Book picks similar to
Wild Hunger: The Primal Roots of Modern Addiction by Bruce Wilshire
philosophy
nonfiction
anthropology-culture
mental-health
If Men Could Talk: Translating the Secret Language of Men
Alon Gratch - 2001
It also includes practical insights and useful tips on how women and men can learn how to talk, and to change men's non-verbal, action-oriented communications into the language of emotional dialogue.
Cocaine Papers
Sigmund Freud - 1884
& if you are froward, you shall see who is stronger, a gentle little girl who doesn't eat enough or a big wild man who has cocaine in his body. In my last severe depression I took coca again & a small dose lifted me to the heights." This lurid encomium to cocaine wasn't penned by an immature drug addict. It was written by Sigmund Freud, father of psychoanalysis, to his fiancee Martha Bernays. He frequently got kicks from cocaine. But as is clear from his newly compiled Cocaine Papers, his interest in the drug was scientific, not sensual. He sought for a miracle drug to benefit patients & make his reputation. He thought he'd found it in cocaine. Freud's study of cocaine has been shrouded in myths, half-truths & speculation. Cocaine Papers sets the facts straight. Annotated by his daughter Anna, it presents the complete authoritative versions of his own writings on the drug, including several pieces never before published, along with the work of other early experimenters. He's revealed as not only a driven &, ultimately, tragic seeker for a panacea, but also as one of the pioneers of psychopharmacology, the science of using drugs to treat mental illness. In 1884, before beginning studies leading to the development of psychoanalysis, Freud was 28, a fledgling physician with a fiancee but without funds to wed. He'd been searching for a way to establish himself & gain the respect of colleagues. A paper by German physician Theodor Aschenbrandt seemed to provide the way. Conquistadores had noted the stimulant effect of coca leaves on Andean Indians. Aschenbrandt tried the drug on Bavarian soldiers & reported that it suppressed their hunger while increasing mental powers & capacity to endure strain. Aschenbrandt's paper triggered Freud's studies. He obtained samples & tried it. It gave him an emotional lift, producing what he described as "normal euphoria." After that he used cocaine frequently with the same results. He coolly summarized his experiences in his notes: "You perceive an increase of self-control, possess more vitality & capacity for work. This result is enjoyed without any of the unpleasant aftermaths which accompany exhilaration thru alcoholic means." Freud continued to study cocaine's effects on himself & patients. He found it not only useful in overcoming depression but effective against some purely physiological complaints. He used it to treat stomach disorders & persistent coughing. He didn't administer it indiscriminately. Tho he initially believed it wasn't habit-forming, he found its effects on patients too unpredictable to justify widespread use. Tho he & some American physicians reported initial successes in treating morphine addicts, fellow physician Adolf Albrecht Erlenmeyer warned that cocaine was itself addictive, the "3rd scourge of mankind"—after morphine & alcohol. Freud realized Erlenmeyer was correct. His friend & patient, Ernst von Fleischl-Marxow, became the 1st morphine addict in Europe to be cured by cocaine. He was also one of the 1st to become dependent on it. This development dampened Freud's interest & helped turn his attention to the psychological theories that eventually won him fame. Freud's studies are considered basic to psychopharmacology. But they didn't lead to the discovery of its most effective clinical use. He abandoned his interest in cocaine just after he suggested that a colleague, Karl "Coca" Roller, experiment with its use in easing the pain of eye surgery. It was Koller & not Freud who invented local anesthesia.--Time (edited)
Where the Roots Reach for Water: A Personal and Natural History of Melancholia
Jeffery Smith - 1999
Eventually, all his prescribed antidepressant medications proved ineffective. Unlike so many personal accounts, Where the Roots Reach for Water tells the story of what happened to Smith after he decided to give them up. Trying to learn how to make a life with his illness, Smith sets out to get at the essence of--using the old term for depression--melancholia.Deftly woven into his "personal history" is a "natural history" of this ancient illness. Drawing on centuries of art, writing and medical treatises, Smith finds ancient links between melancholia and spirituality, love and sex, music and philosophy, gardening, and, importantly, our relationship with landscapes.
Self-Discipline: Develop Daily Habits to Program Your Mind, Build Mental Toughness, Self-Confidence and WillPower
Ray Vaden - 2019
Self-discipline is a wonderful thing. It can mean the difference between achieving goals or not achieving goals. It can give a person a greater sense of self-worth. It can allow someone the ability to work harder for a shorter amount of time and accomplish much more than before. Self-discipline can make the process of dropping bad habits in favor of good ones much easier to accomplish.People who have self-discipline are happier in life.They have a greater sense of purpose overall and a greater sense of accomplishment in everyday life. Seeking self-discipline is the best way to a better life.Self-discipline is a goal that will only be accomplished by following a path that will cause a great deal of pain. Walking this path will require a good deal of hard work and dedication because this path is not an easy one to walk. Sometimes, people fall off. Sometimes, the direction of the path needs to be changed. Sometimes, the path needs to be broken up into smaller trips in order to be able to complete the whole journey.Self-control and self-discipline require hard work and serious commitment. If a person is not really serious about the need to develop self-discipline, then it just will not happen. No one can give anyone else self-discipline.
It needs to be learned within.
However, consider what happens if self-discipline is never developed. Can a person go on in life without ever developing any level of self-discipline? Of course, they can. What they will be missing out on is a lifetime of achievement. They will be giving up all sense of self-worth and self-fulfillment. They will lose out on the ability to replace bad habits with good ones. They will never know the joy of getting rid of addictions and temptations. They will be forever plagued by negative feelings of anger and regret and guilt. They will live their entire lives accomplishing nothing because they lack the necessary self-discipline to accomplish anything. They will not succeed.Of course, it is a purely personal choice. It is possible to live life without accomplishing anything. It is possible to just skate through life devoid of any sense of self-worth and self-love. It is possible to get to the end and never achieve any type of goal. However, what kind of life would that really be?The best way is to begin today to work on personal goals. Start now by deciding which habits are bad and need to be replaced. Make a list of good habits that need to be cultivated. Decide when this new lifestyle will begin--keeping in mind that sooner is better. Write down all the goals that need to be achieved and all the good habits that need to be cultivated. Post this list where everyone can see it.Tell family and friends.Get everyone involved!
Most importantly, remember that a successful outcome will be its own best reward!
Mindfulness: An Eight-Week Plan for Finding Peace in a Frantic World
J. Mark G. Williams - 2011
Danny Penman reveal the secrets to living a happier and less anxious, stressful and exhausting life. Based on the techniques of Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy, the unique program developed by Williams and his colleagues, the book offers simple and straightforward forms of mindfulness meditation that can be done by anyone--and it can take just 10-20 minutes a day for the full benefits to be revealed.
The History of Last Night's Dream: Discovering the Hidden Path to the Soul
Rodger Kamenetz - 2007
When Sigmund Freud awakened modern interest in the dream a century ago, his theory of interpretation undermined the potential insights dreams had to offer. For Freud, dreams were little more than fragmented puzzle parts made up of events from our waking lives. Most of us today still live under Freud's far-reaching influence. When we wake up after experiencing a powerful series of images, we too readily explain them away or simply ignore them all together. Whatever emotion or insight the dream evokes slowly fades. But what if Freud was wrong? Unless we challenge his deeply-ingrained assumptions, we will forever lose the gift of our dreams.International bestselling author Rodger Kamenetz believes it is not too late to reclaim the lost power of our nightly visions. Kamenetz's exploration of the world of dreams reopens all the questions scientists and psychologists claimed to have settled long ago. The culmination of decades of research, The History of Last Night's Dream is a riveting intellectual and cultural investigation of dreams and what they have to teach us. We discover how the age-old struggle between what we dream and how we interpret our dreams has shaped Western culture from biblical times to today. Kamenetz introduces us to an eighty-seven-year-old female kabbalist in Jerusalem, a suave Tibetan Buddhist dream teacher in Copenhagen, and a crusty intuitive postman-turned-dream master in northern Vermont. He fearlessly delves into this mysterious inner realm and shows us that dreams are not only intensely meaningful but that they hold essential truths about who we are. In the end, each of us has the choice to embark on this illuminating path to the soul. But one thing is certain: our dreams will never be the same again.
The Ant and the Ferrari
Kerry Spackman - 2012
this is one of those rare books that will change your beliefs - and in doing so will change your life. tHE ANt AND tHE FERRARI offers readers a clear, navigable path through the big questions that confront us all today. What is the meaning of life? Can we be ethical beings in today's world? Can we know if there is life after death? Is there such a thing as Absolute truth? What caused the Big Bang and why should you care?
Cowboy & Wills
Monica Holloway - 2009
It's the first in a string of impulsive trips to the pet store to buy animals as a distraction from the uncontrollable, crushing reality of Wills's diagnosis. But while Wills diligently tends to the growing menagerie, what he really wants is a puppy. And one Christmas, when Wills is six, Cowboy Carol Lawrence joins their family.Like all dynamic duos, Cowboy and Wills complement each other perfectly. Wills is cautious, fastidious, and irresistibly tenderhearted. Cowboy, a rambunctious golden retriever, is overeager, affectionate, and impulsive. And from the moment Cowboy enters their lives, Monica sees her son step a little farther into the world.Soon, the boy who could barely say hello to his classmates in kindergarten is sharing stories of his new "sister" Cowboy during morning circle. Children crowd around them at the park, and instead of running away, Wills, holding Cowboy's leash in his sweaty fist, proudly answers all of their questions. With Cowboy, he finds the courage to invite kids over for playdates, overcomes his debilitating fear of water to swim along beside her in the family pool, and, after years of gentle coaxing, Wills finally sleeps in his own bed with Cowboy's paws draped across his small chest.Through it all, Cowboy is there, dragging him toward other children, giving him the confidence to try new things and the courage to face his worst fears. And when Cowboy turns out to need her new family as much as they need her, they discover just how much she has taught them -- about devotion, about loyalty, and about never giving up.Sometimes it's what you don't know to hope for that saves you. For Monica, her husband, Michael, and their son, Wills, salvation came in the form of a puppy with pale blond fur, chocolate brown eyes, a fondness for chewing the crotch out of underpants, and a limitless capacity for love.
A Woman's Way through the Twelve Steps Workbook
Stephanie S. Covington - 2000
It further empowers each woman to take ownership of her recovery by documenting her growth and recovery process in a personally meaningful way. Unlike many interpretations of the Twelve Steps for women, this workbook uses the original Steps language, preserving its spirit and focusing attention on its healing message. Covington guides women to reinterpret the Steps to support their own recovery. "When we look inside ourselves and reframe the original wording in the way that works best for us, then each of us, individually, can discover the meaning for ourselves," she writes. In sections devoted to each of the Twelve Steps, Covington blends narrative, self-assessment questions focused on a feminine definition of terms such as powerlessness and letting go, guided imagery exercises, and other experiential activities.In addition to the book and workbook, two new components--a facilitator's guide for clinicians and a DVD--have been produced to form a complete A Woman's Way through the Twelve Steps program. The four components can stand alone, but together they form a comprehensive, integrated treatment program for women
Thrive: The Third Metric to Redefining Success and Creating a Life of Well-Being, Wisdom, and Wonder
Arianna Huffington - 2014
Arianna Huffington's personal wake-up call came in the form of a broken cheekbone and a nasty gash over her eye -- the result of a fall brought on by exhaustion and lack of sleep. As the cofounder and editor-in-chief of the Huffington Post Media Group -- one of the fastest growing media companies in the world -- celebrated as one of the world's most influential women, and gracing the covers of magazines, she was, by any traditional measure, extraordinarily successful. Yet as she found herself going from brain MRI to CAT scan to echocardiogram, to find out if there was any underlying medical problem beyond exhaustion, she wondered is this really what success feels like? As more and more people are coming to realize, there is far more to living a truly successful life than just earning a bigger salary and capturing a corner office. Our relentless pursuit of the two traditional metrics of success -- money and power -- has led to an epidemic of burnout and stress-related illnesses, and an erosion in the quality of our relationships, family life, and, ironically, our careers. In being connected to the world 24/7, we're losing our connection to what truly matters. Our current definition of success is, as Thrive shows, literally killing us. We need a new way forward. In a commencement address Arianna gave at Smith College in the spring of 2013, she likened our drive for money and power to two legs of a three-legged stool. They may hold us up temporarily, but sooner or later we're going to topple over. We need a third leg -- a third metric for defining success -- to truly thrive. That third metric, she writes in Thrive, includes our well-being, our ability to draw on our intuition and inner wisdom, our sense of wonder, and our capacity for compassion and giving. As Arianna points out, our eulogies celebrate our lives very differently from the way society defines success. They don't commemorate our long hours in the office, our promotions, or our sterling PowerPoint presentations as we relentlessly raced to climb up the career ladder. They are not about our resumes -- they are about cherished memories, shared adventures, small kindnesses and acts of generosity, lifelong passions, and the things that made us laugh. In this deeply personal book, Arianna talks candidly about her own challenges with managing time and prioritizing the demands of a career and raising two daughters -- of juggling business deadlines and family crises, a harried dance that led to her collapse and to her "aha moment." Drawing on the latest groundbreaking research and scientific findings in the fields of psychology, sports, sleep, and physiology that show the profound and transformative effects of meditation, mindfulness, unplugging, and giving, Arianna shows us the way to a revolution in our culture, our thinking, our workplace, and our lives.
Work Won't Love You Back: How Devotion to Our Jobs Keeps Us Exploited, Exhausted, and Alone
Sarah Jaffe - 2021
You're told that if you "do what you love, you'll never work a day in your life." Whether it's working for "exposure" and "experience," or enduring poor treatment in the name of "being part of the family," all employees are pushed to make sacrifices for the privilege of being able to do what we love.In Work Won't Love You Back, Sarah Jaffe, a preeminent voice on labor, inequality, and social movements, examines this "labor of love" myth -- the idea that certain work is not really work, and therefore should be done out of passion instead of pay. Told through the lives and experiences of workers in various industries -- from the unpaid intern, to the overworked nurse, to the nonprofit worker and even the professional athlete -- Jaffe reveals how all of us have been tricked into buying into a new tyranny of work. As Jaffe argues, understanding the trap of the labor of love will empower us to work less and demand what our work is worth. And once freed from those binds, we can finally figure out what actually gives us joy, pleasure, and satisfaction.
Psychology and Social Sanity
Hugo Münsterberg - 1914
Attending: Medicine, Mindfulness, and Humanity
Ronald Epstein - 2017
In that same rotation, Epstein was awestruck by another surgeon’s ability to avert an impending disaster, slowing down from autopilot to intentionality. The difference between these two doctors left a lasting impression on Epstein and set the stage for his life’s work—to identify the qualities and habits that distinguish masterful doctors from those who are merely competent. The secret, he learned, was mindfulness. In Attending, his first book, Dr. Epstein builds on his world-renowned, innovative programs in mindful practice and uses gripping and deeply human clinical stories to give patients a language to describe what they value most in health care and to outline a road map for doctors and other health care professionals to refocus their approach to medicine. Drawing on his clinical experiences and current research, and exploring four foundations of mindfulness—Attention, Curiosity, Beginner’s Mind, and Presence—Dr. Epstein introduces a revolutionary concept: by looking inward, health care practitioners can grow their capacity to provide high-quality care and the resilience to be there when their patients need them. The commodification of health care has shifted doctors’ focus away from the healing of patients to the bottom line. Clinician burnout is at an all-time high. Attending is the antidote. With compassion and intelligence, Epstein offers a crucial, timely book that shows us how we can restore humanity to medicine, guides us toward a better overall quality of care, and reminds us of what matters most.
The Enchanted Life: Unlocking the Magic of the Everyday
Sharon Blackie - 2018
Sharon Blackie offers a set of practical and grounded tools for enchanting our lives and the places we live, so leading to a greater sense of meaning and of belonging to the world. Enchantment. By Dr. Blackie’s definition, a vivid sense of belongingness to a rich and many-layered world, a profound and whole-hearted participation in the adventure of life. Enchantment is a natural, spontaneous human tendency — one we possess as children, but lose, through social and cultural pressures, as we grow older. It is an attitude of mind which can be cultivated: the enchanted life is possible for anyone. It is intuitive, embraces wonder, and fully engages the mythic imagination — but it is also deeply embodied in ecology, grounded in place and community.To live this way is to be challenged, to be awakened, to be gripped and shaken to the core by the extraordinary which lies at the heart of the ordinary.
What My Cat Has Taught Me About Life
Niki Anderson - 1997
The view is better from on high.<br><br>Need a fresh, up-high purr-spective on life? You'll find it with this insightful and inspiring gift book! Author Niki Anderson inspires you to see life from a cat's-eye-view--and what a view it is! You'll be inspired to live with passion, pouncing on every precious moment.<br><br>What My Cat Has Taught Me About Life offers all the motivation you need to enjoy life to its fullest with your favorite felines. Inside you'll discover purr-sonal meditations, real-life cat stories, little-known cat facts, kitty wisdom, and a lot more!<br><br>Curl up for some quiet time with these inspiring meditations. Right on the same page with each meditation, you'll also enjoy a companion scripture verse, a brief prayer, a memorable quote, a lighthearted cat quip, and a helpful cat care tip. Whether you're in the mood for something dignified or just need a chuckle or two, What My Cat Has Taught Me About Life has all you're looking for.<br><br>Each chapter focuses on one cat-fancying theme. So where and whenever you need a touch of inspiration you're sure to find a paw-full of practical, sensible counsel that'll have you purring in no time!