Marilyn Kagan is a renowned radio and television therapist in Los Angeles, who once played a therapist on the Ellen show. She has over 25 years experience in private practice and acts as a guest expert on many major networks. Neil Einbund spent 20 years teaching in the Making Marriage Work program at the University of Judaism. Together they wrote Defenders of the Heart to help people become aware of the mechanisms they use as defensive weapons and give them an understanding of why they use them, so they can stop sabotaging their lives.

In this book, they have presented the ten most commonly used defense mechanisms, which they have tagged "Defenders of the Heart," with supporting case studies and helpful exercises to practice. The end of each chapter concludes with a section titled Heartbeat, which presents a study to solidify the chapter information.

These are proven defense mechanisms that we all use. The authors discuss the details of the various coping skills we all develop over the years in order to protect ourselves from pain. These skills become habitual and, although we might outgrow the need for these mechanisms, we don’t stop using them and they spill over into our relationships, causing irreparable harm to those we love. Kagan and Einbund conclude that we need to let go of these defenses to be able to live a heartfelt life. We must open our hearts to the world in order to be free to love ourselves and to stop sabotaging our relationships with others.

I found this book to be enlightening. The writing style is easy to read without the technical mumbo-jumbo that one would normally find in this type of information. This is like a free therapy session for anyone who wants a practical guide to lightening their load. Recommended reading for everyone interested in bettering their interpersonal relationships.