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Summary: Helped me to understand ADD/ADHD in my family
Review: This book (above all others I've read) clarified what ADD/ADHD is and why people who suffer from this disorder act the way they do. Dr. Amen provided a "map" for me so that I can understand the disorder, behavior, treatment, medication, and options outside of the realm of prescription drugs. This book helped me to form a basic understanding so that I may continue my research about how this disorder affects my family. Although the information I found in this book has helped me tremendously, I have started on a path to research alternative treatment in hopes of finding a more natural way to deal with the disorder. I highly recommend this book as your ADD/ADHD guide to understanding your child, spouse or self.
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Summary: Okay, everyone has a point to make
Review: Some people hate this book, some love it. I... well, I got out of it what I needed to. The author does sometimes sound like a snake-oil salesman. This book is permeated with him trying to get us to give him money. BUT, there is a lot of good information too. It's well worth reading whether you have children with ADHD (I do) or you have it yourself (I do). Any book that gives one "AHA" is worth the money, and this book gives several.
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Summary: A Must Read on AD/HD
Review: Excellent Book!! This book is extremely helpful!
Even though I was diagnosed several years ago as having AD/HD the medication I was given(a stimulant)only made me worse! Therefore, I have not been taking any meds for the problem. Now that I have read this book I know that the type of attention deficit disorder that I have is type 3, which is best treated by the anti-depressant Effexor (not a stimulant like Ritalin). That is a very important information!
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Summary: You won't find a better methodology for treating ADHD
Review: During my two year search for a treatment for my ADHD I finally found a psychiatrist who told me that 95% of the doctors didn't even belive in adult ADHD. Yet they want you to believe that they can hear your story and then pull the right answer and medication to treat you out of thin air. I don't trust doctors that much. So finding a book written by a doctor who was looking for solutions using REAL information was something I had to check out.Within a month after MY SPEC scan I was on medication that is making me think more clearly for the first time in years. For the limbic challenged of those who dispute this lifechanging work please get some help.
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Summary: Helpful ADD Book
Review: This book has many answers to ADD and different types of ADD. For those of you who are looking for more technical answers it has that too. I really think he on to something with the idea that there are 6 types of ADD. I do not agree with all of wht the book says but it does have some great information and ideas.
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Summary: this man is a snake oil salesman
Review: i am a psychiatrist in the bay area. i have seen many patients who have been taken to the cleaners by this man. he is taking snippets of science and feeding back a gumbo of non-useful information to vulnerable patients and familes. he charges exorbitant fees for work-ups that are superfluous and then makes vague, all-encompassing recommendations. he does none of the treatment himself. he is a charlatan. do not buy this book and add to the fortune of this dangerous man.
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Summary: Real data for a real disorder
Review: Dr. Amen uses SPECT imagery to aid in the diagnosis of his patients. He uses it across many disorders. This present title addresses ADD specifically and while similar to "Change Your Brain, Change Your Life", it covers only ADD/ADHD and in far greater detail. Another reviewer has made two mistatements which must be addressed. First, that Dr. Amen is on the bleeding edge of unproven science and is the only one using the technique - that there is no other source for the data. This is incorrect, others are using SPECT in the same way. A doctor must be certified in radiology to perform and interpret the brain images, just like a broken bone x-ray or an MRI. His work has been and continues to be corroborated every day. He has provided the first real method of measuring the disorder. Prevoiusly all diganoses were purely on the basis of behavioural data. Second, the disorder itself was labled a character flaw. Research performed a few years back, with all the proper controls and such, show that talk therapy alone (to deal with behavioural flaws) was far less effective than drug therapy. The most effective therapy was a combined approach involving behavioural (talk) and drug therapies. In addition, the SPECT imagery - which shows brain activity - is showing clearly what is happening. What is not known and Dr. Amen does not claim to know, is the mechanism for ADD, nor exactly the mechanism for the drugs used to treat the disorder. Dr. Amen is practicing the most up-to-date, forward-looking medic ine, but he is not a crackpot. He did not invent SPECT, nor was he the first to use it to image the brain. He has formalized it for use in orthodox psychiatric practice. Others are using this technique with confirming results. His assertion about actually healing in the title is overboard, but he has provided the best imagery, theory and practice to date for the treatment of ADD/ADHD. I recommend this book for those who want to look at the disorder in detail. It is not a "pop" book such as "Driven to Distraction" or "ADD, A Different Perception," which are both excellent books for the areas they address, but with less data available than Dr. Amen, grab the prescription pad quite easily. A good book about a good technology, used in a helpful manner.
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Summary: Readable and fascinating
Review: Surprisingly readable, Dr. Amen explores and clearly explains the brainwave activity that lies behind the behavioral variations we see in ADD. A great follow-up to the popular "Driven To Distraction". I feel like an expert, and it is helping me immensely with my ADD son, brother, and husband. With this in hand, I could easily understand my son's assessment (ah yes, frontal lobe, executive management) and will be trying Dr Amen's various diet / supplement / and medication suggestions. I trust the psychologist's advice more now that I have done the background reading.
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Summary: Irresponsible
Review: While this book is well-written, compelling, and introduces new technology that supports the idea of AD/HD as a brain disorder (versus being a flaw in character), it makes claims that are years ahead of the research needed to substantiate most of them. Amen writes with the certainty and fervor of a zealot rather than the cautious prose of a scientist. This is problematic because the only empirical support for his claims comes from his own work. A lack of replication is a crucial flaw in any sort of scientific endeavor and, while not invalidating results, calls for cautious interpretation. In his failure to engage any caution in his writing, Amen is gravely irresponsible. A second point to consider is that Amen's taxonomy of AD/HD suggests six types of the disorder that functionally encompass any bad experiences that a person with AD/HD might have. He then prescribes medical and psychosocial treatments for each type --again without any empirical support. If his position in this book were indeed true, it would be too good to be true. Generally, claims that seem too good to be true (i.e., avoiding food dye 'cures' AD/HD) are indeed too good to be true. If you elect to read this book (and it is an interesting read), I would recommend that you digest all of the information it conveys with a great deal of caution.
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Summary: If everyone read this book we could all be happier
Review: I found Dr. Amen's book to be enthralling. I couldn't put it down. I have a son with "overfocused ADD" type 3. For several years we have struggled with helping him. Through reading Healing ADD, we better understand what he is going through. If everyone would read this book, especially people who work with children, they would understand people who "suffer" from this disorder. These children would have a happier life, as well as the adults with this disorder. As a family we can do things now to bring peace into our home. We have been able to extinguish the flame before it becomes an inferno. We can change our diet and be informed when we seek medical advise. This is a must read book for anyone whose child is struggling in school. I am so glad Dr. Daniel Amen has published his findings for everyone to read.
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