The Anxiety Book: Developing Strength in the Face of Fear

by Jonathan Davidson, Henry Dreher

Overview

Do you have unhealthy anxiety? Do you suffer from sleeplessness, irritability, trouble relaxing, difficulty in concentrating, or fear of ambarrassment? From Dr. Jonathan Davidson, director of the Anxiety and Traumatic Stress Program at Duke University Medical Center and one of the most respected experts on anxiety disorders, comes the definitive and solution-filled book about anxiety. The Anxiety Book offers self-assessment tests and serves as a comprehesive treatment guide for one of the most common health concerns in America.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781573223768
Publisher:	Penguin Publishing Group
Publication date:	02/03/2004
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	320
Sales rank:	1,120,926
Product dimensions:	5.93(w) x 8.97(h) x 0.83(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Jonathan R. Davidson, M.D., is a professor of psychiatry and the director of the Anxiety and Traumatic Stress Program at Duke University Medical Center. He has received awards from the American Psychiatric Association, the American Psychopathological Association, and the American Medical Association for his contributions to psychiatry, as well as a National Institutes of Health grant for a groundbreaking study of herbs.
Henry Dreher is a veteran science writer who has coauthored numerous articles and books.

Table of Contents

1	Anxious? You're not Alone	1
2	The Five Faces of Anxiety: Which One is Mine?	22
3	Solution 1: Change Your Fearful Beliefs	80
4	Solution 2: Vaccinate Your Anxious Mind--Exposure Therapy	133
5	Solution 3: Developing Serenity Skills	165
6	Solution 4: Medications	206
7	Solution 5: Diet, Exercise, and Herbs	246
8	Resilience: Life Beyond Anxiety	271
	Endnotes	284
	Resource Guide for Anxiety Disorders	295
	Index	300

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

"Easy to read and filled with solutions ranging from spirituality to meditation to a healthy diet. Authors Jonathan R. Davidson, M.D., and Henry Dreher explain the hows and whys of anxiety, how to recognize its components and how to treat it. It's peppered with real-life examples of people you may recognize in yourself and how they dealt with fear and anxiety."—The Dallas Morning News

"A lay reader's guide on treating anxiety...Davidson successfully combines a self-help approach with his clinical experience, shining in his firm belief that within all anxiety sufferers lies the potential to control their disorder and regain an emotionally fulfilling life...a highly relevant choice."—Library Journal

Editorial Reviews

"Easy to read and filled with solutions ranging from spirituality to meditation to a healthy diet. Authors Jonathan R. Davidson, M.D., and Henry Dreher explain the hows and whys of anxiety, how to recognize its components and how to treat it. It's peppered with real-life examples of people you may recognize in yourself and how they dealt with fear and anxiety."—The Dallas Morning News

"A lay reader's guide on treating anxiety...Davidson successfully combines a self-help approach with his clinical experience, shining in his firm belief that within all anxiety sufferers lies the potential to control their disorder and regain an emotionally fulfilling life...a highly relevant choice."—Library Journal

From the Publisher

Everybody worries about anxiety. One of five Americans suffers from it, and all of us know the slings and arrows of the sleeplessness, irritability, and tension that it causes. Dr. Jonathan Davidson, the director of Duke University Medical Center's prestigious Anxiety and Traumatic Stress Program, has fashioned a self-assessment guide that includes a five-step treatment that aims toward relaxation.

Davidson (Herbs for the Mind), director of the Anxiety and Traumatic Stress Program at Duke University Medical Center, with the assistance of science writer Dreher, has produced a valuable tool for dealing with anxiety, a condition that strikes 20 million Americans and may seriously impair their daily functioning. The authors divide chronic anxiety into five major categories: generalized anxiety, social phobia, posttraumatic stress, panic, and obsessive compulsive disorders. Informed coverage of each category is provided, including symptoms, manifestations and self-assessment tests that help readers identify which type of anxiety is troubling them. Davidson has treated anxiety disorders for decades and draws on patient histories and research to offer treatment options. For example, if someone is unduly frightened of public speaking, he suggests exposure therapy, such as deliberately agreeing to do a presentation at work. Other strategies include developing serenity skills by meditation or progressive muscle relaxation, pursuing a healthy diet and exercise program and taking medications. There is a comprehensive section on the use of herbal remedies. Davidson sets a positive and compassionate tone throughout the text and is convinced, based on clinical evidence, that it is possible to subdue unhealthy anxiety and become an emotionally stronger person after engaging in one or more treatment programs. This is an excellent self-help resource. (Mar.) Copyright 2003 Cahners Business Information.

Publishers Weekly

Drawing on the integrative curriculum of his institution, psychiatrist Davidson (director, Anxiety & Traumatic Stress Program, Duke Univ. Medical Ctr.) provides a lay reader's guide on treating anxiety. According to the author, 20 million Americans suffer from this disorder, and here he explains its five primary forms: general anxiety, panic, social anxiety, post-traumatic stress, and obsessive-compulsive disorder. To help readers determine whether they are sufferers, he presents a simple diagnostic screening tool and describes the "Five Levels of Healing" program that he has developed based on his extensive psychiatric work with patients. His approach includes changing fearful beliefs, using exposure therapy to help deal with anxiety triggers, developing serenity skills to help ease anxiety, initiating lifestyle changes, and taking prescribed anti-anxiety medications. Davidson successfully combines a self-help approach with his clinical experience, shining in his firm belief that within all anxiety sufferers lies the potential to control their disorder and regain an emotionally fulfilling life. Rather than focusing on overcoming specific anxieties, as is the case in so many other anxiety titles, Davidson instead concentrates on clinically driven steps to overcome all forms of anxiety that will likely prove more successful if facilitated by professionals. As a result, this is a highly relevant choice for academic libraries supporting helping professions, as well as for psychology and self-help collections.-Dale Farris, Groves, TX Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.

Library Journal