Locus of Control: Therapy Poems, Rebecca Herz

Description

Locus of Control: Therapy Poems
Paperback – January 15, 2026
by Rebecca Herz

Locus of Control is a deeply reflective paperback poetry collection shaped at the intersection of clinical practice, queer identity, and personal transformation. Written during a period of rapid change, these poems weave together the language of therapy with lived experience, tracing the emotional terrain of neurodivergence, new motherhood, IVF, grief, burnout, and the quiet spiritual questions that accompany caretaking work.

Drawing on her role as a middle-school crisis counselor, Rebecca Herz explores concepts such as countertransference, co-regulation, imposter syndrome, and radical acceptance, revealing what happens when the boundaries between professional holding and personal healing begin to blur. The poems examine what it means to witness pain daily, to carry hope for others while learning to hold it for oneself, and to sit with uncertainty rather than resolve it.

Personal and political realities coexist throughout the collection: fertility treatments unfold alongside breaking news alerts, queer family-making intersects with Jewish identity, and motherhood emerges through clinical data, ultrasound images, and moments of quiet awe. Herz’s voice is both grounded and vulnerable, honoring ambiguity as a necessary space for growth rather than something to be overcome.

Rather than offering solutions, Locus of Control invites readers to linger in the questions. These poems resist easy answers, trusting resonance, reflection, and shared humanity to do their work. All proceeds from this collection support Jewish Queer Youth (JQY), honoring the young people who inspire the author’s belief that healing is possible, even when the path forward is nonlinear.