Cancer Survivors' Stories

by Jonathan Chamberlain    (Find this book)
In this book you will find the stories of 25 people who have cured themselves of cancer - some by combining conventional and alternative therapies, but the vast majority by means of alternative therapies alone. These stories demonstrate the important role complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) can play in helping people with cancer recover fully and completely from this terrible disease - the incidence of which is rising year on year.  --  Publisher Marketing

Dark Remedy: The Impact of Thalidomide and Its Revival as a Vital Medicine

by Trent D Stephens    (Find this book)
In this riveting medical detective story, Trent Stephens and Rock Brynner recount the history of thalidomide, from the epidemic of birth defects in the 1960's to the present day, as scientists work to create and test an alternative drug that captures thalidomide's curative properties without its cruel side effects. A parable about compassion-and the absence of it-Dark Remedy is a gripping account of thalidomide's extraordinary impact on the lives of individuals and nations over half a century.  --  Publisher Marketing

Twelve Patients: Life and Death at Bellevue Hospital

by Eric Manheimer    (Find this book)
Bellevue's former medical director offers unusual clarity, empathy, and insight in these stories from the bedside at the nation's oldest hospital and, Manheimer notes, perhaps its most famous public one. Yet Manheimer offers far more than remarkable medical dramas: he blends each patient's personal experiences with their social implications. Juan, an addict with a long criminal record, shows indomitable strength in battling cancer in the hospital's prison unit as the hospital presses for his compassionate release. For Manheimer, his case illustrates a broken prison system. For Tanisha, an emotionally damaged teen, one caring foster family gives her a last shot at happiness and demonstrates the problems of psych treatment for kids. Equally gripping tales include that of addict Arnie, a former Wall Street success story whose demons nearly destroyed his son, and whose slow slog to recovery highlights the nature of forgiveness. But perhaps the most moving tale of all is Manheimer's own as a cancer patient, he learns far more about despair and hope than most physicians can imagine. Manheimer offers a window onto a unique hospital and the wisdom of a healer who tends with equal skill to patients and the world. Agents: Jim Levine and Lindsay Edgecombe, Levine Greenberg Literary Agency. (July 10) Copyright 2012 Reed Business Information.  -- Publishers Weekly

Exercise for Mood and Anxiety: Proven Strategies for Overcoming Depression and Enhancing Well-Being

by Michael W Otto    (Find this book)

Exercise has long been touted anecdotally as an effective tool for mood improvement, but only recently has rigorous science caught up with these claims. There is now overwhelming evidence that regular exercise can help relieve low mood-from feelings of stress and anxiety to full depressive episodes.

With Exercise for Mood and Anxiety, Michael Otto and Jasper Smits, well-known authorities on cognitive behavioral therapy, take their empirically-based mood regulation strategy from the clinic to the general public. Written for those with diagnosed mood disorders as well as those who simply need a new strategy for managing the low mood and stress that is an everyday part of life, this book provides readers with step-by-step guidance on how to start and maintain an exercise program geared towards improving mood, with a particular emphasis on understanding the relationship between mood and motivation. Readers learn to attend carefully to mood states prior to and following physical activity in order to leverage the full benefits of exercise, and that the trick to maintaining an exercise program is not in applying more effort, but in arranging one's environment so that less effort is needed. As a result readers not only acquire effective strategies for adopting a successful program, but are introduced to a broader philosophy for enhancing overall well-being. Providing patient vignettes, rich examples, and extensive step-by-step guidance on overcoming the obstacles that prevent adoption of regular exercise for mood, Exercise for Mood and Anxiety is a unique translation of scientific principles of clinical and social psychology into an action-based strategy for mood change.  --  Publisher Marketing

The Starch Solution: Eat the Foods You Love, Regain Your Health, and Lose the Weight for Good!

by John A Mcdougall    (Find this book)
John A. McDougall, M.D., is the coauthor, with his wife, Mary, of numerous bestsellers, and is featured in the documentary and book Forks over Knives. This, their 12th collaboration, promotes a scientifically proven, plant-based regimen aimed at successful weight loss and an end to diet-related illnesses like obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and inflammatory arthritis. Although the concept seems counterintuitive to yoyoing, lifelong dieters who have been told that carbohydrates are verboten, the McDougall approach offers filling, comforting, nutrient-dense starches combined in a nonfat, nonanimal food plan with vegetables, nuts, and fruits to deliver a sense of satisfaction, an end to cravings, and much-improved overall well-being. Part I, “Healing with Starch,” discusses why starches have been key since ancient times, alerts readers to toxins found in animal foods, cites examples of spontaneous healing on a starch-based diet, and raises the issues of food plant ecology and politics. Part II, “The FAQs,” lists reliable and beneficial sources of dietary protein and calcium; reveals reasons to avoid eating fish; and shows that vitamin and mineral supplements are unnecessary. Part III, “Living the Solution,” presents the 7-Day Sure-Start Program and instructs how to turn the book’s advice into a lifestyle (which may include the authors’ prepared, commercially available foods). Recipes for 100 basic, delicious everyday dishes like tofu tacos, Tunisian sweet potato stew, and mushroom stroganoff are a bonus, as are thumbnail portraits of successful dieters. The book’s solid scientific information and feasible regimen make the McDougall case for starches quite persuasive and promising.  -- Publishers Weekly