Rating: 
Summary: A different perspective on depression
Review: I appreciated Yapko's perspective on depression. He approaches depression from different perspectives, noting that sometimes it is chemical, but other times it is environmental and attitude. Yapko goes down the list of how some cliches and societal perspetives can contribute to anxiety, most memorably, he puts his own spin on the "if first you don't succeed, try try again" cliche, restating it as, "If at first you don't succeed, try try again . . . but try something different!" Keeping our options open, and being willing to try different things, can keep us from being depressed when we don't get exactly what we want in the way we wanted it. Another thing I appreciated was how Yapko noted that sometimes a belief in "higher meaning" can be used in cruel ways. Basically, he details how there are some people who believe that depressed people choose to be depressed, and that if only they would be more spiritual and more open to the positive things in the world then they wouldn't be in a depressed state. In this view, depressed people are seen as burdens who just won't "get with it." If only they would be more positive, and realize that they choose how they feel (and therefore have chosen this depression, and should feel bad for having done so because having chosen depression shows they are negative people), then things would be okay. Yapko notes that this is very cruel and lacks compassion. The irony being that such people (those who condemn depressed people as "negative thinkers") are themselves negative thinkers. This book provides a fresh perspective on depression. I really appreciated it.
Rating: 
Summary: Advice that will be helpful to many
Review: I found this book to be somewhat original and filled with information that will be useful to many people, regardless of whether they consider themselves depressed. I come from the school of thought that the greatest component of moderate to severe depression is biochemical, though most people find themselves in the realm of mild depression. For the mildly depressed, Yapko's advice may be more likely to work. And, like I said, most people could benefit from transforming the way they view and interact with the world. Avery Z. Conner, author of "Fevers of the Mind".
Rating:
Summary: An Alternative to Prozac
Review: I have read many books about depression. This one is so far the best. Dr. Yapko tackled the problem of depression from a somewhat different but profound perspective. Patients are encounraged to check their values and seek the deep rooted scource of their depression. Yapko integrated cognitive, behavioral, and interpersonal relationship methods in one book and provided detailed guidelines for readers to find out what specific methods were useful for them. There are many interesting Learning by Doing exercises in this book. Some of these assignments seem a little strange, but gradually they can bring about valuable perceptual shifts, and help people to perceive more positively.
Rating: 
Summary: Puh-leeze, enough with the condescension!
Review: I was looking for a book to complement the work I have been doing in therapy and with medications that would help me learn to live in new ways, since I have had some measure of depression for thirty-five years. This book and "Undoing Depression" were the two I tried. The factual content of the two is fairly similar but the tones of the two are worlds apart. "Undoing Depression" is a sympathetic approach to synthesizing all the things that can help form new and better life habits. It is written from three perspectives, that of the literature, of a practicing therapist, and someone who is himself recovering from depression. By contrast Yapko's book never let me feel that he and I were "on the same side;" throughout it I felt that the wise savior therapist was going to show me the error of my ways. In actual fact the advice of the two books is pretty close and people who need detailed and specific exercises and don't mind the school marm tone of voice might find it helpful. It irritated the heck out of me, though.
Rating:
Summary: Wow! What a Book!
Review: If you have been battling depression but have been unable to grab a good hold of what you are fighting and just how to fight....this is the book for you! I'm only half way through this book and already my wife and I have noticed changes in my mood and behaviour. This book offers clear, simple and effective ways to overcoming depression and fixing the flaws that promote it. As a born-again Christian, this book has helped me with insights in the "renewing of my mind". In learning to dismantle and defuse old thought and behaviour patterns I regain control of me that I might indeed submit. "Breaking the Patterns of Depression" for me, un-covers the specter of depression to reveal a tangible obstacle that I can confront. It also includes the information and techniques for overcoming it by untangling oneself from its tentacles (which we unwittingly wrap around our own selves) and further how to keep it at bay. I see myself working through this book many times. One pass only begins to unearth the value!
Rating:
Summary: Perfect Compliment to Richard O'Connor's
Review: In a seperate review I rated "Undoing Depression" with 5 stars and I give this book the same enthusiastic 5 star rating. Both books emphasize the need for depressed people to improve their lives and both books provide valuable information that will help accomplish this. Yapko seems to place a lot of importance upon cognitive therapy - depressed people almost invariably show errors in their thought processes that are harmful and teaching the depressed person to identify and correct these distortions is often the best way to accomplish rapid and lasting mental health. Often medications are needed, but using medications alone may help with the symptoms while not helping the patient to develop coping skills that are often needed in order to get at the root of the problem, and whereas insights alone may not be particularly helpful coping skills are. The book is well written with "Learning by Doing" excercises, and I like the way Yapko places emphasis upon understanding the various PATTERNS of depression for what they are, naming them, and helping the reader to recognize these patterns - to see them coming for what they are and to challenge them effectively (Chapter 2's title "Less Analysis, More Action"). I also think that many people will benefit from the section that focuses on common belief systems that can be harmful (e.g., "Everything happens for a reason") and helps the reader to move beyond noncritical acceptance of thought patterns and overgeneralizations. I agree with other reviewers that there is no replacement for professional help, and medications may be necessary, but I also think that many mildly to moderately depressed people will beneift greatly from owning these two books.
Rating:
Summary: Perfect Compliment to Richard O'Connor's
Review: In a seperate review I rated "Undoing Depression" with 5 stars and I give this book the same enthusiastic 5 star rating. Both books emphasize the need for depressed people to improve their lives and both books provide valuable information that will help accomplish this. Yapko seems to place a lot of importance upon cognitive therapy - depressed people almost invariably show errors in their thought processes that are harmful and teaching the depressed person to identify and correct these distortions is often the best way to accomplish rapid and lasting mental health. Often medications are needed, but using medications alone may help with the symptoms while not helping the patient to develop coping skills that are often needed in order to get at the root of the problem, and whereas insights alone may not be particularly helpful coping skills are. The book is well written with "Learning by Doing" excercises, and I like the way Yapko places emphasis upon understanding the various PATTERNS of depression for what they are, naming them, and helping the reader to recognize these patterns - to see them coming for what they are and to challenge them effectively (Chapter 2's title "Less Analysis, More Action"). I also think that many people will benefit from the section that focuses on common belief systems that can be harmful (e.g., "Everything happens for a reason") and helps the reader to move beyond noncritical acceptance of thought patterns and overgeneralizations. I agree with other reviewers that there is no replacement for professional help, and medications may be necessary, but I also think that many mildly to moderately depressed people will beneift greatly from owning these two books.
Rating:
Summary: Not written for adults.
Review: It is bad enough having to suffer from depression without having someone have you dissect yourself in analyzing of the disease or disorder or whatever Dr. Yapko wants one to call it. The book is written in the "parent mode" of communication and he was talking down to me. Plus, since his secret answers were printed upside down, I felt childish trying to read them or, since much of my reading is done in public, I was embarrassed with having to continually turn the book upside down. I want to know the facts and not be quizzed on whether my thinking is proper or healthy. Tell me your opinion or what you know for sure about depression and I will decide whether or not to incorporate them into my process of healthy thinking and living. No, this book was not for me.
Rating:
Summary: Quite literally, life-changing.
Review: Much has been said here already so I shall just add my voice to say that Yapko changed my life! I have been blessed to have good counsellor working with Yapko's ideas by my side and I have gone from being a confused, barely functional individual to loving life so much I sometimes make myself sick! :)
Rating:
Summary: Sutures for bleeding minds
Review: My third bout with major depression in four years and I was a burned out house. I saw this book in a used bookstore and, being a good compulsive, decided to read yet another title on the topic. So, so glad I did. I had done endless ruminating about "why" this cycle was occurring, endless dissection of my "inner life" and the like and though I had snagged many insights into my experience, I was still just a very depressed person with insights--I had no ability to link my discoveries with clear, new, hopeful actions. Like many people, I believed that constant introspection would eventually pay off, but after years of going through this painful loop I had lost any energy I'd begun with and had come to know that "understanding" does not automatically mean the thing that's understood is therefore changed. Yapko will make demands on you with this book, but he is never harsh, flippant or vague. No new-age verbiage, childhood revisitation or typical shrink-speak. His demands are those of clear, solution-oriented actions. And honestly, he's a good guide. For those who feel like they've "tried it all" but are still caught on the spike of their own mind, try this book. I think you could get better. Good Luck.
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