Rating: 
Summary: I bought this book a few years ago
Review: When this book first came out a few years back, I bought it, impressed to see an emotional approach towards weight loss, outside of diet and exercise prescriptions that we have all read. I have struggled (for what seems like) forever, with my weight and I had some success at the time when I worked through this book. I liked it although some of the language is a bit 'gimmicky' which for me was a turn off. Recently I bought another book called the Quest for Peace, Love and a 24-Inch Waist by Deborah Low, and have been really excited to see a complete spiritual, emotional approach that again, makes you work through certain 'exercises' but gives the reader a deeper insight into our weight loss desires and failures. Plus, teaches us to make peace with ourselves along the way. They are very inspiring to do, and you get excited working through them. No matter how you look at it, losing weight for life can be tough. The Solution may not fix all your problems but with 'Quest', you've got an incredible start.
Rating: 
Summary: The whole enchilada
Review: This book and program are very powerful if you're in the same space I was when I encountered it: frustrated, confused and not always able to stay adult enough to take care of myself around healthy eating.
Laurel's voice is kind and nurturing. Her examples are very helpful and the written exercises gave me great results. I'd recommend those exercises to anyone - even if they had no weight to lose. Being able to stay "above the line" (aka "adult") in challenging situations is a skill I can't imagine I ever lived without.
I think if you have your hands on this book and Dr. Kirschenbaums' "The 9 Truths about Weight Loss," you have all the tools you need!
Rating:
Summary: Self-Indulgence
Review: In this book Laurel Mellin offers a delicious guide to life-training on a silver platter. It is there for the offering. Are you ready to indulge? I have been deeply affected by Laurel's insights and guidance, but beware. This book is only as honest and provocative as you are.
Rating:
Summary: The Solution
Review: I lost over 150 lbs.
What elsa can I say...this method works! I've kept the weight off for +24 months and I ate what I wanted. The book is a
description of the method. The actual kit is the practicum. I
was in a Solution Group, but there are now telegroups too.
If you've struggled with weight your whole life and sick of it
this is the program for you. Your life will become balanced
and free of obsessive food preoccupation.
Rating:
Summary: A deep relief to find something that works
Review: This book received a positive review in a popular fitness magazine so I decided to check it out. It provides an approach that has allowed me to lose weight in a very personalized manner. It may not be for everyone since it is based on taking quiet time to getting to the heart of why you feel somehow compelled to eat when you aren't really hungry. This introspection takes many forms including writing, talking and thinking about your own deepest/toughest challenges in life. I have lost 40 to 50 pounds several times in my life and am usually, in my head, on some sort restrictive diet that I seldom follow-through on. When I began this work I immediately lost 8 pounds and then stayed steady as I built up my ability to face things as they come. I have now started losing again in a way that is almost effortless because I am eating much more often simply because I am hungry or for the pleasure of something incredibly tasty but not because I am trying not to think about things that have made me uncomfortable/anxious during the day or in the past. Before I bought this book I read the reviews here that said it was an expensive process but there is no organized support for this program in my area so my costs have not been that high.So far, I have spent around $200 for 6 months of materials ( journals, tapes, web site access) and one session of telephone coaching. It is worth it. I easily used to spend this much over a 6 month period on extra food.
The language used in the book can be a little off-putting ( e.g. the cures, tender morsels, hamburger sandwich) and the ideas are sometimes fairly complex, but if you are motivated and committed my own experience is that it really achieves results and helps provide a sense of balance in many aspects of daily life.
Rating:
Summary: A Comprehensive, Researched Approach to Life Changes
Review: At first glance, The Solution might seem to be just another among the plethora of weight loss books. Not so. This book was written by an author who initally worked with diabetic children and became particularly interested in addressing the resistance to healthy eating that many experienced in adolesence. The author has worked diligently to structure a process by which those who follow her guidelines can do cognitive, behavioral and emotional work. She obviously spent a great deal of time organizing thoughts and exercises in the six areas. She conceptualizes recovery as catching up on developmental skills that were missed. Unlike many other books on weight-loss, she addresses the topic of how limits are learned in childhood,noting that those who have eating disorders may have had parents who were too restrictive, too permissive, or often both. It has always seemed to me that the crux of resolving food issues hinges on how one develops an inner parent structure that can be nurturant and also set limits in a way that does not invite rebellion. The Solution focuses beautifully, with examples and concrete exercises, on how to use strong nurturing and effective limits to achieve emotional and physical balance. This book would be most helpful, I believe, to those who are not seeking a fast cure but who are willing to actually work through the exercises(rather than just reading the book). My only disappointment with this book was that I thought more could have been stressed about how to work oneself away from society's obesssion with thinness. Those issues have been well addressed in the books by Munter and Hirshman, such as When Women Stop Hating There Bodies. For anyone ever truly obsessed with self-hatred and dieting, I think this book would be a great second step, for it takes up where Munter and Hirshman leave off.
Rating: 
Summary: Helpful, but buyer beware
Review: The book itself was very helpful. I bought as part of working the solution program. It did get me started on losing weight, and helped to open my eyes on my own eating patterns and ways of thinking. But the program itself is costly and takes over a year to complete. I am also skeptical of the claims it makes as far as it's success with adults who work it. When I started I was advised that 90% of those starting the program, two years later continue to maintain their weight loss. I was involved in a group and a year and a half later, am the only one in a group of eight members who lost weight and kept it off- and I dropped out after two 12 week sessions.(cost was $500 a session, so cost is $2000-2500 for the five sessions that are generally recommended) Read the book and talk to a LOT of people before signing up for one of the groups. I am waiting for the author to come up with some hard and proven statistics about the programs track record. I cannot prove anything but I doubt those 90% success claims. The only real way to lose weight and keep it off is drastic change of mind and lifestyle- and this book is good at opening a door to that. I am amused by the one reader who suggests that we spend so much to operate our cars, why not on ourselves? I guess my answer is that we who have had weight problem, have dumped a TON of money into programs that have helped, but do not offer lasting results. Cars are basic necessities, and good health is too. But we want to be sure that the program WORKS before we committ big bucks to it. Again, buy the book, but be careful before committing to the program. Check it out carefully!!! And be prepared for some intense work.
Rating:
Summary: Not Perfect But Pretty Close
Review: I found the Solution by chance while reading an article about latest trends in weight loss. I am a graduate of several other weight loss programs, including those that sell you food, bring you together in groups and promise health and happiness on just two canned drinks a day. I have gained and lost the same 50 pounds over and over for the past 20 years. So, to say I am skeptical is an understatement. The Solution book (and program) is different. It does get to the root of overeating but more importantly it charts the course for your skill building to resolve those issues. I am not finished with the program just yet. I have experienced weight loss without dieting. I am at peace with food for longer intervals than I thought possible. My compulsions to overeat are disappearing. This book just might do the same for you. While one size does not fit all, and you must decide to be diligent in your Solution work, this book is worth your time, your money and your hope. It isn't perfect, but it doesn't have to be to work!
Rating:
Summary: Expensive??? You can't afford not to read it!
Review: If you are seirous about changing your life and creating an abundance of joy, balance, and health within yourself, this is the book for you. I have read the book, and I am currently participating in a live Solution Group led by two awesome Solution Providers. I am sad to hear another reader finds this expensive. We spend between 2 & 4 hundred a month on our cars for goodness sake. You think we could treat ouselves with the same amount of concern and committment. Most Solution Training costs around $... a month for all necessary materials as well as 8 hours of Developemental Skills Training with 2 skilled Providers. What, that makes it $... an hour to work with 2 health care professionals ... where can you find more reasonable training? Not to mention training that actually works. I am bringing these skills more and more into my life and not only is it effecting my weight, (22 pounds in 30 weeks) but my outlook on life has totally changed. I now find joy in my work, in my relationships and within my own heart. I would spend every penny I have for The Solution. In my view, training this amazing for $... an hour is a steal!
Rating:
Summary: IT WORKS!
Review: I've lost 75 lbs. using this method and it totally works. I din't diet, over exercise or impose escessive restraint on my food intake. I can't explain the joy I feel at FINALLY being able to shed that extra weight after 20 years of batteling it to no avail.
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