In the 1970s family doctors, social workers, researchers and administrators had been aware of the inadequacy of the response to drinking problems for some time. However, there had been no systematic examination of why such agents felt negatively about drinkers and disinclined to respond to them. Originally published in 1978, this book develops a radical new perspective on the prevalence and causes of drinking problems, combining reviews of historical and contemporary literature with the au...

This compassionate and insightful guide will demystify mental health issues and help anyone concerned about themselves or loved ones.Leading psychiatrist Dr Mark Cross, from the acclaimed ABC TV series 'Changing Minds', feels strongly that everyone should have easy access to information they can trust about common mental health problems, whether for themselves or to help family or friends. The result is this empowering guide, written with Dr Catherine Hanrahan, which aims to cut th...

Do your relationships tend to follow the same destructive pattern? Do you feel trapped by your family's expectations of you? Does your life seem overwhelmingly governed by jealousy or competitiveness or lack of confidence? In this ground-breaking book, clinical psychologist Oliver James shows that it is the way we were cared for in the first six years of life that has a crucial effect on who we are and how we behave. Nurture, in effect, shapes our very nature. James combines the latest sci...

A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLERMore people than ever before see themselves as addicted to, or recovering from, addiction, whether it be alcohol or drugs, prescription meds, sex, gambling, porn, or the internet. But despite the unprecedented attention, our understanding of addiction is trapped in unfounded 20th century ideas, addiction as a crime or as brain disease, and in equally outdated treatment.Challenging both the idea of the addict's "broken brain" and t...

**A powerful exposé of 12-step programs like Alcoholics Anonymous—and how this failed addiction treatment model came to dominate America.“A humane, science-based, global view of addiction . . . an essential, bracing critique of the rehab industry.” —Gabor Maté M.D., author of In The Realm of Hungry Ghosts**Alcoholics Anonymous has become so infused in our society that it is practically synonymous with addiction recovery. Yet the evidence shows that AA has only a 5–...

A manifesto about what's wrong with Australia's mental health system and a guidebook for how to treat it, by a neurotic shrink who lives it every day.Psychiatrist Dr Mark Cross has spent most of his adult life working in the mental health system. He also suffers from anxiety, as do three out of four Australians at some point in their lives, so he knows first-hand the challenges, successes and failures facing both patients and professionals. What he has discovered i...

Become your own mental health expertMental illness is too often portrayed with a sense of despair, as if it’s a life sentence. Nothing could be further from the truth. Virtually everyone improves with help, and most of the help is relatively easy to access.How do we define mental illness? What does a diagnosis mean? What should you ask your doctor before you begin treatment? Are there alternatives to medication? What does the research show actually works?

Very Short Introductions: Brilliant, Sharp, Inspiring Addiction is a subject which straddles public and personal interests; societal and criminal justice concerns; and family, social, and medical responses. It is a continuing area of uncertainty and concern for society and professionals trained in the field. This Very Short Introduction presents the basic facts about addiction: what it is, how and why it develops, how it is treated, and how society can respond to...

The definitive book on ethics for chemical dependency treatment professionals.The treatment of addiction as a biological, psychological, social, and spiritual disease requires a high standard of ethical knowledge and professional skill. This groundbreaking, reader-friendly guide to contemporary ethical issues informs and challenges health care professionals, students, and faculty with a thorough and compassionate examination of the dilemmas faced when providing car...

Politicians and the media tell us that people who take drugs, including alcohol or nicotine, cannot help themselves. They are supposedly victims of the disease of 'addiciton', and they need 'treatment'. The same goes for sex addicts, shopping addicts, food addicts, gambling addicts, or even addicts to abusive relationships.This theory, which grew out of the Temperance movement and was developed and disseminated by the religious cult known as Alcoholics Anonymous, has not been confi...

Unfortunately, domestic violence remains a fact of life for far too many people. The statistics tell us that one in four women is (or has been) abused by a partner in our society, and that some men are abused by their partners too. So, if not you – then this is happening to someone you know, right now. It is easy not to spot the signs, even when they are obvious, that someone we care about might be suffering in silence.  Anyone (professional or otherwise) who can offer space...

A powerful and important exploration of how addiction functions on social, psychological and biological levels, integrated with the experience of being an addict, from an acclaimed philosopher and former addict. What is addiction? Theories about what kind of thing addiction is are sharply divided between those who see it purely as a brain disorder, and those who conceive of it in psychological and social terms. Owen Flanagan, an acclaimed philosopher of mind and ethics, of...