On June 13, 1931, Irvin Jalom was born, an American psychiatrist whose work and literary works belong to the domain of existential psychiatry and psychotherapy. Jalom stated that at the beginning of his specialization, he was dissatisfied with the current psychiatric approach and psychoanalytic theory. That is why he turned to the study of philosophy, because he believes that it provides answers that are missing in the medical examination of mental states and suffering. He lists Nietzsche, Schopenhauer, Sartre, Camus and others as his favorite philosophers.

In the psychotherapeutic approach, he supports the idea that giving too much importance to the psychiatric diagnosis can disturb the authentic contact between the psychotherapist and the person in such a way that "the diagnosis can act as a self-fulfilling prophecy". (Jalom, 2011) This means that for individuals, information about the diagnosis can be an incentive to see only those characteristics and behaviors that fall under the description of that pathological condition. He also emphasizes the importance of developing EMPATHY, and the ability to be present in the present moment - in the HERE and NOW - is considered an important resource in the process of overcoming psychological problems.

He is the author of professional books in the field of psychotherapy, and on the other hand, novels and stories in which he touches on psychiatric and psychotherapy topics. "When Nietzsche Cried", "Healing with Schopenhauer", "Looking at the Sun", "The Charms of Psychotherapy", "Theory and Practice of Group Psychotherapy" are just some of the titles authored by him.

He lives with his wife Marilyn in the city of Palo Alto, California.