MOODSTRControl Your Mood – Control Your Life

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We all get scared sometimes. Our hearts race, our breath gets shallow, and our hands and feet turn icy cold--these physical expressions of fear are our normal responses to things that threaten us.But moments of panic can cause you to experience these feelings with no apparent cause, robbing you of confidence and composure unexpectedly throughout your day. You deserve to be free from these troublesome moments, and the ten easy and effective techniques you'll find in 10 Simple Solutions to Panic make it not only possible but also easy. Learn how to monitor your episodes of panic, and find out how to replace your anxious, racing inner monologue with calm, realistic thinking. Discover safe and comfortable ways to face fearful situations. Breathing exercises, stress reduction techniques round out this approach to overcoming panic that promises to restore your security and peace of mind.

According to published research, one in three people are prone to panic or anxiety attacks. As the authors explain, panic and anxiety attacks differ from fear in that they usually occur without any obvious cause or triggering event. (They can even occur during sleep.) Once underway, they are often accompanied by a wide range of physical sensations, as well as emotional overwhelm. In this book, Antony and McCabe provide easy-to-follow guidelines that will help sufferers of panic attacks better understand their condition and, more importantly, gain control over it using the same strategies that the authors have successfully employed with their clients in their own psychology practices. Of particular interest is their discussion of anxious thinking and realistic thinking. They maintain that it is often the beliefs that one has about their panic attacks that are the problem, not the panic attacks themselves. They provide a number of exercises readers can use to start thinking more realistically, thus reducing anxiety. They also offer a variety of empowering suggestions for dealing with the situations that can cause panic attacks, provide self-care tools for setting and achieving short- and long-term goals, and review medications that might also be helpful. What gives their book authority is the scientific evidence that their solutions are based upon.--Larry Trivieri Jr.

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Are you living under a shadow?Do you or someone you love suffer from: Chronic sadness Obsessiveness Outbursts of anger The inability to finish tasks Acute anxiety Disabling discomfort in social situationsThese are the "shadow syndromes" of major mental disorders that limit the lives, productivity, and happiness of millions of people.Drawing on cutting-edge research, Drs. Ratey and Johnson challenge the most basic beliefs of our mental health professionals by uncovering the biological factors that often determine our personalities.  They use real-life case studies to illustrate how shadow syndromes affect our everyday lives and how they can be treated--often dramatically--with diet, exercise, psychotherapy, and medication.Shadow Syndromes is the revolutionary theory that sheds light on our life-limiting behaviors and offers the essential tools for changing them.  This book will liberate you and those you love.

Freud once said that nobody is "normal," and after reading Shadow Syndromes, you may well be convinced of that. While more than 50 million Americans suffer from full-fledged mental illnesses such as depression and obsessive-compulsive disorder, millions more suffer from milder forms--yet they likely don't realize it. From chronic sadness to low self-esteem to shopping addiction to intermittent rage disorder, compassionate authors John J. Ratey, M.D. and Catherine Johnson, Ph.D. chronicle the often-undiagnosed (yet definitely insidious) "shadow" disorders. One of the most eye-opening points the authors make is that men who "can't commit" to a relationship may in fact be suffering from an unrecognized adult form of attention deficit disorder. Shadow Syndromes is thorough, but at the same time it simplifies the technical aspects of mental illnesses--no stacks of footnotes or complicated neurotransmitter charts here. The authors use plenty of anecdotes to illustrate how everyday people have recognized and overcome shadow syndromes. They also prevent the book from becoming one big bundle of bad news by stressing that these disorders are treatable with medications such as Prozac, which Johnson took to handle her mild depression. Specific lifestyle changes are also advised, including more sleep, changes in diet, and more exercise. The "Care and Feeding of the Brain" chapter compiles other empowering, healing approaches. This book will be valuable not only for those who believe they're suffering from a shadow syndrome, but for doctors and therapists as well. --Erica Jorgensen

Description

This book describes techniques for improving mental abilities. Some of the things it can help you to achieve include the following: Depending on circumstances, use different lifestyles that improve one or another mental function.Experience euphoria without drugs and come up with new ideas, when needed.Slow down and prevent yourself from making rash, impulsive decisions, when necessary.Sharpen your wit, become more talkative, and entertain people.When necessary, lower your mood and increase emotional tension, which can reduce procrastination.Increase your score on intelligence or general aptitude tests.Concentrate on reading and writing for many hours daily.Increase your grade point average if you are a student or improve your job productivity if you are a knowledge worker.Get along with people and live without arguments and conflicts.     The proposed methods are brief cooling or heating of the body (water thera- py) and three different "smart diets," each suitable for a different type of task. The text also describes a "depressant diet," which is not a smart diet but can im- prove self-control and sleep. Readers don't need to use the strict diets on a per- manent basis and the book recommends the conventional food pyramid most of the time. The text also discusses several useful social skills and studying/writing techniques as well as the role of luck in personal achievement.      Most authors in this field will tell you that you should read more books, solve mental puzzles, buy their nutritional supplements, sleep well, and exercise in or- der to get smarter. In contrast, this book is proposing moderately cold hydrother- apy and a smart diet (which involves avoiding all dietary supplements). To give another example, most books on anger management say that you should try to change your thinking in order to overcome anger, while this book suggests hot hydrotherapy and the exclusion of certain foods from your diet. The main focus of discussion in this text is on changing the biological workings of the brain, not on pop psychology. In particular, the book describes various combinations of diets and hydrotherapy that have the following effects: sedative/sleep-promoting, stimulant/wakefulness-promoting, attention-enhancing, antianxiety, antidepres- sant, mood-stabilizing (mood-lowering), and euphoriant. In addition, the book presents existing scientific evidence of pain-reducing, fever-reducing, anti- fatigue, immunostimulatory, antinausea, antihypertensive, and anti-inflammatory effects of hydrotherapy. The text also discusses the possible side effects of the diets and hydrotherapy.      Despite its technical content, the book is written in an accessible language and has an informative summary for each chapter and a list of key points at the end of each section. The book supports most of the claims in the bulleted list above with a theory and the author's personal experience (a healthy subject). Previously published scientific studies directly support about a half of these claims, including the claim about intelligence tests. The author's academic transcripts and test scores have been documented and can be verified independently.

Description

It's sometimes called a hidden epidemic: One in ten Americans--more than twenty million people, most of them women--has a thyroid disorder. At any given time, millions of people have an undiagnosed thyroid disorder and experience a chronic mental anguish that almost certainly arises from the very same source. Yet many primary-care doctors still don't recognize the importance of the thyroid in mind-body health--and its especially crucial role in women's well-being.The Thyroid Solution is a must-read for anyone who suffers from a thyroid condition. It's the first mind-body approach to identifying and curing thyroid imbalances. Written by a medical pioneer and leading authority in the field of thyroid research, this groundbreaking book offers Dr. Ridha Arem's practical program for maintaining thyroid health through diet, exercise, and stress control--and through his revolutionary medical plan, which combines two types of hormone treatments with astounding results. Inside you'll discover- The thyroid basics--what it is, where it is, what it does- How thyroid hormones affect the brain and alter mood, emotions, and behaviorleading to brain fog, weight gain, loss of libido, infertility, anxiety, and depression- What tests to ask your doctor to give you--and what they mean- The vital connection between stress and thyroid imbalance- The benefits of antioxidants and essential fatty-acid foods and supplements- How to recognize and cure the deep and lingering effects of a thyroid imbalanceFilled with remarkable patient histories and interviews that document the dramatic results of Dr. Arem's bold new treatments, The Thyroid Solution now gives you and your doctor the tools you need to live a life with peace of mind . . . and body.

One in ten Americans suffers from thyroid dysfunction, yet most don't realize the mental and emotional components of this condition. "This is the first book to explain the hidden suffering that many patients have difficulty expressing and the first book to provide new ways of helping address and heal this suffering," promises author Ridha Arem, M.D., associate professor of medicine at Baylor College of Medicine and chief of endocrinology and metabolism at Ben Taub General Hospital, both in Houston, Texas. This book explains the link between stress and thyroid imbalance; how thyroid imbalance affects your emotions, sex life, and relationships; and how to cope with the effects of this imbalance. Because thyroid problems primarily strike women, a whole section deals with women's health issues, such as infertility, miscarriage, postpartum depression, premenstrual syndrome, and menopause. Another section provides practical tools, such as evaluating lab tests and self-diagnosis techniques, dealing with treatment problems and side effects, and preventing memory lapses and depression. The book covers lifestyle choices that affect thyroid health, such as diet, supplementation, and exercise. Frequent case studies (usually told as first-person narratives), checklists, and questionnaires help to simplify the material and make it easier to check the medical information against your own situation. Each chapter ends with "valuable points to remember," making review easy. If you suffer from thyroid imbalance, or think you might, this book could be a valuable resource. --Joan Price