Mental Health Books

i really enjoyed this book, i'm not even finished with it yet but some of the quality of the book was taken away by the poor editing! some of the chapters were missing entire words at the end! some of the sentences were gramatically incorrect and i kept reading them over and over saying...that's not right...we don't laid down, we lie down! stuff like that really took away from the book because it was a fantastic story. i really enjoyed the element of faith and how there are good vampires and bad vampires etc. it was realistic, like...if there WERE vampires, this is how it would be. either way, i would definitely advise this story being read, just please have an updated version!

This is a great read.

Great, because it has a common sense idea that is missing from most stories of this genre.

The genre, "supernatural horror," ultimately goes to a war between good and evil (yep, heaven and hell), because these would be the source of power in the story. So the ultimate source of power is on another level--not the level the story is about (our everyday homes and neighborhoods). But hey, the vampires, zombies, and other things have been around for a long time. And we are still here, too. Something we don't usually see in these stories must be equalizing the landscape, or else ordinary humans would have been gone a long time ago. What equalizes a vampire? They have supernatural powers, so regular folks are out-gunned. In any war, if the sides are not matched, the war does not last long. In the literature vampires, zombies, et al., have been around a long time. So what holds them in check? Doesn't have to be a "good" version of the evil creature--just something with power and method of its own that it can use to engage the enemy. That's war. Even a supernatural one would have to have this equivalence of power.

There are popular movies about renegades that have reason to hate the supernatural villains, but vampires alone would have over-run the world before most of these popular characters started. Besides, these stories are usually more about special-effects or martial arts or something--not really horror stories but more like action-adventure-martial arts-horror. Whatever. There's only one movie I've seen recently that is an exception to this, "Constantine." But since this isn't a plug for movies, let's move on... ;)

"Night Biters" revitalizes the role of the church in this type of story! Instead of the lame "Exorcist" angle in which the demons have power that is clearly uncontrollable, here the war could have lasted this long. God is on our side through supernatural beings at this level. That's what I was referring to before, when I said that ordinary humans would otherwise be gone. In run-of-the-mill horror stories a recurring theme is that the heroes are so outmatched they have to sacrifice themselves--and leave this plane of existence--in order to win. So in time they'd all have moved on, leaving us here. There must be something more powerful that fights here and wins often enough to balance the war against evil. This story touches on this with style; it's a story told intelligently in a way that makes sense.

So is it scary? Yeah, because the writer tells the tale in a way that evokes vivid images of what the characters are going through as all of these peculiar things happen. It's not a predictable story. I found myself liking some, and wondering if they'd make it...but it's war. Casualties are inevitable. How does it end?

Check it out! It's a great read!

Adrian Harper's Night Biters offers some fresh ideas to the fantasy genre. The magical compact disc is as effective a talisman as a ring or trinket in other period work of fiction. It also solidifies the effectiveness of hip hop in a way the reader will find appealing. Graffiti spray painting is also featured, skateboarding is taken to new heights and I will never see using a Super Soaker the same way.

The writer skillfully depicts the story's teens as youth who regret some of the poor choices they have made and the impact those decisions have on their families while ably avoiding stereotypes. He also offers some interesting views on vampirism viewing it more to an addiction than a spiritual damnation reminding the reader that there is always hope. Filled with clever twist and surprises, Night Biters is a delight.

This is no R L Stien! This book has a diverse group of hip hop characters from the Bay Area that are actully intelligent and not based on stereotypes. The book has teens in the Bay dealing with regular teenage issues, as well as vampires gang violence. The characters are cool, there's African American's, Vietnamese, Latino's, Filippino's, Jews, Goths, ravers, taggers and possibly dirty cops and a guy who eats a rat. If you LOVE hip hop, or you're from the Bay Area you need to read this book. I love Night Biters because it's real hip hop, it's not derogatory or dogmatic, it's just real and entertaining.

The book is written in the style of how Traffic and Crash were made as movies. A ton of individual stories, all intertwined into one explosive plot. Read this book, you won't be disappointed. The story is based on actual events in 1999 leading up to the change of the century in the backdrop of the worlds most integrated group of cities. Two teens come here to spend the summer and find that some of thier friends have become vampires and are dealing with personal issues like abusive stepfathers, drugs, gangs and police (damn taggers!). Doooooood read it!!!

Night Biters is my favorite book, I visited the Bay Area and have saw the old Montgomery Ward building. It was too scary a building for me to enter but not a vampire. I also like that us Pinoy's finally got some recognition and respect in a book. Dragonbrush is my dog I liked the way he and Tioni looked out for one another and how he showed that he really appreciated her. Jamilah is cool but too stuck up for my taste, I wouldn't want my sister taking all my favorite clothes just because she wants them. But in the end they all looked out for one another.

As an oncology social worker, the social therapeutic approach developed by Dr. Fred Newman, informs my conversations with hundreds of people each month, as I help patients and families with cancer to live life fully, in the face of their fear and pain.
A riveting and radical challenge to the basic assumptions of Western philosophy and psychology, Psychological Investigations is a series of supervisory conversations, set in a clear conceptual framework that therapists-in-training and experienced clinicians have with Fred Newman.

Newman, a methodologist, psychotherapist and teacher extraordinaire, does not focus on individual problems and pathology. He provides no answers. Rather he invites those who study with him, as well as his readers, to engage in an unscientific, performatory investigation of human life. Dive in, he encourages, to a learning challenge that turns everything upside down - how we think about emotionality and truth, what a group is, how the activity of giving helps cancer patients, what it means to make demands on clients without being coercive, and much more. Get to know Fred Newman - his thinking, his values, his sensibilities, his capacity for intimacy in the service of human development. Psychological Investigations is a dialogic approach to the teaching of this radical social/cultural methodology that I think has the potential to take us out of the fly bottle of emotional pain and social crisis that pervades life in the 21st century. If you let yourself be touched, Psychological Investigations can impact profoundly on your therapeutic practice and your life. It is a must read for clinicians and healthcare professionals, students of philosophy, and anyone in despair about the social and moral crises of our times.

As a thirty year veteran social group worker specializing in positive youth development, I radically transformed my clinical practice, through training in the social therapy approach to human development and community.

Social group work, with its practice of forming homogeneous groups around a common presenting problem, its focus on stages of group development and group tasks was very helpful to me early in my career but of limited use in supporting inner city youth to develop in the context of a school-based mental health program.

Fred Newman looks at the world through a different lens. He does not see individuals, rather he sees groups. While he does not deny the existence of the individual, he sees the group as the fundamental unit of human development. This way of seeing has profound implications for practice. The group, not the individual, is the unit that learns and develops.

This passionate belief in a new way of thinking about what a group is has informed my practice as the director of an inner city high school mental health program, "Let's Talk About It."
Young people with a range of emotional and social problems are invited to become partners in creating their own mental health program. With a ten year track record of success, young people are becomming choicemakers as they graduate or tansfer to a new school to go on and take responsibility for their lives.

"Psychological Investigations" is an adventure through uncharted psychological terrain. A sure-footed guide, Newman is far more interested in helping you make the most of the journey than he is getting you where you think you need to go. Whether pursuing issues of creativity, individuality, truth, knowledge, identity, group, crisis, health or alienation, his ability to play around with language and his passion for helping people to grow (even as he recognizes how difficult that is!) is lovingly captured in these conversations. A must read for anyone interested in change.

Psychological Investigations is a book not to be missed! Don't be fooled by the subtitle "Clinician's Guide to Social Therapy" this is a book for anyone who wants to transform their life!

Psychological Investigations gave me a bird's eye view of a therapeutic approach called "social therapy." As a long-time therapy patient of various disciplines, I was curious to know what makes it different from other approaches. It satisfied my curiosity by sharing actual conversations between the founder of social therapy Fred Newman, and therapists.

Based on the premise that "building the group" is the cure, social therapy is a methodology that goes against the individualistic pull of the world. But how does it work?
In the chapter called "Mundane Creativity" Newman talks about individuals in a therapy group coming together each week from all across the city...." people are exceedingly individuated; everyone has had a different week, and yet we come together as a group. The interesting and fascinating question is, what can we create together in order to make this therapy session a valuable event? What can we build?" That's the question, and from what I can tell, the answer is the cure!

--Melissa J. Meyer

Much of the current writings in psychology and organizational development revolve around `positive psychology' and `emotional intelligence'. In this book, Fred Newman - the founder of social therapy - offers what I consider to be a more evolved, challenging and vital understanding of human/group activity. As a physician, group therapist and healthcare consultant, I firmly believe that this approach offers leaders, managers, practitioners and consultants in healthcare, education, business and politics an inspiring new approach to developing themselves and the people with whom they work.

Edited by Dr. Newman's colleagues, Lois Holzman and Rafael Mendez, "Psychological Investigations" is a book of dialogues between Fred Newman and his students (mostly therapists-in-training). Newman's postmodern words and vision are transformative. In keeping with this non-descriptive, non-objectifying, and non-assuming methodology for human growth and development, these dialogues are not talk about some thing as much as they are the thing itself - a performance of social therapy. One gets the sense in reading this book that Dr. Newman and his colleagues are creating social therapy right before our eyes. This, to my understanding, is the essence of this performatory methodology, which is not based on 'knowing' or an accumulation of knowledge but on creative, dialectic, group activity - building a group through the questioning and dialogic challenging of assumptions.

A Stanford-trained philosopher, Newman draws heavily from the philosophic works of Karl Marx and Ludwig Wittgenstein and from the early 20th century developmental psychologist Lev Vgotsky. Newman's understandings resonate with the postmodern writings of Ken Gergen, Harlene Anderson and Richard Rorty.

Those unfamiliar with Dr. Newman's previous books may wonder what a philosopher could teach us about `real' life - about human behavior, growth and development. In Part I, editors Lois Holzman and Raphael Mendez answer this question by providing the reader with the social, political, and intellectual history of Newman's development as the founder and leader of the social therapy movement.

In particular, I find Lois Holzman's writings to represent the most cutting edge, uncompromising and intellectually rigorous thinking in the developmental psychology literature. In my opinion, Dr. Holzman is years ahead of her modernistic, behaviorally-oriented colleagues. I would highly recommend her articles and co-authored texts with Fred Newman to anyone who has a serious interest in human behavior in any context - be it organizational, family, education, therapy, corporate business, or politics - and to anyone who has a serious interest in their own growth and development.

I was lent this book last night and finished reading it this afternoon. I am 31 years old and was diagnosed with breast cancer this month. While getting ready to have my second surgery and embark on a whole world of unknowns, I have been searching for a way to navigate through this experience.

This was it. I am going to be sure that everyone I know who wants to truly understand breast cancer and what I am going through and going to be going through reads this book.

This is the BEST book I have read about Breast Cancer - and I've read a lot!

When I was diagnosed with Breast Cancer last year I went through the range of emotions most women go through - it was such a shock to my system. I'm still healing - but this book helped me so much on my journey - I love it. Ordered three for my friends and I'm just about to order another two -'cause I gave my one away and another friend of mine has just been diagnosed with breast cancer.

If you are faced with this challenge - please don't miss this book! I was overwhelmed with all the information I had to wade through - including all the books I read - I really wanted to understand what was happening to me and the significance of it in my life.

Actually I thought my journey was over.. but sitting with the women in this book, I've come to understand there really is a healing power in the universe that loves and sustains us - no matter what happens in our lives.

This book should be in EVERY hospital and clinic library but I've never seen it there. Gotta go and order some more!

With blessings for your healing journey. :-))

Susan Kuner, et al. have managed to craft the quintessential cancer guide by women for women. I wish I'd had this book at hand when my best friend was diagnosed in 1995. So many of the hard questions she asked were thoughtfully and brilliantly answered by the four women who shared their personal experiences and the answers they found in this marvelous book.

Women approach illness and the possibility of death with a completely different mindset than their male counterparts. Going to war against a disease does not come naturally for most women, and the gentle, philosophical thoughts offered by Kuner, et al should be required reading with any woman facing a diagnosis of breast cancer.

Bravo! Marvelous writing, and even better advice. Thank you for creating such a worthwhile project.

When my sister was diagnosed with breast cancer several weeks ago, I began the search to find books that offered more than just descriptions of symptoms and treatments. While those are useful for her for now, I needed something more. This book was beautiful--and I would recommend it for anyone. Each woman is in a different stage, has taken a different route, and comes from a different spiritual perspective. The words were healing and I know I will refer back to them time and again. Each writer truely gave a gift.

I spent all of 1999 dealing with breast cancer. Aside from Dr. Susan Love's Breat Book, this was the singularly most helpful book I read, even though I read it after I was through with breast cancer, if ever one is. It was direct, personal, spoke concretely from experience, and rang true, even though each person's experience differs. These women offer a great gift amidst the large selection of cancer books.Cannot recommend highly enough, and friends, I read a heck a of a lot of cancer books this year!

While I am more of a fan of 5HTP than St Johns Wort,this book goes beyond the plant. This book does a great deal to talk about depression and teach people natural ways of improving their minds and lives.

As the Alternative Health guru at Lifetips.com, I am constantly looking for books and products to share with visitors to my site that can help take the mystery or confusion out of alternative/natural healing. This is definitely one of those items.

If you're looking for an easy-to-understand and well-researched book on a natural approach to dealing with depression, then this is the book for you. Dr. Cass shares case histories many might identify with and she has done her homework in deftly explaining the important factors one must understand to deal effectively with depression. She also provides great tips on nutritional steps and lifestyle changes that must go hand-in-hand if one is serious about defeating depression. This wonderful book CAN offer help to those struggling to get a handle on dealing with depression naturally.

I have found this common sense guide to using & understanding St. John's Wort invaluable. This ancient herbal remedy for lifting mood without the high cost of prescription drugs & their often debilitating side effects is the best treatment available for those who will follow Dr. Cass's guidelines. I have shared this book with friends & family. I can't think of a better gift for loved ones who needlessly suffer from Depression!

This is a great guide to the healing effects of an ancient medicinal plant that has gained great popularity in the last decade based on scientific findings. The author first looks at the problem of depression by discussing the biochemistry of the brain and the relationship between mental and physical health.

St John's Wort (hypericum) offers a gentle way of treating depression and other nervous disorders. Cass discusses the scientific proof of the efficacy of this herb as measured against synthetic antidepressants. The research is indeed encouraging and the plant's mild side effects provide a great advantage over the synthetic medicines.

The author explores the correct dosage for various problems like sleep and seasonal affective disorders (SADs) whilst pointing out the herb's anti-viral, anti-bacterial, anti-inflammatory and immune enhancing properties. Besides the well-known hypericin, St John's Wort also contains a host of other phytochemicals that play vital roles in protecting cells from damage, in repairing damage and in regeneration.

These ingredients include GABA, carotenoids, flavonoids, hyperforin, limonene, lutein, phytosterols, quercetin, quercetrin, rutin and xanthones. All parts of the plant, the flowers, leaves, stem and the oil are used in healing. One of the possible side effects of taking St John's Wort is sensitivity to the sun in certain people.

The book includes a bibliography, a natural medicine resources list, a protocol for switching a patient from an anti-depressant to St John's Wort and the regulatory status of St John's Wort in various countries. It concludes with an index. I also recommend Mind Boosters by Ray Sahelian and The A to Z Guide to Supplements by Phyllis A Balch for further information on herbal medicines.

I bought this book (and a bottle full of St. John's Wort!) after two deaths in my immediate family pushed me over the edge of depression. It talks about the different forms of depression, how St. John's Wort helps with the symtoms and who should or shouldn't try the herb. It gives a lot of study cases of people Dr. Cass worked with and also offers some statistical information on research. All of it is put in a very readable and enjoyable form and I finished the book in a couple of bedtime reading sessions (definitely important when you're reading about something that you hope and pray will help you with your current state of depression!) I highly recommend both the book and the herb to anyone thinking they may suffer from depression.

I am not fond of "self-help" books, which always become so quickly redundant, even when they make sense. This book, however, really hit home at a number of points regarding finding meaning in existence, supporting creativity, and understanding addiction from a different perspective (at least for me). I even went online and looked up creativity coaches in my area! For more of my rants, raves, and recommendations, please check out my book blog at allthepage.today.com

Finally, I found a book that might actually help me and some of my dearest loved ones. I adore this book; and would love to meet the author. This book is for every "artist" who struggles w/ the "blues" or depression, yet knows that traditional medicine and therapy won't help much. I'm going to revisit this review when I'm done w/the book (I'm only about 1/4 into it); but until then, I'll just say, I finally feel I'm on the right track. Even in just the first chapter, I knew, this book was for me. Even my husband picked it up and said, "Wow. This is so you!" (in a good way). I can't wait to share it w/ others that I know are troubled/plagued w/ similar issues. Hope this helps you in your search...

We all know the story of the brilliant yet tortured Van Gogh. His mind blowing creativity was only matched by bouts of deeply destructive depression. We've also become accustomed to hearing gossip about rock stars, artists, actors, and writers whose drug use, alcoholism, or suicide make the evening news. It seems the pairing of creativity and self destruction is a natural one.

The Van Gogh Blues doesn't seek to break this stereotype. Instead, it looks to examine the reason why creative people tend to have such extreme highs and lows. The answer seems so obvious that most of us probably would never have thought of it.

People who create tend to put all of their effort into their work. I do it myself, I can sit for hours and just type fully immersed in my own words and thoughts. Having such clarity of focus and such a single minded drive is fantastic.

However, once the project is complete, the creating is done. Suddenly, there is no more purpose. The individual is suddenly lost without any sort of direction. I can relate. I always know it's time to get back to my writing when I start to get depressed. Over time, I've learned that I have to a project. I have to create.

Eric visited Rainmaker's Prayers blog during his virtual tour for his newly released book "The Van Gogh Blues: The Creative Person's Path Through Depression." Shinan asked some difficult questions and Eric gave some brilliant answers that we feel are important enough to share with the world. So I've included them in this customer review.



Shinan Barclay : In the face of global warming/global cooling, Eric Maisel's book: "The Van Gogh Blues ," inspired me to compile an anthology entitled "Rainmaker's Prayers,Align with Global Harmony." How do I encourage clients and contributors to find and create meaning in their life?

Eric Maisel: By helping them make the paradigm shift from finding meaning to making meaning. There is no meaning to find; it is not lost. There is only meaning to make; meaning is a choice. Once people really understand
this distinction, they realize that they know enough already to make these choices and they can begin to stand behind their own meaning
decisions.

Shinan Barclay: With climate change and the extinction of thousands of species, many people feel hopeless and helpless. How do you encourage people to find meaning among the uncertainty and confusion of evironmental upheavals?

Eric Maisel: By reminding them that they have a life to lead and they can lead it authentically or inauthentically. They are not in charge of the
universe--no one is. They are in charge of only and precisely their own
life. They can make their life a thing of moral beauty by their choices or they can watch more television. Until the world actually ends, we have
the obligation to take charge of our life and aim it in the direction
of our choosing; that is what "making ethics" means.

Shinan Barclay: Some data says that major corporations control the media, i.e. television, newspapers and magazine, and that the American population is spoon-fed and numbed by "corporate propaganda." How can we create meaning in an inauthentic world?

Eric: Only with great difficulty--but life is difficulty. There never was
a guarantee that life would be easy. You think through what would
amount to right action in this kind of environment--where you can make the
most difference or any difference--and then you step in that
direction, recognizing that you can't alter the world's configuration, All you can do is make yourself proud by your own efforts. You heroically
try; that's it, period.

Rainmaker's Prayers, Align with Global Harmony

With so many books being published about creativity, it may be repetitive to read about the same old reflections and the same suggestions to nurture your abilities. Eric Maisel has found a refreshing way to address creative people's issues. With the Van Gogh Blues, he presents his approach to deal with the anxiety and depression creative persons tend to feel at different points in their lives.

While he doesn't shun the medical take on depression, he brings an existential understanding of the situation. This view expresses that a creator that repeatedly makes meaning, hold on to that meaning in his life (life's work meaning and meaningful day-to-day life)will have a better chance of dealing with an inclination to depression.

Eric Maisel covers the field as to how meaning can be created using other's artists biographies, emails from contemporary creators and his experience as a creativity coach (which might be the coolest job in the world, I think). The book's question could be: As creatives, how can we create meaning in life? This way, the books appeals to more than only the depressed artists. To top it off, the author writes in a clear but not-dumbed-down way, ideal to the sophisticated, intellectual reader who appreciates good writing.

Even for a person who constantly reads on creativity and life purpose, I found this book brings new ideas and a fresh take on what assails the creative person.

Extremely well written and easy to read. Reading this book was definitely a big turning point in my life. Highly recommended.

A wise and reader-friendly distillation of all the technical information about the psyche that you always wanted to know but were afraid, or just too busy, to read. Nina Danielson's vast experience and understanding of what makes us tick, written in a colloquial style with humor, personal examples and wonderful analogies serve as a guide to achieving better self esteem and healthier relationships. It's right for the uninitiated and for those who have been in therapy alike. And her chapter summaries provide great reinforcement of the lessons learned. I can think of several people on my Xmas gift list that I plan to buy it for.

This book is very logical, down-to-earth, and almost too easy to just read through. Its real value is exactly what it claims: its chapters, with summary, warning signs, and coping strategies, are perfect for jarring our memories toward clear responses during the frequent times of confusion we all feel.

Great book for anyone who wishes to learn more about themselves.
The author is witty, bright, intelligent and very honest in her writings. This book gave me an deep understanding of myself under today's life pressures. The author has an uncanny nack of identifying our universal issues and everyday common sense solutions. Great read and shows the author's wonderful sense of humor. When is the next book coming out???. I could see this book used as a basis for a tv series.

What a relief to find a self help book that actually provides a usable method of self help! I devoured this book as I would a witty Sedaris, finding myself in the stories and feeling comforted by the author's earthy analogies for formerly shaming and clinically inaccessible material. It is refreshing to have the example of courageous self revelation, demystifing and humanizing the therapeutic process both in and out of the therapy hour. I found myself being led from the commonly held idea of a prison of dysfunction to a glimmer of pride and hope at the strength of spirit a child posesses to survive their own version of "The Streets of Laredo". In one easy read, it is possible to graduate from the self judging title of "walking wounded" to the simple truth of the title, "worried well". Carry this book with you and refer to it often. A must read.

As parents we know they are unusual in their intensity and rigidity but we also sense our children do not necessarily have a disorder. We see them as eccentric, sensitive, thinkers who feel deeply. Pediatricians and mental health professionals often find they fit the criteria for Aspergers, ADHD, Anxiety or other diagnoses. But DO they really have these? Barbara Probst gives us answers for how to approach and support our challenging and often very gifted youngsters who need us to understand them, not change them. She shows us practical strategies for learning about ways in which we can work with their temperaments - especially when they are different from our own. This book is a very important contribution to the field and the children will some day thank her for writing it.

I was very excited to read Barbara Probst's book and to see the focus on our children's characteristics, rather than a slew of diagnostic conditions--the "alphabet" kids. After reading endless parenting books which set out discipline techniques which only work for a short time, this book instead helps parents look at their children as people and try to understand their specific needs and temperments. I often catch myself engaging in a dispute with my challenging son, and using Barbara's techniques I am able to take a step back and realize that he has a strong need that is interfering with what I view as a simple request. Once I change my mindset, I can often avoid a huge blowup and have him ultimately cooperative, even if it takes a few extra minutes or a little extra effort. This book can bring big changes and improvements in the lives of families with challenging children.

I started reading Barbara's book the other night and I stayed up WAY too late reading and reading and reading. What a relief to find an approach to undestanding and appreciating my very difficult little boy. Barbara's approach to temperament and to understanding the core character traits of a difficult child is really refreshing and so OPTOMISTIC. I am already recommending this book to everyone I know who is struggling with their children, and let's be honest, who isn't!!!!

With insightful explanations and easy-to-apply tips, this book is a valuable tool for parents. Probst provides strategies that can't help but improve the quality of life for both child and parent. When the Labels Don't Fit is a book that can -- and should -- be shared with family, teachers and others who are important in a child's life.
Amy Price
Executive Director
SENG

As a parent of a challenging child with a high IQ and a patient of Barbarba Probst, I am grateful for actual solutions, actual strategies I have learned from "When the Labels Don't Fit". For example, the backup plan. I only wish it were available years ago when my child was misdiagnosed as having PDD. With Barbara Probst help, as parents we learned it was us who needed to do most of the work to help guide our child. We focused on specific personality traits, in my son's case, perfectionism and inflexibility. With Barbara's tools and advice my son went from having a few meltdowns a day to maybe one a week.

This book delivers- well written + clear + suitable for those not in the mental health/medical fields yet does not oversimplify/dumb down. If you are wondering whether medicine may be needed for your child or client, or if you are concerned with the state of psychiatry + medicine today, this book is a must read.

As a child psychiatrist who works with children, adults and families in much the same way as Dr. Kalikow, and as one who is all too familiar with the "thorny" kinds of issues which can block parents and or their cihldren from benefitting from the therapeutic process and to then go on and experience real healing, I am very grateful to him for this book.

"Your Child in the Balance" is a highly readable and easily digested source of information for parents who are faced with the daunting task of obtaining the best help for their children who struggle with emotional and behavioral problems. In an age where so many practioners in child psychiatry seem to have become almost single mindedly focused on the use of pharmacologic agents to treat, if not "cure", our children, using medicines which often do offer both the potential for relief for so many problems as well as risks, and with a media which often fails to provide an appropriate perspective on the complex issues involved in such forms of treatment, it has become increasingly difficult for parents to know who to turn to and who to trust when a child is troubled and in need of "professional help". Knowing when medicine is appropriate and when not, as well as what other therapeutic modalities a parent can expect from child psychiatrists and other "mental health" providers, are examples of the information one can expect to find in this book. He handles these and a host of other related issues in a clear, thoughtful and sensitive, yet straightfoward, manner.

Dr. Kalikow does an admirable job of presenting timely and relevant issues, filling some of what I consider to be a psychoeducational void with much needed light.

Richard A. Flamberg, M.D.
South Salem, New York

Your Child in the Balance by Kevin Kalikow, a pediatric psychiatrist addresses the dilemma that parents face when deciding whether ir not to use medicine to treat their child's psychiatric disorder. Dr. Kalikow opens by searching for the answers to two questions. Where do we draw the line between function and dysfunction in defining pediatric mental illness? When and how do we decide to treat these illnesses with medications?

The book defines the most common disorders and describes the medications used to treat them. The text is well peppered with detailed case histories. Dr. Kalikow's voice, in this book as in his clinical practice, is clear, coherant and engaging. Most parents will find one or more vignettes which resonate with similarities to their child's behavior and struggles. We see children whose disorders are mild and others whose symptoms are extremely distressing to them and impact significantly and negatively on their families and classmates. In these latter cases, we are shown the impact of pharmacologic treatment.

Many of my pediatric patients have benefitted from Dr. Kalikow's psychiatric care which is remarkable for depth of understanding and respectful perserverance with even the most challenging patients. This book will serve as a guide to other families searching for the right paths for the treatment of their children.

Harriet J. Blumencranz, MD, Goldens Bridge, NY

Dealing with a child's illness in any form is always difficult and emotionally draining, but when it comes to less tangible psychological disorders, the acknowledgment of the condition and the subsequent choice of treatment for our children are among the most difficult of all medical issues a parent must deal with.

The shift from Freudian therapy to pharmacological treatment of children is new to many of us, and I was admittedly a skeptic and needed a lot of information and understanding. Dr. Kalikow's book was by far the best treatment of any such parenting issue I've ever read.

His style of writing - while suffused with an extraordinary amount of well-organized information - is engaging and gentle, and in my case, managed to address almost all of the questions I had on the subject.

By presenting scores of individual case vignettes, along with the arguments both for and against various types of treatments, their effects, potential side-effects, time scales, and long-term considerations, Dr. Kalikow's book provided me with a substantial tool with which to deal with problems "in my own back yard."

There's a lot of hand-holding in his narratives, and in some cases Dr. Kalikow's easy-going manner may seem like he's addressing an audience of adolescents. But when it comes to handling our children, perhaps we can all benefit from being treated in this way, with a touch on the shoulder and the reassurance that the understanding of these disorders in chldren is still new to everyone, and their treatments are even newer.

Bravo and thanks to Dr. Kalikow for providing a very useful and engaging body of information.

A thoughtful and helpful book for a complex subject. Dr. Kalikow addresses the decision making process of the parents, the child and the health care professional when choosing how to address the needs of their child. It is written clearly, with humor, compassion and tenderness. I believe parents will be able to make a more educated decision after reading this book.

I know I didn't pay alot for this book, but I felt that it was a total waste of money. Each page is one sentence and a picture and it certainly did not contain any profound suggestions for healthy living (drink water?).

This book makes complete and total sense. It inspired and motivated me to start taking better care of myself.

I really enjoyed reading this book. If we all applied the principles in this book we would all be eating healthy and feeling great! An excellent source of inspiration. Loved the photos too!

This is a great gift book written with simplicity, wisdom and good sense. Unless you are perfect and already implementing all the steps in this book, then it is sure to provide you with the motivation to try harder to look after yourself.

All of Angela Coldwell's books are great gifts. Her photographs match the literature beneath each photo helping to remind you of what is important in life.

11th Hour Miracles is a compelling tale of how to survive a difficult medical ordeal and how faith, and belief in God, can pull you through tremendous adversity. You feel like you're struggling with the author through the labyrinthine and beguilingly difficult process of fighting cancer, plus you learn excellent tips on how to negotiate such a journey. But the real story is how faith in God can conquer everything. An excellent book!!!

Analisa is a woman of remarkable determination, faith and strength. I first met Analisa when she and Brian moved to our area shortly after completing her transplant and we worked together for several years in our church. My greatest joy was watching her regain strength followed by her and Brian receiving their two baby boys into their family. It has been a difficult journey for Analisa, but if you knew her, you would understand how and why she survived, as she is "tiny but mighty". This book is a great narrative and would be an inspiration to anyone who must undergo a bonemarrow transplant or any other difficult medical procedure. Where there is faith there is hope--and miracles. Well written and inspiring.

Analisa is a modern day hero with her strength and faith inspiring all of us to conquer our personal trials and heartaches in life. Her story and determination will always be a guide and inspiration to me throughout my life. Thank you Analisa!!

Anna's account of her ordeal is uniquely her own. Her account is pitch perfect-- an honest and uniquely personal telling of her grueling struggle both to live and to reclaim her life. She is everyman, or woman as the case might be, tempored in the crucible of personal struggle against overwhelming seemingly incontestable circumstance.

I must tell you that I know Anna and Brian personally, I know about her struggle with cancer and her effort to write about it. I often wondered if the world needed one more survivor book. If so, this is that book. You won't need to know them going in because you'll soon get to know them through their own eyes and in your own heart. You'll know yourself a little better too. Just be prepared to read for a while because once you start, you won't put it down. Paul Nielsen

This book is one of a kind! As amazing as it is riveting, the story Analisa tells of her journey through her bone marrow transplant will leave you breathless and unable to put it down. More thrilling and devastating than fiction ever can be, this autobiography will remind you of the many blessings you have in your life!