Depression Books

Let Me Sow Light authors Amy Viets and Bernadette Stankard share their personal experiences and those of more than a dozen others who have lived with a depressed spouse. The stories are combined with information on the disease, reflection questions, and further resources to produce a practical handbook for non-depressed spouses. In the opening chapter the authors describe warning signs and clinical symptoms, then suggest ways of steering the depressed spouse toward diagnosis and treatment. The second chapter emphasizes the non-depressed spouse's need for support. The authors discuss the feeling of abandonment by God common among those living with depression. Their response is a PACT with God. The acronym stands for prayer, affirmation, community, and truth, which Viets and Stankard explain in detail.

All chapters contain elements of the spiritual and build on the PACT while addressing such issues as the effects of depression on children, finances, and sexual expression. Chapter 6 is devoted entirely to depression and faith. The authors point out that depressive illness "has the capacity to chip away at faith and block avenues of hope" for both depressed and non-depressed partners. Challenges to faith may take the form of doubt, anger, resignation, or hatred. Even while feeling abandoned by God some may fear God's punishment. Viets and Stankard offer encouragement from Scripture and comfort from prayer. If formal prayer isn't possible, they suggest trying to imagine God's presence in everyday activities like washing dishes, driving the car, and falling asleep.

The final chapters deal with treatment, self-care, and recovery, completing a thorough and thoroughly helpful book for anyone whose marriage or family is touched by depression.

Liberated Eating looks at the way stress and different food choices influence brain function and affect women's moods and appetites.Stress and dieting deplete our reserves of serotonin, the feel-good brain chemical or master-neurotransmitter. Women who diet are especially prone to depression and to dieting disorders such as yo-yo dieting, anorexia and bulimia. Liberated Eating identifies the triggers for depression and dieting problems and explains how to break the dieting cycle, attain optimum health and a healthy body weight. The Serotonin Programme has three easy steps to optimum health: Stabilise your blood sugars; Stimulate your body's own production of serotonin; Supplements to boost your serotonin levels. The programme is designed to free you from depression, dieting, food cravings, food intolerances, anxiety and tension, for a healthier, calm and balanced future. There are quick and delicious recipes for all the family, suggested eating plans, and advice on exercise and relaxation. Liberated Eating includes: A questionnaire to rate yourself on the adrenal function scale and discover what foods and supplements are beneficial for you; Health profiles that show how the Serotonin Programme can address individual health concerns, such as stress, menopause, depression and exhaustion; How to stabilise your energy levels; The latest advice about herbal and dietary supplements. The Serotonin Programme is the most practical, relevant and easily undertaken health programme yet.The author synthesises 20 years of clinical experience and research information on nutrition neuroscience to bring women a useful tool for creating long term health improvements naturally.

It is hard to imagine today, but there was a time not so very long ago when America came perilously close to running out of food. Three years of World War I, European pestilence, international speculation, and the imbalance of American farming and processing interests had taken their toll on the globe's food supply. In the spring of 1917 President Woodrow Wilson became painfully aware that the projected output of American grain and meats would not meet domestic and allied needs for the coming year of the war as the United States entered the fray. Having made the fateful decision to enter the war, Wilson went on to assume even greater powers: the appointment of a czar who would, in effect, tell Americans what and how much they could eat.

It did not take long to identify the candidate for the job. Herbert Hoover, the self-made mining millionaire who coordinated emergency food relief services for Europe during the first three years of the war, returned to America a hero and accepted Wilson's invitation to manage American food. Hoover's personal credentials were impeccable: magnificent administrator, philanthropist, and friend of business. While Hoover the man was acceptable to the Senate, his mandate-outlined in legislation known as the Lever Act-was another matter. The Senate refused to accept price controls, and sent Hoover on his way to battle with what it believed were sufficient restraints.

When one takes the long view of this work, the third volume of Hoover's biography, what gradually dawns on the reader is the sense that Hoover, with an international sense of the size of the crisis, was prepared to execute war powers in ways that had not been seen since Lincoln. Neither the Senate nor the business community had truly taken the measure of this man, though biographer Nash strongly implies that Wilson knew exactly what he was doing and was pleased with the results. Hoover, for his part, saved the western world from starving with a three pronged attack: he essentially usurped the authority of several cabinet departments, he mobilized public opinion, and he stretched the Lever Act through bureaucratic legerdemain into a virtual Magna Carta.

If Congress had balked at price controls on staples such as wheat and pork, Hoover found another means to achieve the same end. Having calculated modest prices for food staples that would avoid inflation and speculation, Hoover found provisions in the Lever Act permitting him to issue government licenses to farmers, granaries, packinghouses, mills and even grocers. Those who refused to operate within the Hoover price structure were refused licenses. To attempt to do business without a license was risky, because Hoover, for all intents and purposes, was also acting secretary of transportation, controlling rail and water priorities. Unions, farmers, and particularly the meat packing trust howled, but Hoover had prepared for that eventuality.

Hoover's heavy-handed methods worked as well as they did because he had wisely joined food conservation to war fervor. One of his first acts as food administrator was a public awareness crusade, pitched specifically at women, to limit portions of food served at meals, to designate national meatless days, to establish new ratios of flours for breads, etc. Millions of households signed pledge cards to observe the Hoover guidelines, and for a time a "clean plate" ethic seized the country. In the face of this domestic crusade, the whining of Swift, Armor, Wilson, and other food producers over reduced profits seemed petty and even unpatriotic. There were a sizable number of Americans who found the entire concept hokey, but Hoover was able to hold together his pantry army just long enough to see through till the end of the war.

There were, of course, many factors Hoover could not control. The British were not pleased with Hoover's mandate that they buy up excess American pork and acquire a taste for it. The army demanded more shipping space for combat troops, limiting Hoover's capacity to export. The winter of 1918 was among the worst in American history, creating massive delays in rail and shipping traffic. And, curiously, the end of the war arrived sooner than Hoover had planned, causing a glut in food supplies. That the war ended when it did may have been a political blessing in disguise for Hoover, for his magnificent balancing act was beginning to crumble. Congress and industry could be caged only so long. But in his eighteen-month tenure the food czar had essentially done what he set out to do: feed the western world without interruption and speculation.

One immediate question is: how did Hoover get away with this? One gets the sense that a lot of government officials rolled over and played dead during Hoover's heyday, such as the Secretary of Agriculture, David Houston. One answer may be that while most officers of government were at least dimly aware of the magnitude of the crisis, they realized that to do what was necessary-usurp commercial powers to an unprecedented degree-would involve the political suicide of the perpetrator, and they were happy to oblige Hoover as he took the fall. Interestingly, Hoover never seemed to have considered his tenure a political risk. On the contrary, he evidently saw his government service as his emergence onto the American political stage, and of course events would show this to be fortuitous. In its description of this tenure of Hoover's public service, the book serves up questions for the volumes to follow: How did Hoover regain his credibility in with Republicans, and major business interests in particular, such that he could be nominated for the presidency in 1928? Another: how did Hoover's wartime experience impact his presidential management of the Depression? And finally, would America of the third millennium accept a "temporary czar" in a national crisis such as the unleashing of weapons of mass destruction? Put another way, is Hoover simply a historical anomaly or a paradigm for future crises?

I have met this lady and she is very engaging. Her book is a wealth of information on how to beat the anxiety that sometimes cripples us. She is refreshing, kind , and has been there herself. I highly reccomend this book to those of us who need a strong guide on how to beat the anxiety, blues, and trials of life today.

Depression is a devastating condition which immobilizes millions each year: that's why LIFTING DEPRESSION: A NEUROSCIENTIST'S HANDS-ON APPROACH TO ACTIVATING YOUR BRAIN'S HEALING POWER is so wide-ranging and important, recommended for both health libraries and general-interest lending collections alike. New research with rats (whose brains are similar to humans) leads to identification of a circuit in the human brain responsible for negative thinking and depression - and also shows how hands-on physical activities yield rewards and fight depression. Even knitting or gardening works to stimulate the body's own depression-fighting chemicals: LIFTING DEPRESSION is a solid move to individual freedom.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

Dr. Kantor has added immeasurably to the literature on depression with his latest book. This is the only book I know of that focuses not only on the big but also on the little things that mean a lot and represent some of the real issues why men get depressed. My friends who went for help for depression wound up getting two words out to their psychiatrists then getting medicated; or seeing someone who dealt with early experiences but not the here and now, or only handled the major losses and rejections but not those little things that stick in the craw and are really the route to big,deep, depressive disorder. This is the arena where Kantor fight depression, and what he has written should be read by all men (and women) who suffer from an affective disorder and want to know what is really causing it microscopically and how to enter that microscopic world of the depressed man they love and then take action to reduce its ravages.

This is an essential book for anyone considering lithium treatment for bipolar disorder (manic-depression) and also for anyone who is already taking lithium treatment. I used this book to decide whether to take lithium, and I have continued to refer to it over 23 years as questions have arisen during my lithium treatment. It has been invaluable. The book calls itself "A Practical Guide," and that is exactly what it is for the patient. It is clear, comprehensive, and accurate. It answers almost any question that one might have about treatment, side effects, risks, etc. The author is a well-known Danish psychiatrist who has had extensive experience with lithium treatment. He draws on research and on his own experience in answering questions about lithium treatment. He has a delightfully kind attitude toward patients, which makes reading the book a positive experience.

I can not believe this book is still in print! This book honestly had a life changing effect upon me. As a believer in the Christian faith I was seeking for guidance and enlightment after facing some very hard times. Although I do not agree with everything the book offered there are amazing principles that I began to apply in my own life which has helped me to conquer issues in my personal life, so very long ago. This is a definite read for anyone who feels like the weight of the world is upon them and not necessarily in a deep depression. The author should consider changing the title so that people who may be stuck with getting beyond the word depression will give it a chance.

Living in Storms: Contemporary Poetry and the Moods of Manic-Depression is an anthology of free-verse poetry collected from eighty contemporary poets who have been affected in some way by manic-depression, also known as bipolar disorder, a devastating condition known for its swings between extreme emotional highs and lows. An acutely vivid and unforgettable glimpse into the difficult world all too often experienced by creative figures. "Portrait Sketch": Women who had never enough / never for long enough- / tenterhooks then happiness / shrilled to hysteria, / lament, dullness- // watches from a distance / rain-bleached sky, lawns' / deepening with gloss- // a surface that returns incidents, / magnetic attractions, characterizations, / desires, her last heart / a midsummer pond / narrowed, glinting within leaves.

Ruth, a young girl growing up during the Great Depression, has trouble understanding why her mother always seems to see the positive side of bleak situations. "Count your lucky stars" constitutes Momma's inevitable reply to her two daughters as she teaches them how to handle life in the face of job loss, food insecurity, hand-me-down shoes from the neighbor, and the closing of the local school. When Ruth's father gets a new job far from home through President Roosevelt's Civilian Conservation Corps program, Momma counts her lucky stars that the family can pay the mortgage while Ruth sees his departure from home as another star that burns out. Only when Ruth takes the initiative to use her skills in addressing the needs of the youngsters around her does she begin to have a brighter outlook on life.

This outstanding book will help children to gain a richer exposure to principles that are crucial for a basic understanding of the economic world around them. The lessons about unemployment, scarcity, and recession contained in The Lucky Star are important building blocks toward achieving a solid grasp of economics. Teachers and parents can use the book's poignant illustrations and clear text to help children come to terms with potentially difficult economic times they may be experiencing themselves.