A scientifically scrupulous and impressively accessible introduction to integrative psychiatry.
A comprehensive, personalized approach to the treatment of depression that uses an individual’s unique “biochemical signature.”
According to Greenblatt (Finally Focused, 2017), who co-authored this book with debut author Lee, the psychiatric community has a tendency to treat depression as a monolithic phenomenon, a one-size-fits-all approach that encourages a heavy reliance upon pharmacological cures. There are many different types of depression, however, and a dizzying array of potential root causes. As a consequence, the author avers, each case must be treated singularly. In fact, everyone is “biochemically unique”—a dynamic organization of hormonal, genetic, neurophysiological, and psychological factors. As an alternative to the regnant models of conventional psychiatry, Greenblatt advocates for “integrative psychiatry,” a holistic approach that considers the full panoply of depression’s causes as well as possible cures, including spiritual responses like yoga and meditation, nutritional programs, exercise, and of course, psychotherapy. The author soberly presents a mountain of data to support his position and confirm his commitment to supporting only “evidence-based medicine.” Greenblatt powerfully argues that pharmacological treatments are far less effective than typically reported and not well understood. He presents a discomfiting picture of traditional psychiatry that is financially beholden to a pharmacological industry and dogmatically attached to empirically untenable theories. “Traditional psychiatry is in crisis,” he writes. “The ideas as to what causes depression are not based on strong science, and our current treatments are not working nearly as well as they should.” Greenblatt’s expertise on the subject is irreproachable. He’s a psychiatrist who has been successfully using integrative medicine for more than 30 years and has been inducted into the Orthomolecular Medicine Hall of Fame. At each stage of his argument, he supplies a bevy of experimental support, and he lucidly, concisely explains remarkably technical subjects like epigenetics: “the study of trait variations caused by external or environmental variables…that may turn genes on or off or may change the ways in which cells ‘read’ DNA, but which do not involve any alterations to DNA sequences.” Also, the entire study radiates intellectual moderation. Greenblatt never rejects the use of drugs in treatment; he thoughtfully recommends a far more judicious use of them—and only as part of a therapeutic regimen that addresses the full medical profile of each patient.
A scientifically scrupulous and impressively accessible introduction to integrative psychiatry.Pub Date: March 18, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-5255-4189-6
Page Count: 396
Publisher: FriesenPress
Review Posted Online: May 28, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2019
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)
Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996
ISBN: 0-15-100227-4
Page Count: 136
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
An extravaganza in Bemelmans' inimitable vein, but written almost dead pan, with sly, amusing, sometimes biting undertones, breaking through. For Bemelmans was "the man who came to cocktails". And his hostess was Lady Mendl (Elsie de Wolfe), arbiter of American decorating taste over a generation. Lady Mendl was an incredible person,- self-made in proper American tradition on the one hand, for she had been haunted by the poverty of her childhood, and the years of struggle up from its ugliness,- until she became synonymous with the exotic, exquisite, worshipper at beauty's whrine. Bemelmans draws a portrait in extremes, through apt descriptions, through hilarious anecdote, through surprisingly sympathetic and understanding bits of appreciation. The scene shifts from Hollywood to the home she loved the best in Versailles. One meets in passing a vast roster of famous figures of the international and artistic set. And always one feels Bemelmans, slightly offstage, observing, recording, commenting, illustrated.
Pub Date: Feb. 23, 1955
ISBN: 0670717797
Page Count: -
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: Oct. 25, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1955
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