Understanding Depression : What We Know and What You Can Do about It

by J. Raymond DePaulo ( ; ); Leslie Alan Horvitz

• ISBN13: 9780471395522
• ISBN10: 0471395528
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2002-02-01
• Publisher: Wiley

Summary

This practical guide for individuals with depression and their families shows readers how to identify the problems, then directs them to the various forms of treatment, including medications, psychotherapy, support groups and exercise. It is one of the few books to discuss in depth manic depression, the bipolar form of depression. DePaulo discusses both mainstream and alternative paths and reveals the truth about the dangerous fallacies that abound about depression. Comprehensive, compassionate and grounded in the very latest research into brain chemistry, psychology and medications, this is a definitive, landmark roadmap to one of the most devastating ? and common ? mental illnesses.

Author Biography

J. RAYMOND DePAULO Jr., M.D., is a professor of psychiatry and Director of the Affective Disorders Clinic at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. Internationally known as a clinician, teacher, and research expert on depression and bipolar disorder, Dr. DePaulo has won many awards for research and teaching, and he has been selected as one of the "Best Doctors in America" in each of the three editions of the book with that title. <p> ALAN HORVITZ is a freelance writer based in New York. His most recent book, Eureka!: Scientific Breakthroughs that Changed the World, is also published by Wiley.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments.

Foreword.

Introduction.

Part One: Understanding Depression.

1 The Experience of Depression.

2 The Experience of Mania: Bipolar Disorder.

3 Who Is at Risk for Depression?

4 Recognizing Depression in All Its Forms and Guises.

5 Stressful Events: When People Get Depressed.

Part Two: Unraveling the Secrets.

6 What Do We Know About the Brain?

7 Genes and Depression: The Fateful Inheritance.

8 Hormones, Headaches, and Heart Attacks.

Part Three: Depression and Mania and Destructive Effects on the Whole Person.

9 Depression, Manic Depression, and Relationships.

10 Destructive Behavior.

11 Facing up to Suicide.

Part Four: Treatments for Depression.

12 Getting Help for Depression.

13 Making the Diagnosis Is the First Treatment.

14 Medical Treatment.

15 The Different Kinds of Drugs.

16 Psychotherapy: Treating the Person.

17 ECT, Light, and Other Medical Treatments.

18 Alternative Treatments.

19 Hospitalization: A Guide for Patients and Families.

20 Getting Back to Normal.

21 Going Forward.

Appendix A: Insurance.

Appendix B: Helpful Organizations.

Appendix C: Helpful Books.

Glossary.

Bibliography.

Index