The Anxiety Book: Developing Strength in the Face of Fear by Jonathan Davidson, Henry Dreher

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Everybody worries about anxiety. One of five Americans suffers from it, and all of us know the slings and arrows of the sleeplessness, irritability, and tension that it causes. Dr. Jonathan Davidson, the director of Duke University Medical Center's prestigious Anxiety and Traumatic Stress Program, has fashioned a self-assessment guide that includes a five-step treatment that aims toward relaxation.

From the Publisher

Doctors are getting more requests nowadays for help with anxiety than they are for cold and flu. Now, one of the most respected experts on anxiety disorders delivers the definitive guide for self-assessment and treatment of the most common health concern in America.

Author Biography: Jonathan R. Davidson, M.D., is a professor of psychiatry and Director of the Anxiety and Traumatic Stress Program at Duke University Medical Center. His research includes studies on risk factors, herbal medicine, conventional pharmacology, and treatment outcomes for a wide range of anxiety disorders, with a special emphasis on social phobias and post-traumatic stress disorder. He has written over 200 articles for major medical and scientific journals, and educates students, residents, and other mental health professionals.

Publishers Weekly

Davidson (Herbs for the Mind), director of the Anxiety and Traumatic Stress Program at Duke University Medical Center, with the assistance of science writer Dreher, has produced a valuable tool for dealing with anxiety, a condition that strikes 20 million Americans and may seriously impair their daily functioning. The authors divide chronic anxiety into five major categories: generalized anxiety, social phobia, posttraumatic stress, panic, and obsessive compulsive disorders. Informed coverage of each category is provided, including symptoms, manifestations and self-assessment tests that help readers identify which type of anxiety is troubling them. Davidson has treated anxiety disorders for decades and draws on patient histories and research to offer treatment options. For example, if someone is unduly frightened of public speaking, he suggests exposure therapy, such as deliberately agreeing to do a presentation at work. Other strategies include developing serenity skills by meditation or progressive muscle relaxation, pursuing a healthy diet and exercise program and taking medications. There is a comprehensive section on the use of herbal remedies. Davidson sets a positive and compassionate tone throughout the text and is convinced, based on clinical evidence, that it is possible to subdue unhealthy anxiety and become an emotionally stronger person after engaging in one or more treatment programs. This is an excellent self-help resource. (Mar.) Copyright 2003 Cahners Business Information.

Library Journal

Drawing on the integrative curriculum of his institution, psychiatrist Davidson (director, Anxiety & Traumatic Stress Program, Duke Univ. Medical Ctr.) provides a lay reader's guide on treating anxiety. According to the author, 20 million Americans suffer from this disorder, and here he explains its five primary forms: general anxiety, panic, social anxiety, post-traumatic stress, and obsessive-compulsive disorder. To help readers determine whether they are sufferers, he presents a simple diagnostic screening tool and describes the "Five Levels of Healing" program that he has developed based on his extensive psychiatric work with patients. His approach includes changing fearful beliefs, using exposure therapy to help deal with anxiety triggers, developing serenity skills to help ease anxiety, initiating lifestyle changes, and taking prescribed anti-anxiety medications. Davidson successfully combines a self-help approach with his clinical experience, shining in his firm belief that within all anxiety sufferers lies the potential to control their disorder and regain an emotionally fulfilling life. Rather than focusing on overcoming specific anxieties, as is the case in so many other anxiety titles, Davidson instead concentrates on clinically driven steps to overcome all forms of anxiety that will likely prove more successful if facilitated by professionals. As a result, this is a highly relevant choice for academic libraries supporting helping professions, as well as for psychology and self-help collections.-Dale Farris, Groves, TX Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.

Product Details

• Table of Contents

Table of Contents