Depression Books

I checked out three books on depression from my local library. After reading all three, this one seemed the best, so I bought a copy for my personal library. This book is great, I don't know why no one else has written a review. The Mayo Clinic is a well known medical research facility, so it is a credible source of medical information. The book is straight forward, easy to understand. It covers recognizing depression and the different treatments available. Since the book is by the Mayo Clinic and not sponsored by the pharmaceutical industry, you hear information that you normally would not hear. Such as the medical study that showed exercise was as effective a treatment for depression as pharmaceutical drugs. See page 113. I did not see that research in any of the books sponsored by drug companies.

Traditionally depression is viewed as a "loser's" illness, but the book presents depression from a vantage point that anyone can suffer from depression. It covers a personal story of a Medical Doctor who was overworked and fell into depression. Abraham Lincoln suffered from depression. Prior to Lincoln becoming President of the United States, he wrote to a close friend, "I am now the most miserable man living. If what I feel were equally distributed to the whole human family, there would be not one cheerful face on earth. Whether I shall ever be better, I cannot tell. I awfully forebode I shall not. To remain as I am is impossible. I must die or be better it appears to me."

I recommended this book.

Understanding the role of postnatal depression in Infant Development is of critical importance. The mediating role of maternal responsiveness is supported in various related research.

This is the best book of Franklin Roosevelt quotations. It contains a good mixture of casual remarks and more formal remarks. You get a good sense of the man personally. You also good a good sense of the history of the era: the Great Depression and World War II.

"Memory Lane" by Ainsworth and Reeves is a well documented autobiography of the life experiences of a young girl growing up in Louisiana in the 1920's and 1930's. Mrs. Ainsworth relates her keen and colorful recollection of people, places, and events of this era in an interesting and graphic manner. The book is free of "political correctness": it is a "must read" for those who seek historical knowledge of the actual lifestyle of Southern people. From her childhood to an adult, the book spans the Great Depression and World War II. It is a book that speaks of a time when the size of a person's heart meant more than the size of their bank account. This is a story of southern Americana at its best.

Karen Bellenir's Mental Health Disorders Sourcebook is an important reference outlining the basic symptoms of a variety of mental health conditions and providing a second edition which updates treatment options for all. A guide for this publisher's ever-expanding health resources references, Contents Guide To The Health Reference Series 60 Volumes, provides a list of the major topics, diseases and treatments included in these 60 volumes of works.

"..offer .. hope for the future..presents his views without bias.. chapters are thorough and informative without being technical.. segment on grief touched on all its stages from shock to denial, from bargaining to anger, from guilt to acceptance. That these schema affect 'just about everyone' is a fact - how their effects help to define mental illness is the facinating part. The author goes on to help the reader understand his/her schema in various ways..powerfully presents a first hand accountof his own process to not only understand his schema but also reducing the effects they played in his illness. Another important segment has to do with journaling..the details of each excercise and how it can be used on the road to recovery is very enlightening. Throughout the book he evokes moments of anger, sadness, love and a host of emotions on his road to recovery. The reader comes away with the feeling of wanting to know more about his life." From Psychiatric Rehabilitation Journal, published by Boston University, Vol. 28 No. 2 Fall 2004

The Meridian Two by Clayton L. Hogg is an enthusiastically recommended novel about farm families who toughed out the dust storms that ravaged Kansas in the Great Depression. From the taste of farm water (unique to each farm), to the ominous threat of impending war threatening to draw young men away from the family farm and plunge them into the lethal heat of combat, to the experiences arising from an earth-shaking faith of religious revival, The Meridian Two offers an historically accurate picture of what it was like to endure through tough times, clinging to hope for better days ahead. Also very highly recommended is Clayton Hogg's The Meridian One, the first novel in the "Meridian" saga.

If you or a family member have suffered with the disorder called bipolar, this book expresses the emotional roller coaster and pain through poetry to shine light and dispel darkness. Very well done-a recommended read.

After reading this book, I got a small book to keep track of my moods and my blood sugar, then started developing ways to avoid stress and strong emotions (the bad ones, that is). It is a cure-all, but it does help, which is all I can ask of any program. It has also put me in a much better mood. You don't have to be a diabetic to appreciate this book.

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