Larry Godwin's Blog: Transcending Depression - Posts Tagged "depression"

In my new book, I present my story, which represents the chronology of my mental illness over a span of 49 years, as well as my attempts to understand it and cope with it. Selected entries from my journals constitute the source and follow an authentic progression over time. In them, I relate insights about the origin of my disorder. I also describe thoughts and feelings that arose and my reactions to events that took place at various times, as influenced, for better or worse, by psychiatric medications and supplements.

My goal is to save lives. The primary motivation for presenting my history is to encourage others who grapple with either chronic depression or occasional bouts. I hope my journey resonates with some, validates feelings, and sparks the thoughts “I'm not alone” and “I will feel better.” This book can also help family members and friends of the mentally ill, and their caregivers, find compassion and enable them to understand the struggle.

Transcending Depression differs from many other books on the topic in that it is not grounded in clinical experience, scientific research, or empirical evidence, which may make it more approachable than some. It’s not a how-to book, not a model for depressed people to follow, not a toolbox. On the contrary, it shows rather than tells the reader what he or she might do to feel better.

Appendices include my Depression Survival Guide, which offers 36 suggestions to bring relief, and Chess in the Labyrinth, a metaphor that compares defeating depression to winning a chess game.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5...

Larry Godwin

The Depression Cure: The 6-Step Program to Beat Depression Without Drugs by Stephen S. Iliardi (Da Capo Lifelong Books, Reprint edition, 2010): The author describes his holistic, clinically proven approach to overcoming depression, which includes eating brain food, antidepressant exercise, light box therapy, and enhancing sleep. This would be a helpful resource for a depressed person.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6...

The No-Bullshit Guide to Depression by Steven Skoczen (Ink and Feet, 2016): The author’s funny, irreverent book begins by describing depression in detail. Then he offers over sixty research-backed tools, including those that use the mind, those that require action, those that use the body, and those that address the environment, to take on depression and subvert suicidal thoughts. Give this one try.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...

Undoing Depression: What Therapy Doesn't Teach You and Medication Can't Give You by Richard O'Connor, Ph.D. (Little, Brown Spark; 2nd Revised edition, 2010): With a holistic approach that synthesizes the best of the many schools of thought about depression, the author demonstrates how to replace negative patterns with new, more effective skills.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...

Healing from Depression: 12 Weeks to a Better Mood by Douglas Bloch, M.A. (Nicolas-Hays, 2009): The author shares his struggle to stay alive amidst despair and out-of-control anxiety attacks, and explains how the power of prayer and other holistic approaches, without antidepressants, ultimately led to his recovery. He offers worksheets and goal sheets along with 26 graphs and diagrams.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...

This Is Depression: A Comprehensive, Compassionate Guide for Anyone Who Wants to Understand Depression by Dr. Diane McIntosh (Page Two, 2019): The author takes an evidence-based approach to outline the causes, impact, and treatment of depression. She describes how antidepressants work, which treatments are worth taking, and which are useless or dangerous.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5...

Rethinking Depression: How to Shed Mental Health Labels and Create Personal Meaning by Eric Maisel, Ph.D. (New World Library, 2012): The author distills a career spent working with individuals seeking help with mood and motivation. He critiques the unhappiness-sickness model of depression and presents a new approach that updates the best ideas of modern psychology.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...

Healing Depression Without Medication: A Psychiatrist's Guide to Balancing Mind, Body, and Soul by Jodie Skillicorn, D.O. (North Atlantic Books, 2020): The psychiatrist debunks the myth of the neurochemical imbalance and offers a holistic, evidence-based approach to beat depression through nutrition, mindfulness, fostering meaningful connections, exercise, sleep, nature, and breath work.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5...

Depression: The Way Out by Neil Nedley, M.D. (Nedley Publishing, 2001): By studying the latest scientific research combined with years of clinical experience, the author seeks a cure for depression instead of merely medicating the symptoms. He advocates finding and treating the underlying cause of the disease via scrutinizing the body’s physical, mental, and spiritual functions.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...

Keys to Unlocking Depression by Michael D. Yapko, Ph.D. (Yapko Publications, 2016): This psychologist sums up the science and clinical judgment he has shared with his patients and professional colleagues for over 30 years. He encourages readers to think about depression in a way that will make overcoming it both easier and more effective, rather than declaring themselves victims.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...