Books about Depressed from Amazon.com

The Noonday Demon examines depression in personal, cultural, and scientific terms. Drawing on his own struggles with the illness and interviews with fellow sufferers, doctors and scientists, policy makers and politicians, drug designers and philosophers, Andrew Solomon reveals the subtle complexities and sheer agony of the disease. He confronts the challenge of defining the illness and describes the vast range of available medications, the efficacy of alternative treatments, and the impact the malady has on various demographic populations -- around the world and throughout history. He also explores the thorny patch of moral and ethical questions posed by emerging biological explanations for mental illness. With uncommon humanity, candor, wit, and erudition, award-winning author Solomon takes readers on a journey of incom-parable range and resonance into the most pervasive of family secrets. His contribution to our understanding not only of mental illness but also of the human condition is truly stunning..
Price: $5.00 [Notify me when price goes down.]

Tony and I are brothers across the stroboscopic echoes of the past: dissolving across black interludes into the next image, and the next, and the next, until all vestige of pure vision is destroyed All that is left is memory, and we know how faulty that can be. Who Tony was is forever blurred by who I was and how I remember who I thought Tony was . . . He is dead, and I am alive—left to dwell on questions, and to seek the answers . . .
Would I, too, end up killing myself? Was the legacy of self-destruction I would discover in my family too great for me to survive? If so, when would the pendulum swing? And, if it never did, why not? How could I—almost alone among my family—escape?
—From Blue Genes

This courageous, engrossing memoir explores the complex and shattering effects of a family legacy of depression and suicide on the author and his brother, the award-winning journalist, J. Anthony Lukas.

Christopher (Kit) Lukas’s mother committed suicide when he was a boy. He and his brother, Tony, were not told how she died. No one spoke of the family’s history of depression and bipolar disorder. The legacy of guilt and grief haunted Kit and Tony throughout their lives.
Both brothers achieved remarkable success, Tony as a gifted journalist, Kit as an accomplished television producer and director. After suffering bouts of depression, Kit was able to confront his family’s troubled past, drawing on his experience to write Silent Grief, an invaluable guide to surviving a loved one’s suicide. Tony forged a sterling career, eventually winning two Pulitzer Prizes, including one for the now-classicbook Common Ground. But he never seemed to find the contentment Kit had attained; he remained creative, but depressed. In 1997, shortly before the publication of his acclaimed book, Big Trouble, Tony Lukas committed suicide.
Blue Genes portrays the lives of two brothers who alternately locked horns and found solace in each other. Written with heartrending candor, it captures the devastation of this family legacy of depression, but it is also surprisingly uplifting, as it details the strength and hope that can provide a way of escaping its grasp.

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Price: $12.00 [Notify me when price goes down.]

A work of great personal courage and a literary tour de force, this bestseller is Styron's true account of his descent into a crippling and almost suicidal depression. Styron is perhaps the first writer to convey the full terror of depression's psychic landscape, as well as the illuminating path to recovery..
Price: $4.00 [Notify me when price goes down.]

Tried everything but still not feeling better?

If your depression keeps coming back or is even getting worse, then you may be suffering from bipolar II or “soft” bipolar disorder. Commonly misdiagnosed, these mood disorders are characterized by recurring bouts of depression along with anxiety, irritability, mood swings, sleep problems, or intrusive thoughts.

Why Am I Still Depressed? shows you how to identify if you have a nonmanic form of bipolar disorder and how to work with your doctor to safely and effectively treat it.

Author James R. Phelps, M.D., gives you the latest tools and knowledge so you can:

• Understand the Mood Spectrum, a powerful new tool for diagnosis
• Know all your treatment options, including mood-stabilizing medications and research-tested psychotherapies
• Examine the potential hazards of taking antidepressant medications
• Manage your condition with exercise and lifestyle changes
• Help family and friends with this condition understand their diagnosis and find treatment

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Price: $11.09 [Notify me when price goes down.]

A psychologist offers peace-making strategies for parents who don't know where to turn.

The sullen, withdrawn, sarcastic teenager. The defensive, wary, and helpless parent. This book builds a bridge between the two sides--with practical and supportive advice on how to:

* Contain conflicts before they escalate into violence
* Break through the teen's verbal intimidation
* Avoid futile arguments
* Turn confrontation into communication
* Stand firm against teen rage
* Manage teen manipulation
* Build the teen's self-esteem
* Talk to teens when no one knows what to say

For ever parent who's screamed, what am I going to do with you?, this book finally provides the answer..
Price: $8.19 [Notify me when price goes down.]

A Kind Friend to Walk with You...

For many, depression is associated with shame and humiliation -- even a lack of faith. But in this refreshingly honest and oh-so-very-real revelation of one woman's journey through depression, you'll hear the voice of a kind friend. And in her words you'll find hope and renewed confidence that will guide you through your own darkness and into the light.

• If you are currently suffering from depression -- this book will help you realize you're not alone.
• If you have a loved one dealing with depression -- this book will help you understand.
• If you are a mental-health professional -- you now have a new tool to encourage your clients.

Along with the humor, Chonda shares practical insight, biblical teaching, emotional support, and sympathetic concern. Whether you've experienced depression in your own life or in the life of someone you love, this friend has something to offer you: help, hope and, believe it or not, plenty of laughter.

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Price: $11.81 [Notify me when price goes down.]

For some people, depression has been a part of their experience for so long that they've begun to believe it's what they are. They become experts at "doing" depression--hiding it, working around it, even achieving great things (but at the price of great struggle, and little satisfaction). In this book, psychotherapist Richard O'Conner shows us how to "undo" depression, by replacing depressive patterns of thinking, relating, and behaving with a new and more effective set of skills. With a truly holistic approach that synthesizes the best of the many schools of thought about this painful disease, O'Conner offers new hope--and new life--for depressives..
Price: $4.99 [Notify me when price goes down.]

A revolutionary, proven-effective model that shows you how to:
· Identify symptoms of mixed anxiety and depression
· Cope with negative and painful emotions
· Calm your anxious mind
· Regulate dramatic mood shifts
· Learn how to soothe yourself
· energy and enthusiasm

Imagine feeling depressed and drained of energy and initiative while also being overwhelmed with feelings of dread and anxiety about the future. The consequence of this intolerable state of mind amounts to behavioral paralysis, a profound loss of control and quality of life. Therapist call this condition co-occuring depression and anxiety. Clinical research suggests that 60 percent of depression sufferers concurrently experience some kind of anxiety disorder. This book, the first written to general readers about this condition, uses the powerful techniques of dialectical behavior therapy, or DBT, to help readers control both conditions.

DBT begins with the assumption that psychological problems are the result of feeling or emotional responses that are in conflict. It integrates a range of theraputic techniques to "tease apart" and resolve the competing internal needs and urges that generate anger, depression, and anxiety. By recognizing these conflicting emotions and forming new expectations, readers alleviate the symptoms generated by these conflicts. The book begins by having readers identify their most painful inner conflict. Then they develop compromises that acknowledge the issue but limit its ability to interfere with their lives—effectively reducing the extent to which their emotions govern who they are or what that are capable of. Exercises focus on assisting readers to become more responsive to uplifitng aspects of their enviroment and tolerant of unavoidable emotions..
Price: $13.87 [Notify me when price goes down.]

Shake the blues away.

Everyone knows that depression can lead to guilt, sadness, frustration, and in the case of 15-20% of people with depression, suicide. Because we live in a culture that rewards (and often worships) productivity, when a depressed person can’t meet the expectations of society, the depression becomes worse and a vicious cycle begins. The goal of Getting Things Done When You’re Depressed is to break this cycle. Readers will learn:
• How to prepare yourself mentally for working while depressed
• How to structure your environment so you can work more easily
• How to work with others
• How to prevent depression
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Price: $8.05 [Notify me when price goes down.]

This bestselling workbook provides interactive exercises that help readers take responsibility for their own wellness and teach essential coping skills, such as tracking and controlling moods, building a support system, increasing self-confidence and self-esteem, avoiding conditions that can exacerbate mood swings, and using relaxation, diet, and exercise to stabilize moods.A major feature of the second edition is a new chapter that details a step-by-step process to help readers develop their own plan for managing symptoms and staying well. The second edition also contains an updated list of resources, including an extensive list of helpful web resources, as well as expanded material on specific treatment strategies and updated resources for mental health professionals..
Price: $12.99 [Notify me when price goes down.]