Dr. Daniel Amen-a pioneer in uncovering the connections between the brain and behavior-presents his revolutionary approach to treating anxiety and depressive disorders. Healing Anxiety and Depression reveals the major anxiety and depression centers of the brain, offers guidelines and diagnostic tools to determine the specific type of anxiety and depression, and provides a comprehensive program for treating each type. Based on new brain science-and featuring treatment plans that include medication, diet, supplements, exercise, and social and therapeutic support-this groundbreaking book will help readers conquer these potentially devastating disorders and change the way they think about anxiety and depression.

Customer Rating:
Summary: great book;really works
Comment: This is good . I am an MD and it is clear that depression and anxiety are not 1 or 2 "pure" illnesses. He presents 7 types. "type 7" describes me almost exactly. Provigil (one he recommends for this type in an update on his website)works well for me, and the supplements (fish oil, tyrosine, phenylalanine, and SAM-e) work quite well as an additive effect. Valerian helps greatly with residual anxiety, and the GABA/glutamine combo help greatly with insomnia. Downside is these cost a lot and its lots of pills. His supplements on his website combine many of these, which make it easier and more economical, but I still need a bit more of the other ones he talks about. But if it works, it works. Will see if it works longterm.

Couple criticisms; too much medical terminology for average reader, though much is good for anyone to learn. The whole "ANTS" thing, as he admits, was devised originally for kids and seems juvenile for a serious adult. He needs to adapt this concept for adults to make it credible and friendly to use.

Overall, buy, buy, buy, but read the updated versions on his website for newer drugs especially. Hopefully a new edition coming soon...

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Customer Rating:
Summary: Dense, Informative & Caring
Comment: Before beginning, I need to express my personal opinions regarding the use of medications to "treat" emotional issues. One would hope that drugs would only be used as a last resort, and not as the go-to strategy, especially with emotional issues. Mountains of research exist to support the use of all sorts of different therapy methods for emotional issues, mood disorders, and even the personality disorders etc.. It's very common to go with meds more quickly when dealing with the personality disorders, but certainly mood disorders, emotional problems etc., shouldn't need to go to the meds quite so quickly. Emotional issues can be dispatched with quite quickly and easily without the use of drugs. Personality disorders can be too, but I do understand that personality disorders do on occasion, require a bit more therapeutic effort than a typical mood disorders might.

I'm not necessarily suggesting that mood disorders are any less troubling to their sufferers, than personality disorders are, but simply that traditionally, mood disorders might be considered less complicated to figure out than a personality disorder can sometimes be.

My only other apprehension is that brain scans, although impressive to look at, are incredibly subjective and unreliable in my and many other opinions. This author does however seem to rely on them heavily. Having said that, he has much more knowledge and experience with brain scan than I do and presumably has strong reasons for his convictions and loyalty to them, which leads very nicely into why I DO like this book...

Dr. Amen has successfully demonstrated his high level of expertise and experience in these matters, but more telling for me possibly is his obvious passion and personal commitment to helping people suffering from mental and emotional afflictions.

My respect for him is through the roof. I consider him to be a man with the utmost professionalism and the possessor of unscrupulously high level of compassion for the human experience and those not enjoying it quite as well as they might otherwise be.

My most excited opinions of this book are in regard to its intentions to educate. This book is dense with really good information and science and offers the reader an exceptionally thorough accounting of the many and varied components of anxiety & depression.

Overall I was extremely satisfied, entertained and informed by this offering by the good doctor. It's a heartfelt journey of literary "caring" and commitment.

-Sarah Shikitao-Brown,
Tao Cycle Therapy: Natural Happiness via Self Directed Cure for Chronic Anxiety & Depression [Updated 2008 3nd Edition]

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Customer Rating:
Summary: My books of the month
Comment: My past months pick for best books are the two SKBF Publishing's best selling which was recommended by anther reader and I am glad I listened
1) Rumi & Self Psychology (Psychology of Tranquility)
2) Sara's Therapy: The Way to Purity (A session by session therapy for self growth)
And two other books
3) Seat of the Soul
4) Changing your anxious mind
Who am I? No one important, just read a lot of books about psychology and spirituality and science. I love telling people about the books I like.

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Customer Rating:
Summary: Cheap advertisement for the Amen Clinic
Comment: The book reads like a pamphlet advertising the Amen Clinics. At the Amen Clinics this and at the Amen Clinics that, give me a break. This guy can't go half a page without tooting his own horn. You would think that everywhere except the Amen Clinics, the treatment of mental disorders is by witch doctors and alchemists. The books makes a big deal about the use of brain scanning and how this is such a big advantage for their clinic. They shame insurance companies for not reimbursing payment and other doctors for not using the technique, but read closely. In the end, they still the patients are still treated just like anywhere else, symptomatically. One word for this book: lame.

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Customer Rating:
Summary: Amen
Comment: I enjoy reading the books written by Dr. Amen.
He writes so the lay person can understand and so the professional does not get bored. This book has been very helpful to many people.

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