When someone you love suffers from posttraumatic stress : what to expect and what you can do

By Claudia Zaylert, PhD and Jason C. DeViva PhD  (Find this book)

Clinical psychologists Zayfert (psychiatry, Dartmouth Medical Sch.) and DeViva (Univ. of Connecticut Sch. of Medicine; Yale Univ. Sch. of Medicine) provide a family-focused book on dealing with post-traumatic stress. They present examples of and advice related to various types of trauma, including sexual assault, serious accidents, natural and human-made disasters, and combat, and provide family members with useful information, support, and pragmatic ideas. The emphasis is on friends and family of trauma survivors, who are indirectly but seriously affected by the trauma. The book explains the effects of trauma on survivors and the people surrounding them, what the latter can do to help themselves and the survivor, how to decide how much to invest to help the victim, and methods of communicating to bring families closer together as they struggle with the aftermath of the traumatic event. The authors explain the positive changes that can occur in trauma survivors and their loved ones. VERDICT Throughout, the authors include real-life stories, and the list of additional resources and references add value to this work, which nicely supplements Cheryl A. Roberts's recent Coping With Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.-Dale Farris, Groves, TX (c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source.  -- Library Journal Review

Eat to live : the amazing nutrient-rich program for fast and sustained weight loss

By Joel Furman, MD  (Find this book)

In this new edition, which incorporates the latest scientific nutritional data, Fuhrman's restrictive diet plan is designed for clinically overweight people who suffer from a spectrum of lifestyle/obesity-induced conditions like diabetes and heart disease and need to drop a significant amount of weight fast-about 20 pounds in the first six weeks. The basis of Fuhrman's program is Nutrient Density, expressed by the simple formula health equals nutrients divided by calories. Fuhrman's "secret" to optimum health and permanent weight control is giving the body only what it needs. An aggressive six-week vegetarian plan segues into a regimen that includes a limited amount of animal products, like lean fish or egg whites once a week. Although proven and sound, this guidebook is not for someone who wants to lose those last 10 pounds or fit into her wedding dress; this is a serious undertaking for dieters whose umpteen previous efforts have failed and whose health is endangered.  -- Publisher's Weekly

The psychopath test : a journey through the madness industry

By Jon Ronson    (Find this book)

In this engrossing exploration of psychiatry's attempts to understand and treat psychopathy, British journalist Ronson (whose The Men Who Stare at Goats was the basis for the 2009 movie starring George Clooney) reveals that psychopaths are more common than we'd like to think. Visiting Broadmoor Psychiatric Hospital, where some of Britain's worst criminal offenders are sent, Ronson discovers the difficulties of diagnosing the complex disorder when he meets one inmate who says he feigned psychopathy to get a lighter sentence, and instead has spent 12 years in Broadmoor. The psychiatric community's criteria for diagnosing psychopathy (which isn't listed in its handbook, DSM-IV) is a checklist developed by the Canadian prison psychologist Robert Hare. Using Hare's rubric, which includes "glibness," "grandiose sense of self-worth," and "lack of remorse," Ronson sets off to interview possible psychopaths, many of them in positions of power, from a former Haitian militia leader to a power-hungry CEO. Raising more questions than it answers, and far from a dry medical history lesson, this book brings droll wit to buoy this fascinating journey through "the madness business." --- Publisher's Weekly

50 secrets of the world's longest living people

By Sally Beare  (Find this book)

Today we are living longer than ever before, and a few of us can expect to live to 100 or more. But many people feel that they will inevitably suffer the diseases of old age in their final years. Pharmaceutical companies have spent billions of dollars trying to find a cure for the "diseases of aging"—they may have found ways to stem some of the symptoms, but they have yet to find a panacea. Yet there are places in the world where, all along, people have commonly lived to 100 or more without suffering so much as a headache. How do they do it? The answer is simple: through sound dietary habits and balanced, healthy lifestyles. The 50 Secrets of the World's Longest Living People looks at the nutrition and lifestyle mores of the world's five most remarkable longevity hotspots—Okinawa, Japan; Bama, China; Campodimele, Italy; Symi, Greece; and Hunza, Pakistan—and explains how we too can incorporate the wisdom of these people into our everyday lives. It offers each of the secrets in detail, provides delicious, authentic recipes, and outlines a simple-to-master plan for putting it all together and living your best, and longest, life. --- Amazon