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Feeling Good: The New Mood Therapy Revised and Updated (平装)
by David D. Burns, M.D.
| Category:
Self improvement, Self help |
| Market price: ¥ 108.00
MSL price:
¥ 98.00
[ Shop incentives ]
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| Stock:
In Stock |
MSL rating:
 Good for Gifts |
| MSL Pointer Review:
A classic in the area of Cognitive Therapy, Feeling Good is highly recommended as essential reading to everyone, even though you are not depressed. |
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AllReviews |
1 2   | Total 2 pages 16 items |
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Los Angles Times )MSL quote), USA
<2007-01-08 00:00>
A book to read and re-read! |
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David Mann (MSL quote), USA
<2007-01-08 00:00>
This book is really incredible and has changed my life. I have bought at least ten copies - one for me, and one for everyone else who I am friends with or care about. David Burns presents a step by step method for performing mental house cleaning which will help you finally get a handle on bad thought habits that have been bringing you down for years. Please get a copy. |
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Richard Singer (MSL quote), USA
<2007-01-08 00:00>
I can think back to when I purchased this book. It was a gloomy day in Washington, D.C. where I was stationed with the Marines Corps. I was an active alcoholic and suicidally depressed. I wandered in a bookstore in Pentagon city looking for an answer. This book is what i found. It gave me hope and practical strategies to improve my depressed thinking and begin my path to recovery. It took a few years for me to get my life together, but I definitely have to credit Dr. Burns Book with giving me hope that there was an answer to my desperate state of wanting to die on a daily basis. The strategies in this book combined with medication allowed me to escape the "HELL" of depression and begin living a peaceful and content life. Thank You Dr. Burns. Of course I highly recommend this book. |
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Black (MSL quote), USA
<2007-01-08 00:00>
I am bipolar. Each year that passed I became more and more significantly depressed with my cycles. I was hospitalized several times, once for three months. I was suicidal more times than I ever admitted to my doctors and therapists. To respond to an earlier review, I'm not sure how I would have taken this book at my darkest moments. However, I was still pretty low when my therapist suggested I pick it up.
It is without a doubt the single most important factor in my well mental health. Learning cognative therapy has enabled me to be medication free (yes, with doctors approval) for over 8 years.
About a year after getting this book and learning the techniques there was a moment that scared me. I would feel okay, even good, them out of nowhere I would be very down. Previously I had been a slow cycler so I was very worried that my illness was progressing. After my therapist questioned me for quite some time he pointed out to me that I was clincally depressed, however when I had the strength I would implement the cognative therapy I had learned and hence elevate my mood. But because I was depressed I could only maintain that strength for a short time and would feel the depression again. Every day/month/year that I practice cognative therapy it becomes second nature. Like I have stated, I am medication free. I have not been hospitalized since learning cognative therapy. Depression no longer rules my life. I recommend this book to anyone who is struggling. |
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Burke (MSL quote), UK
<2007-01-08 00:00>
I've owned this book for a couple of years now, and still haven't read all of it. But that's no bad thing - Feeling Good is crammed with so much practical advice and so many self-help exercises that it would be impossible to take it in all at once! The book not only teaches you to overcome depression, it also helps you tackle the issues that caused the depression in the first place, thus preventing it from returning.
The basic premise behind Feeling Good is that depression is caused by "twisted" or distorted thoughts we have about ourselves and others, such as "I'm a complete failure", "I have to do everything perfectly" and "Nobody loves me". Personally, I believe that while all of those thoughts *can* cause depression, in many cases they only appear after someone has become depressed - a symptom of depression rather than a cause. But that doesn't really matter, because replacing those thoughts with more balanced, accurate ones (such as "I've made some mistakes, but I also get things right sometimes, so I can't be a complete failure") does have a knock-on effect on mood. Before I found an antidepressant that worked for me, just learning to challenge those thoughts reduced my depression from severe to mild.
Feeling Good also contains a useful section on medication, with information on the main drugs prescribed and advice on what to do if a drug doesn't seem to be working, how long to continue taking it after you feel better, and other such issues.
I did find a few of the chapters unhelpful, such as "Coping with the Stresses and Strains of Daily Living", which turned out to be about how Burns deals with his difficult patients. But the majority of the book is so good that this hardly matters. The chapter on suicide was a bit weak too, so for anyone who struggles with suicidal feelings, I'd recommend How I Stayed Alive When My Brain Was Trying to Kill Me by Susan Rose Blauner in addition to this book.
One other criticism I have is that Feeling Good is perhaps a bit complicated and overwhelming for someone suffering from severe depression and finding it hard to think straight. If that's a problem for you, I'd recommend Mind over Mood by Greenberger and Padesky instead. It's more straight- forward and the worksheets are easier to use, but it also doesn't cover as much ground, so it might be worth getting both books and moving onto this one.
As the author himself acknowledges, Feeling Good isn't a substitute for seeking appropriate professional help. I needed medication and the support of my psychiatrist as well as the CBT techniques featured in this book. But I live in a country where, while antidepressants are freely available, therapy is not. I'd recommend Feeling Good to anyone who can't afford therapy or is stuck on a waiting list, as well as to anyone who wants to supplement their therapy with self-help exercises.
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An American reader (MSL quote), USA
<2007-01-08 00:00>
I purchased this book for my son Alex because he was moody, his grades were falling, and he wasn't doing anything around the house. After reading this book, his grades picked up, and he started being more responsible.
Thank you Dr. Burns! Your book has proved what I suspected all along: There is no excuse for being depressed. It doesn't really matter who you are or what your background - you CAN learn to be happy. If you are unhappy the only reason is that your thinking is distorted. Dr. Burns demonstrates in a very clear fashion how it is irrational to be depressed about anything. The main cause of depression is cognitive distortions, so if you are depressed, you probably have many distorted thoughts. In other words, you are being irrational. My own belief is that all unhappy people are being irrational. Unless, of course, their motive is to get sympathy. If someone you know whines and complains alot, their motive is probably just to get attention, or to say "Poor me! Just look at me, my life is so terrible!"
Finally, someone has put an end to the idea that depression cannot be helped, thereby ending the notion that depressed people need some kind of special treatment. They don't.
What we can learn from Dr. Burns book, I think, is that good communi- cation, along with kindness and respect, can go a long way toward alleviating depression. Also, this book proves, once and for all, that depression is treatable and that those who don't get better are probably just afraid of doing the work that is necessary. I feel sorry for them. There is no excuse for being unhappy. Unless, of course, someone has died. That is something that can make many of us depressed. But all losses can be overcome. There are even people with leprosy who are very happy. Count your blessing's people, and pull yourself up by your bootstraps! |
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Monica Willyard(MSL quote), USA
<2007-01-08 00:00>
Please don't let the size of this book put you off. You can read the first couple of chapters and then move around in it to find information on the issue you're coping with at the moment. I have bipolar depression and have dealt with protracted bouts of severe depression. I see talk therapy as one leg on a stool of 3 legs for support of people with mental health issues. Medication and physical activity are the other 2. During the suicidal times, most people aren't thinking clearly. Medication and professional guidance are definitely needed. I think this book begins to shine once a person has been on medication for a couple of weeks and is feeling better enough to read a few pages or try just one activity from the book. For people who are feeling hopeless but who are not actively suicidal, the suggestions are practical and can help move a person toward more normal feelings. The thing is that you actually need to write down the answers to the worksheets to get the full benefit of the book. Reading it like a novel won't help you that much. I have had this book for around 10 years now and still use it when I feel myself heading into a depression. It has not cured me since bipolar disorder is thought to be a problem within the brain itself. However, I do think the book and its exercises have helped me to keep my relationships intact and to distinguish between feeling the effects of my depression and feeling that all hope is gone. I have some control over my life and what I do, and that makes me feel better. I'm still on my medication. I have not needed to see a therapist for 2 years now and am able to keep from hitting rock bottom. Over time, my bipolar swings have become less intense and last for a shorter time. I cannot say why. I am just glad to see the change. :) If you're reading this and feel you're at the end of your rope, please get some help either from this book, talking to a trusted friend, or by going to the local hospital if you can't hang on. There is hope no matter what your mind is telling you right now. |
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Davis (MSL quote), USA
<2007-01-08 00:00>
I've battled depression for a while, however, after reading Dr. Burns Feeling Good Handbook and The New Mood Therapy book, I can truly say these are first class, top-notch, must read books. Chapters are laid out in an easy to read fashion and the concepts presented can be applied to all areas of your life. I will say, you need to read the Feeling Good Handbook first and then The New Mood Therapy, however, just reading these will get you in the right frame of mind to start feeling better. |
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Kleckner (MSL quote), USA
<2007-01-08 00:00>
As a psychologist, I recommend this book to about 90% of my patients. Everyone could use the information from this book in their lives, no matter how good he or she may feel. It helps you see how other people may talk themselves into a bad mood as well. This book has very practicle applications on how to increase self-esteem, feel better about self-worth and jobs, get over a bad relationship, and learn how to choose how to think and feel in the future. Another good book for couples is Beck's book on Love Is Never Enough, about assumptions we make in relationships and how they affect how we feel about each other. |
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Sandra Peters (MSL quote), Canada
<2007-01-08 00:00>
As a counsellor, I am quite familiar with the use of Cognitive Therapy, not only in treating depression, but as a means of bringing balance and harmony to one's life, depressed or not. Cognitive Therapy is based on mood modification - a principle one can use on their own to eliminate symptoms and achieve personal growth. Feeling Good is aimed at ridding ourselves of negative thinking, that which holds us stagnant and inhibits personal growth. Even if you are on medication for depression, you can still use the principles outlined in this book as a form of self-help. Through these pages, the author will help the reader to understand why you feel as you do, the power of positive thinking, how to develop self-control and how you can change through mood modification. The book is quite lengthy and certainly not a book one should speed read. To maximum its use, one should read, digest and absorb the material slowly and attentively. It is an excellent self-help book written in a style that is easily understood by the layperson; you do not need a course in psychology to understand its meaning. |
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1 2 | Total 2 pages 16 items |
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