As human migration brings an ever more diverse range of people, cultures and beliefs into contact, Western medical systems must adapt to cater for the different approaches it encounters towards illness, the body, gender, mental health and death.Based upon training courses taught by the author to staff at hospitals, mental health professionals, and on degree courses, this complete resource provides an essential foundation for understanding the complex and manifold approaches to medi...

Can You Learn to Be Happy?YES . . . according to the teacher of Harvard University’s most popular and life-changing course. One out of every five Harvard students has lined up to hear Tal Ben-Shahar’s insightful and inspiring lectures on that ever-elusive state: HAPPINESS.HOW?Grounded in the revolutionary “positive psychology” movement, Ben-Shahar ingeniously combines scientific studies, scholarly research, self-help advice, and spiritual enlightenme...

If you are like many others living with borderline personality disorder (BPD), you know what it’s like to be overwhelmed by intense and fluctuating emotions; to have difficulty with relationships; and to constantly struggle with troubling thoughts and behaviors. BPD can be especially difficult to treat, though there are ways to gain control over your symptoms and live a happier, healthier life.Expanding on the core skill of dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), Mindfulness for Bo...

**A riveting first-hand account of a physician who's suddenly a dying patient, In Shock "searches for a glimmer of hope in life’s darkest moments, and finds it.” —The Washington PostDr. Rana Awdish never imagined that an emergency trip to the hospital would result in hemorrhaging nearly all of her blood volume and losing her unborn first child. But after her first visit, Dr. Awdish spent months fighting for her life, enduring consecutive major surgeries a...

My Name is Lillian and I'm an Alcoholic (and an Atheist) is one side of a conversation about sobriety from a secular perspective. In a series of short, fun, "warts and all" essays, Lillian describes how she uses the tools of Alcoholics Anonymous to build a better life without dependence on God or a Higher Power. Anyone looking for help, but uncomfortable with AA's use of Judeo-Christian spirituality will find a refreshing take on sobriety and life.

Can the way in which we relate to others seriously affect our health? Can understanding those attachments help health care providers treat us better? In Love, Fear, and Health, psychiatrists Robert Maunder and Jonathan Hunter draw on evidence from neuroscience, stress physiology, social psychology, and evolutionary biology to explain how understanding attachment – the ways in which people seek security in their close relationships – can transform patient outcomes.Using att...

Every day can be an ordeal for families struggling with the difficult, moody, "impossible" behavior that may point to childhood depression or bipolar disorder. Effective help for kids does exist, but it often requires a customized combination of medication, therapy, coping skills, and support. From esteemed clinician and researcher Dr. Mary Fristad and fellow treatment expert Dr. Jill Goldberg Arnold, this indispensable book explains how treatment works and what additional steps parents ca...

The explosive story of the discovery and development of psychiatric medications, as well as the science and the people behind their invention, told by a riveting writer and psychologist who shares her own experience with the highs and lows of psychiatric drugs.Although one in five Americans now takes at least one psychotropic drug, the fact remains that nearly seventy years after doctors first began prescribing them, not even their creators understand exactly how o...

What is known about Aboriginal mental health and mental illness, and on what basis is this 'knowing' assumed? This question, while appearing simple, leads to a tangled web of theory, method, and data rife with conceptual problems, shaky assumptions, and inappropriate generalizations. It is also the central question of James Waldram's Revenge of the Windigo.This erudite and highly articulate work is about the knowledge of Aboriginal mental health: who generates it; how it i...

Lunacy, the legendary notion of minds unhinged by the moon, continues to captivate the popular imagination. Although it violates the assumptions of modern science and psychiatry, such belief remains common among mental health workers. Furthermore, several studies have found a small, unexplained correlation between behaviour and the lunar cycle. The book is divided into two parts. It begins with a historical account of the lunacy concept, followed by an investigation of hypothetical mechani...

Gaming the language of addiction treatmentScripting Addiction takes readers into the highly ritualized world of mainstream American addiction treatment. It is a world where clinical practitioners evaluate how drug users speak about themselves and their problems, and where the ideal of "healthy" talk is explicitly promoted, carefully monitored, and identified as the primary sign of therapeutic progress. The book explores the puzzling question: why do addict...

After centuries of being considered a private matter in most societies, violence and its profound effect on the physical health, mental health, and social well-being of victims and their families, as well as on the assailants themselves, has started to take centre stage as a public issue of worldwide concern.Health and social service providers are in pivotal positions to provide preventive and restorative services to those affected by violent and abusive behaviour. This comprehensi...