Undoing Depression: What Therapy Doesn't Teach You and Medication Can't Give You

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Summary: Excellent resource
Review: I bought this book because of the reader recommendations and they were right! I have been depressed for almost 2 decades now and I have had more treatment than most people have in a lifetime. I thought I had read all there was and knew all there was about depression and I had a major breakthrough from this book. It is very easy to understand the concepts in this book, and the descriptions of depressives offered some insights into why I do some things I do - I never realized that some things I do, that I had attributed to my "personality" are directly related to my depression, and that these things can be changed. This book was a real eye opener, and I thank the author for writing it.

Rating:
Summary: Right on the button
Review: Very helpful and right on the button. The author shares his personal struggle with depression and has many helpful practical tips on undoing depression. This book is highly recommended, especially since a health professional wrote it and he is really concerned with helping people. Everyone suffering from depression directly or indirectly should get a hold of this book, it will be a wise investment. Another book that I really enjoyed as it helped me so much, and the author addresses the subject very bluntly, is Dietmar Scherf's "I Love Me: Avoiding and Overcoming Depression."

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Summary: Spooky!
Review: This is a very frightening book. I felt as though it was written specifically for me! I have been depressed for a long time and didn't even realize it. All I knew was that happiness was only fantasy. Thanks to this book, I look at things differently now. It also helped me feel like less of a freak. Depression is very common, and it is OK to admit that something is wrong. The next step is to get help. This book is a great place to start.

Rating:
Summary: A must-read for a depressive or his/her family
Review: O'Connor is one of the best writers on depression I've read in 30 years as both a mental health professional and a sufferer. He weaves together research, theory, case examples and his own experience with depression in such a warm, down-to -earth way that reading this on depressed days, I am comforted that it really IS possible to undo depression. Self-help exercises are included. His main point -- that whatever "official" therapy we take in terms of counseling or medication, change is really about noticing our depressive thought and behavior patterns and working to change them, is what it's all really about in my experience. He acknowledges the pain and hard work in this -- again, one of the unique aspects of his writing is its warmth and tone of friendship and fellowship for the journey.

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Summary: Compassion and information
Review: This book is the most inspiring and direct explanation of depression I have ever read. I think Dr. O'Conner did an amazing and informative job of trying to define the whole experience of depression and the steps one can take to step out of the darkness and toward the light. Depression is isolating and scary and Dr. O'Connor made me personally feel as if I am not alone. Excellent book! Thanks Doc!

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Summary: One of the top Depression books on the market...
Review: The one lone bad review out of 40 should tell you...and the reader from PA was WAY off track..there are four solid books that every therapist should recommend to a person who truly has Depression...and this is one of them. Take it from someone who has fought this horrible disease for 20 years.....this book WILL help you (the other three books are: The New Feeling Good Handbook and the two Depression Workbooks).

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Summary: Take it from a skeptic like me!
Review: I srarted reading this book, quite skeptical about what it could do for me. But as I continued reading, I realized that so much of this book resonated with me. I kept underlining and circling passages in the book, because they quite accurately reflected my own self-destructive thoughts and actions. I realized that I had been repressing so many things, even though I had been in therapy. You only come to terms with what you face up to yourself, and this book really helped me face up to a lot, even things that professional therapy could not bring out! If you think that you are above (or below) the reach of such self-help books, then think again!

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Summary: A great alternative to healing depression!
Review: Dr. O'Connor's holistic approach to healing depression, or rather to prevent the devastating cycles of depression, is unique and encouraging in this world of Prozac & Co. His techniques of rearranging the priorities may finally help a lot of people on their way to avoid the depressive mood swings at all. Another excellent book that has helped me tremendously, and I must recommend for everyone on the subject of preventing and healing depression, is Dietmar Scherf's "I Love Me: Avoiding & Overcoming Depression"--also available at Amazon.com

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Summary: Best book on relationships I've ever read.
Review: In addition to helping me cope with a depressed S.O., this gem has more good advice on relationships, marriage, raising healthy children, and living a meaningful life than all the others that intend to do that.

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Summary: "A beacon of hope to those mired in quicksand of negativity"
Review: After reading a newspaper review of Dr. O'Connor's book, I decided to buy the book for myself to see if it was as good as the reviewer indicated. "O'Connor approaches depression from both the professional and personal perspective. The road through adulthood--from the sorrow of his mother's suicide when he was 15--and his own episodes of depression, to his eventual emergence as strong, whole and capable of helping others, runs through his book as a beacon of hope to those mired in the quicksand of negativity." I couldn't say it better so won't even try. Although I rarely read books a second time, I have just reread this one. Again I am overwhelmed by its readability, compassion, and insight. Again, every word seemed to be written just for me.