Caring for the Mind: The Comprehensive Guide to Mental Health - Hardcover

Hales, Dianne

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0553091468 ISBN 13: 9780553091465

Publisher: Bantam, 1995

Synopsis

Over 27 million adults and 7.5 million children in the United States have a diagnosable mental disorder--more than the combines total of people with cancer, heart disease, and lung disorders.  Yet the saddest facts is not that so many people are so troubles, but that so few get help.  This volume is a compendium of mental health and mental disorders--and an indispensable guide to what can be done to help.  It offers lucid presentations of these conditions in a systematic format: what each is, how it feels, signs and symptoms, causes, when to seek help, how it is diagnosed, treatments (therapy, medications, self-help), risks and complications, its impact on relationships, and the prognosis.  Each disorder is illuminated by vivid case histories--personal voices--and includes the diagnostic criteria of the American Psychiatric Association's definitive Diagnostic And Statistical Manual Of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (1994), known as DSM-IV Special chapters deal with mental health problems in children and the elderly. This book is a wise, practical, and insightful guide to living as full and satisfying a life as possible for persons with problems and for those who love them.

About this title

From Library Journal:

The coauthors, a professional writer and her psychiatrist husband, fully cover the field of mental health, including discussions of major disorders and a range of treatments, from talking therapy to medication and electroshock. Using criteria from the DSM-VI (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, American Psychiatric Pr., 1994. 4th ed.), the Haleses provide, in readable form, more information than most nonpsychiatric physicians have on these topics. The chapter on medication will be helpful to nonmedical professionals (e.g., psychologists, social workers) as well as patients. Sections on hypnosis, family therapy, posttraumatic stress, suicide, sleep, violence, aging, self-help, sex, and alcohol, among others, make this a treasure-house for journalists and students as well as families of the mentally ill. Not formatted as an encyclopedia, this guide instead offers chapters broken down into short paragraphs with subheads or boxed descriptions of specific problems so that one can quickly isolate the relevant materials. Essential for all libraries, this title has no equal in breadth, depth, or timeliness.?E. James Lieberman, George Washington Univ. Sch. of Medicine, Washington, D.C.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Publishers Weekly:

There are almost 35 million Americans who have a diagnosable mental illness; few however, will seek help. The Haleses, (she is a journalist, and he is a clinical professor of psychiatry at UC-San Francisco), have written an invaluable, albeit ponderous, guide to mental health care today. Following a discussion in Part I on the evolution of current understandings and treatments of mental illnesses, the authors detail common specific disorders in Part II. They describe such conditions as depressive and anxiety disorders, substance dependency and sexual dysfunctions, offering illustrative case histories and listing symptoms (including diagnostic criteria adapted from Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition [DSM-IV]) and treatments. Such special issues as suicidal behavior and mental-health problems of children and the elderly are considered, as are different kinds of talking therapies and drug treatments. The authors' knowledgeable and compassionate approach makes their thorough guide particularly helpful for readers seeking information for themselves or for those whom they love.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Bantam
• Publication date: 1995
• ISBN 10: 0553091468
• ISBN 13: 9780553091465
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 873