, innovation, and insight. The DNMS has been of enormous value to my work – providing a comprehensive, skillful, and compassionate method of treatment that effectively heals clients of their unresolved attachment wounds. It has truly revolutionized my clinical practice.”

—CYNTHIA ENGEL, LCSW, Former Program Director at CARE Children's Counseling Center, Santa Rosa, CA

“Shirley Jean Schmidt brilliantly sets out her groundbreaking therapy in this superb book. In 30 years of doing psychotherapy I have found nothing that comes close to the DNMS for giving patients relief from troubling childhood experiences. This book clearly shows therapists how to systematically, thoroughly, and gently target presenting complaints, current problems, underlying issues, and childhood traumas. I highly recommend this book.”

—GINGER JOHNSON ENRICO, PhD, Former Clinical Faculty at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center

“A creative and compassionate contribution to therapeutic work with those parts of the self – ego states – that embody unprocessed elements of past trauma. Through numerous protocols, the approach presented in this book offers clinicians informative and detailed instructions about how to guide clients through ego-state work toward resolution and resilience. Shirley Jean's emphasis on healthy aspects of the Adult Self offers an essential focus on present-day competencies and capacities to self-soothe. I recommend this book wholeheartedly!”

—NANCY J. NAPIER, PhD, author of Recreating Your Self, Getting Through the Day, Sacred Practices
for Conscious Living, co-author of Meditations & Rituals for Conscious Living; and teacher of
Somatic Experiencing® as a Faculty Member at Foundation for Human Enrichment

“An innovative ego state therapy protocol for healing the wounds of childhood abuse and neglect. The DNMS is an integrative technique built on contemporary research findings about the effects of insecure attachment and trauma on childhood development. This book provides a detailed method for meeting unmet developmental needs using the client’s own healing resources and resilience and has much to offer the therapist seeking ways to understand and assist their adult survivor clients.”

—CHRISTINE A. COURTOIS, PhD, Co-editor of Treating Complex Traumatic Stress Disorder:
An Evidence-Based Guide; and author of Recollections of Sexual Abuse: Treatment
Principles and Guidelines and Healing the Incest Wound: Adult Survivors in Therapy

“A practical step-by-step guide that integrates ego state work, resource tapping, and the latest research on attachment into her DNMS model. There is a wealth of information and creative ideas in this book that therapists can draw from whether they choose to employ the full DNMS protocols or elements that work best with their clients. This book is a welcome addition to the literature for the treatment of complex trauma and attachment wounds.”

—LAUREL PARNELL, PhD, an EMDR consultant and trainer, and author of Tapping In: A Step-by-Step Guide
to Activating Your Healing Resources Through Bilateral Stimulation, A Therapist’s Guide to EMDR,
Transforming Trauma: EMDR, and EMDR in the Treatment of Adults Abused as Children

“The DNMS can be used to systematically identify and rectify those developmental gaps and wounds that exert ongoing negative influence on the client. My own experience with it has been positive, and even severely challenged clients often respond well. Schmidt's definitive book will teach practitioners and inspire further research on this promising approach.”

—RICKY GREENWALD, PsyD, Founder and Executive Director of the Trauma Institute &
Child Trauma Institute, author of EMDR Within a Phase Model of Trauma-Informed
Treatment, Child Trauma Handbook, and Treating Problem Behaviors

“Congratulations to Shirley Jean Schmidt for producing a stand-alone book which instructs the reader in her valuable Developmental Needs Meeting Strategy. But this book is so much more. It is a thought-out compendium of ego state theory and practice that every therapist, of every orientation, should have as a resource in their library. It is well-written, comprehensive, and clear, with great charts, illustrations, and case examples. It's better than any book of its kind that I've read before.”

—DAVID GRAND, PhD, Developer of Brainspotting, author of Emotional Healing at Warp Speed: The Power of EMDR

“The DNMS described in this highly readable book provides a creative approach to the healing of attachment wounds. Clinicians will learn how to help clients heal their attachment traumas by following the thoughtfully laid out sequential protocols that Shirley Jean Schmidt has developed. This book includes sections that offer clear explanations about attachment theory, bilateral stimulation and ego states, plus creative illustrations that accompany each step in the protocol. I recommend this book for therapists interested in learning practical approaches to helping clients with unmet attachment needs.”

—CAROL FORGASH, LCSW, BCD, EMDR HAP Board President, EMDRIA-Approved Consultant, coauthor
and editor of Healing the Heart of Trauma and Dissociation with EMDR and Ego State Therapy

“This book makes a significant contribution to the development and practice of ego state therapy approaches and does so in a way that is comprehensive, informative, and practical. While obviously taking time to present relevant theory and research Schmidt focuses on the important aspects of practice that make it an important addition to a practitioner's professional collection. As such it would lend itself quite well as a primary or adjunct text in a counseling skills class.”

—ARTHUR HERNANDEZ, PhD, Professor and Chair of the Department of
Educational Psychology at University of Texas at San Antonio