The Pain Chronicles: Cures, Myths, Mysteries, Prayers, Diaries, Brain Scans, Healing, and the Science of Suffering

Ten years ago, New York Times Magazine contributor Thernstrom (Halfway Heaven: Diary of a Harvard Murder, 1997, etc.) noticed severe pain in her neck and shoulder, which came and went but then persisted, sometimes unbearably. Searching for relief and understanding, her writing alternates between a frustrating medical odyssey, an overview of pain research and the surprisingly varied meaning of pain throughout history, religion, art and literature. Most readers know that pain is a protective reaction to tissue damage that resolves when damage heals, but this only defines acute pain from injuries and self-limited diseases. Thernstrom, however, examines chronic pain, a condition affecting nearly 20 percent of Americans. Chronic pain is not protective; its intensity bears no relation to tissue injury and may seem to arise in its absence. Over time, untreated pain causes visible damage to the brain and spinal cord that maintains the pain. Like all chronic diseases, treatment helps but rarely cures. This remains a minority view that includes physicians specializing in treating pain but few of their medical colleagues who often look suspiciously on these patients. Thernstrom recounts her decade-long experience with doctors (mostly competent, rarely helpful), alternative healers (enthusiastic but unimpressive) and stories of other sufferers. Inspiring tales of overcoming disease are a journalistic staple, but rare in the world of chronic pain, and the author and many of her subjects continue to experience pain. (Check Catalog)

Keeper: One House, Three Generations, and a Journey Into Alzheimer's

In her forthright, smartly researched, and warmly recounted chronicle of her troubled two years taking care of her mother-in-law in the throes of dementia, British journalist Gillies reveals the "dehumanizing" toll of the disease on the whole family. Gillies, her husband, and three children moved to a rambling Victorian house in the wilds of a Scottish peninsula and took in Chris's parents, Edinburgh residents who had been showing signs of needing increasing care: irascible Morris had "bad legs," while his strong-willed wife, Nancy, at 79, was spiraling deeper into Alzheimer's. As Nancy's memory deteriorated the entire family unit began to collapse under the strain of constant caretaking. Gillies writes with a novelist's eye for detail, and her unflinching rendering of Nancy's excruciating loss of self is skillfully and tenderly drawn. As well, Gillies has delved vigorously into the research, offering the received wisdom on Alzheimer's, which dictates that acceptance and distraction are the most helpful methods to deal with sufferers ("Make Alzheimer's fun, they exhort"). Moreover, her memoir is an invaluable resource on the stages of Alzheimer's, history, drugs, brain function, care-giving options, even literary works. (Check Catalog)

Taking Charge of Adult ADHD

Barkley is one of the leading researchers and most prolific writers on attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) across the life span, having produced materials for mental health professionals and self-help books like this volume. Thirty short chapters are organized into five sections that deal with evaluation of adult ADHD, underlying mechanisms of ADHD and self-acceptance of the diagnosis, understanding medication as a treatment option, utilizing behavioral strategies to address specific deficits, and managing in key areas such as work, relationships, and health. Barkley debunks common myths about medications and co-occurring disorders and offers straightforward advice on how to improve quality of life. Additional references and resources are provided. VERDICTThis is a comprehensive and scientifically based yet comprehensible manual for understanding and managing adult ADHD. With this information, adults with ADHD or those close to them can be informed consumers of available treatment options, behavioral strategies, and supplemental support resources. (Check Catalog)

Taking Antidepressants: Your Comprehensive Guide to Starting, Staying On, and Safely Quiting

Antidepressants are the most commonly prescribed class of medications in this country. Yet, consumers have few available resources to educate them in a fair, balanced fashion about starting and stopping antidepressants. People want to know if antidepressants are really safe, whether they are addictive, and how they may affect their personality. In this book, triple board-certified psychiatrist Dr. Michael Banov walks the reader through a personalized process to help them make the right choice about starting antidepressants, staying on antidepressants, and stopping antidepressants. He includes specific guidelines on how to safely reduce and ultimately stop taking antidepressants, if it is appropriate to do so. Readers will learn how antidepressant medications work, what they may experience while taking them, and will learn how to manage side effects or any residual or returning depression symptoms. Most books on depression take a biased view against antidepressant medication due to perceived dangers; this book finally provides a balanced, research-based resource for consumers who want the facts about taking antidepressants.(Check Catalog)

The Ultimate Guide to Weight Training for Golf

"The Ultimate Guide to Weight Training for Golf is the most comprehensive and up-to-date golf-specific training guide in the world today. It contains descriptions and photographs of nearly 100 of the most effective weight training, flexibility, and abdominal exercises used by athletes worldwide. This book features year-round golf-specific weight-training programs guaranteed to improve your performance and get you results.No other golf book to date has been so well designed, so easy to use, and so committed to weight training. This book enables golfers of all skill levels to add extra yardage to their drives and irons without having to buy the latest technology in golf! By following this program you can develop the flexibility and strength required to eliminate fatigue and increase distance with every club in your bag. With stronger and more flexible muscles, you will not only hit the ball farther but you will have better control over all of your shots throughout the round. Most importantly, you will reduce your chances of injury and be able to play 18 holes without any problems!Both beginners and advanced athletes and weight trainers can follow this book and utilize its programs. From recreational to professional, thousands of athletes all over the world are already benefiting from this book and its techniques, and now you can too!" (Check Catalog)