Super Healing or IMP of the Mind

Super Healing: The Clinically Proven Plan to Maximize Recovery from Illness or Injury

Author: Julie K Silver

At this moment, 90 million Americans are in the process of healing from an illness or injury. Many will start out in the hospital, receiving immediate and perhaps life-sustaining treatment. Once they're through this critical phase, they may be left to their own devices to "finish" healing.

These patients may not realize it, but they've entered a special time between acute sickness and optimal health--what Julie Silver, MD, calls the Healing Zone. Capitalizing on the dynamic power of the Healing Zone is what Super Healing is all about.

Over the years, Dr. Silver has taught thousands of patients how to Super Heal by utilizing key principles of rehabilitation medicine, proven through evidence-based research. She has distilled these principles into a self-guided program with the following core components:

-Exercising in a therapeutic manner

-Eating a healing diet

-Obtaining proper rest and sleep

-Alleviating pain

-Avoiding mood problems

-Using the mind to heal the body

-Improving loving relationships and social connections

-Harnessing spiritual energy

Collectively, these components can facilitate recovery from illness or injury far beyond what any one can do alone. It's not just healing--it's Super Healing.

Table of Contents:

Acknowledgments     vii
Introduction     ix
You Can Super Heal
The Power of Super Healing     3
A Ticket to the Healing Zone     10
A Plan to Heal     30
A Time to Heal     42
Your Super Healing Plan
Exercise to Build Strength and Endurance     61
Eat to Heal Your Body     82
Rest to Recover     104
Alleviate Pain     122
Use Your Mind to Heal Your Body     136
Monitor Your Mood     146
Surround Yourself with Loving People     165
Harness Your Spiritual Energy     186
Fine-Tuning Your Super Healing Plan
Revisit Your Goals and Persevere     205
Cope with Setbacks and Plateaus     215
Continue the Healing Journey     227
The Super Healing Shortcut Plan     237
Where to Find Help     239
Reading List     244
Index     249

New interesting textbook: The Paleo Diet for Athletes or The Complete Book of Incense Oils and Brews

Imp of the Mind: Exploring the Silent Epidemic of Obsessive Bad Thoughts

Author: Lee Baer

In The Imp of the Mind, a leading expert on obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) explores a hidden epidemic that afflicts millions of Americans. In the first book to fully examine obsessive bad thoughts, Dr. Lee Baer combines the latest research with his own extensive experience in treating this widespread syndrome. Drawing on information ranging from new advances in brain technology to pervasive social taboos, Dr. Baer explores the root causes of bad thoughts, why they can spiral out of control, and how to recognize the crucial difference between harmless and dangerous bad thoughts.

Publishers Weekly

Specializing in the diagnosis and treatment of obsessive-compulsive disorder, psychologist Baer (an associate professor at Harvard) turns the spotlight on a little-known but common form of obsession, "bad thoughts." According to Baer, these "intrusive" thoughts fall into a few basic types: violent, sexual and blasphemous words, and images of a religious nature. Borrowing from Edgar Allan Poe, Baer blames such mental torment on "the imp of the perverse," that little devil inhabiting all human minds, cross-culturally and across time, "who makes you think the most inappropriate thoughts at the most inappropriate times." For most people, the imp proves no more than a "fleeting annoyance" most of the time, but for Baer's patients, these impish thoughts create extreme fear, guilt and worry. Attempting to suppress them only makes them stronger, leading the afflicted to avoid places, people and situations that provoke them. A new mother who obsessively thinks about harming her infant, for example, may increasingly avoid daily caretaking activities. Tending to be perfectionist and "overly conscientious," these people are highly unlikely ever to act on their bad thoughts, Baer explains. The most successful treatment, he says, involves desensitizing individuals by increasingly (and safely) exposing them to the situations that provoke their "bad thoughts"; cognitive therapy is also helpful for many patients. Finally, such prescription drugs as serotonin reuptake inhibitors, like Prozac, have also proved highly effective in the treatment of this disorder. With an easy-to-read style, Baer offers a comprehensive and accessible look at this fascinating topic. (Jan. 15) Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.

Library Journal

People with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) suffer from excessive concerns about germs, appearance, or the possibility of doing harm to themselves or others. To combat these fears, they develop rituals such as checking and rechecking locks, hoarding goods, washing constantly, or pulling out hair. A conservative estimate is that one in 40 adults is afflicted with OCD, which until recently was considered almost untreatable. However, new antidepressants and behavioral therapy techniques have led to great improvements in the condition of sufferers of this biologically based illness. Psychologist Penzel has written a do-it-yourself guide that outlines in great detail procedures for a self-administered program of behavioral therapy. While it seems doubtful that such a program would be of much use to anyone as seriously disabled as some of the people described here, Penzel reminds us that many sufferers either won't seek help or can't obtain it because they are poor or live in an area underserved by the medical community. He even discusses programs that provide medications to people who can't afford them. For those of us out in the boondocks, a book on mental health acknowledging that many sufferers have, at most, only a general practitioner to whom they can turn is most welcome. This title is the most useful of the recent books on OCD and is highly recommended to all public libraries. Baer (psychology, Harvard Medical Sch.) presents a more narrowly focused work that concentrates on those whose primary problem is disturbing thoughts. It covers much the same ground as Penzel's work but in less detail. While The Imp of the Mind would make a useful addition to larger public libraries, Ian Osborn's Tormenting Thoughts and Secret Rituals: The Hidden Epidemic of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (Pantheon, 1998) is a better companion to Penzel's title and should be a higher purchase priority.--Mary Ann Hughes, Neill P.L., WA Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.