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Rating: 
Summary: Everything from herbal applications to clinical treatments
Review: A Primer Of Drug Action is a nontechnical guide to the actions, uses and side effects of psychoactive drugs which will prove important for any psychology or health library collection. A Primer Of Drug Action covers everything from herbal applications to clinical treatments of psychological disorders, revealing the latest findings in the applications of drug therapy to various conditions.
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Summary: Loan this book to colleagues . . . never see it again
Review: First, I divulge a long-time professional relationship with the author. In the years when I served as Director of Training in a large community mental health center, I contracted with Dr. Julien to provide In-service training to our staff of over 350.
His sessions always filled our training room and received positive evaluations from both persons with medical training and our case manager/counselors. I focus my review on two portions of the book's sub-title. 1)Non-technical and 2) Revised and Updated. Robert Julien writes as he speaks. He demystifies the vast information in this field and clarifies it. However, for the reader who wants in-depth information about the topics, there are treasures to be found. Your "aha !" and "ohhhh" buttons will be pushed constantly. I appreciate the conscientious way Dr. Julien and his publisher have kept the book "revised and updated." There are so many research findings being reported all the time. New medications come on line. This makes many excellent (and expensive) books obsolete within a couple of years. "A Primer of Drug Action" remains current and useful. But seriously, they sometimes are slow in being returned. I buy them two at a time.
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Summary: Excellent book
Review: I became aware of this book because it was used as the textbook for a recent upper level biopsychology seminar. It was one of the best books I have ever had to use for a class, and I believe is an extremely valuable reference for anyone with interest in the way drugs affect the brain. The writing is clear, concise, informative, interesting, and complete. Each chapter gives an overview of the family of drugs and then goes into detail on a few of the most common examples. Everything from delivery to half-life to molecular action to side effects is covered. Many of my friends went out and bought the book after looking at my copy to learn about either their recreational habits or prescription drugs. A background in biology would be useful for understanding all of the information, but there are also appendices which explain the basics.
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Summary: the solid introduction.
Review: I first read a friend's copy of this book, which he had used as a text in a psychopharmacology course. i soon acquired my own copy, and a number of my friends have read it--it's a very accessible introduction to mind-affecting drugs, with generally good pointers into more specific literature. Julien's strengths are in the area of legitimate, prescription use; i feel that the recreational sections are somewhat less complete. the chapter on psychedelics is, unfortunately, nigh-on-useless--errors and omissions here mar an otherwise excellent book. this book has been an indespensible reference for me.
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Summary: Better than a $100 psychopharmacology text
Review: I strongly recommend this book to anyone interested in getting real facts about psychoactive drugs. Don't be fooled by the low price or the fact that it is "nontechnical." (All that means is that psychiatrists can read it without digging though their biochem notes!) This is a real medical-grade book that gives a very complete and easy-to-understand introduction to the drugs used to treat psychiatric disorders. Don't waste time with popular books that either claim psychoactive drugs will solve all our problems, or alternately, that they are useless brain-damaging poisons. *A Primer...* is the most honest, readable introduction to the psychotherapeutics I know of. It is essential reading for the informed patient or caregiver.
Rating:
Summary: Better than a $100 psychopharmacology text
Review: I strongly recommend this book to anyone interested in getting real facts about psychoactive drugs. Don't be fooled by the low price or the fact that it is "nontechnical." (All that means is that psychiatrists can read it without digging though their biochem notes!) This is a real medical-grade book that gives a very complete and easy-to-understand introduction to the drugs used to treat psychiatric disorders. Don't waste time with popular books that either claim psychoactive drugs will solve all our problems, or alternately, that they are useless brain-damaging poisons. *A Primer...* is the most honest, readable introduction to the psychotherapeutics I know of. It is essential reading for the informed patient or caregiver.
Rating:
Summary: An accessible balanced approach to drug action
Review: This is the third edition of this book that I own. As a dual diagnosis counselor I have found this book to be an invaluable resource. The psychopharmacology of both drugs of abuse and mental health medications are explained in a detailed manner that is very accessible. I find it a valuable resource in helping me educate clients about drug action.
Rating:
Summary: An accessible balanced approach to drug action
Review: This is the third edition of this book that I own. As a dual diagnosis counselor I have found this book to be an invaluable resource. The psychopharmacology of both drugs of abuse and mental health medications are explained in a detailed manner that is very accessible. I find it a valuable resource in helping me educate clients about drug action.
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