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Лечение на депресията без медикаменти: Препоръките на един психиатър за балансиране на ума, тялото и душата
В книгата си "Лечение на депресията без медикаменти" дипломираният психиатър д-р Джоуди Скиликорн защитава пространно и аргументирано схващането, че подобно на температурата, депресията е симптом, провокиран от различни източници – предимно стрес и възпаление, сигнализиращ за множество физиологични проблеми, които не са свързани с дейността на мозъка.
Запознава ни с редица научни изследвания, които потвърждават, че порочният модел за стандартно лечение с антидепресанти води до потенциални рискове за здравето и въпреки това 1 от всеки 6 американци приема медикаменти с надежда за облекчение на тъгата, тревожността, безсилието, липсата на концентрация или безсънието, които измъчват много от нас. Конвенционалната медицина все по-често класифицира като патология обичайните реакции към житейските предизвикателства – чувството за безизходица и липсата на удовлетворение на работното място, скръбта по загубата на близък човек, тревогата за зле вървяща връзка – и ни убеждава, че чувствата ни са симптом на заболяване.
Предложените от д-р Скиликорн холистични методи и практики: начин на хранене, осъзнатост, укрепване на мисловните връзки, движение, сън, общуване с природата и дихателни техники, черпят от хилядолетната мъдрост на предците ни и получават авторитетното потвърждение за ефективността си от съвременната наука. С тяхна помощ читателят ще добие повече увереност да седне зад волана на собствения си живот и изцеление.
Запознава ни с редица научни изследвания, които потвърждават, че порочният модел за стандартно лечение с антидепресанти води до потенциални рискове за здравето и въпреки това 1 от всеки 6 американци приема медикаменти с надежда за облекчение на тъгата, тревожността, безсилието, липсата на концентрация или безсънието, които измъчват много от нас. Конвенционалната медицина все по-често класифицира като патология обичайните реакции към житейските предизвикателства – чувството за безизходица и липсата на удовлетворение на работното място, скръбта по загубата на близък човек, тревогата за зле вървяща връзка – и ни убеждава, че чувствата ни са симптом на заболяване.
Предложените от д-р Скиликорн холистични методи и практики: начин на хранене, осъзнатост, укрепване на мисловните връзки, движение, сън, общуване с природата и дихателни техники, черпят от хилядолетната мъдрост на предците ни и получават авторитетното потвърждение за ефективността си от съвременната наука. С тяхна помощ читателят ще добие повече увереност да седне зад волана на собствения си живот и изцеление.
360 pages, Paperback
First published March 17, 2020
73 people are currently reading
1283 people want to read
About the author
Jodie Skillicorn
1 book27 followersJodie Skillicorn is an osteopathic physician board certified in Psychiatry and a diplomate of the American Board of Integrative Holistic Medicine. She integrates conventional medical training with evidence-based holistic methods that include breathwork, meditation, yoga, mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT), eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR), Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT), Mind-Body Medicine, energy medicine, nutrition, exercise, nature, and auricular acupuncture at her private practice. She lives in Hudson, Ohio, with her husband, two kids, two cats, and dog.
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
April 13, 2020
I wish this book had a different title--A Psychiatrist’s Guide to Balancing Mind Body and Soul would have been perfect and is exactly what the book is about. Forget the word depression, or maybe I just have an aversion to the word depression but I’m not alone. Found myself hiding the cover of the book so no one would see. DEPRESSION--it’s connotation is quite negative. The ideas and feelings that depression invokes...embarrassment, laziness, failure, craziness, negativity, worthlessness, indecisive, troubled and at its worst suicidal.
Today my friend shared that her son was diagnosed with mono, I was thinking what a scary time it is and thank goodness he doesn’t have Covid--her response was utter relief that he didn’t have depression. She was more fearful that he was depressed than physically ill.
Last year I went to see a new therapist because I couldn’t nourish myself or think clearly. My husband had just died, I’m a therapist or at least I was and I’m not currently working and I should know better but I didn’t and wanted to shut down and don’t remember much of anything except her telling me “we aren’t going there” and then what seemed like her screaming at me that I was “depressed” and it was “biological” and I needed medication (maybe some Buspar would cure it all). I wasn’t depressed and Buspar wasn’t going to fix me but she wouldn’t listen. I never went back. I have PTSD and an eating disorder and I was grieving and sad and I’ll still argue that I wasn’t and am not depressed and medication has never been helpful. In my 20’s I was prescribed Prozac, only to remember laying on the floor in the middle of an empty room wanting to die. Prozac doesn’t heal childhood trauma.
My brain is all over the place--the author tells me this is just being human! I never read a book in order--found myself on page 197: “Find a bud on a tree, feel it’s texture, bury your face in the grass, or make a daisy chain”-- the author then states, “You may roll your eyes at how this could possibly help resolve depression but a growing body of evidence suggest that these are not just whimsical…” YES!!! And I found myself drawing chains of daisies around the words on the page, just having come in from the outside. I take pictures in the grass with my dogs and post them for fairy yoga Friday on Instagram which all sounds crazy except that it made me smile. In that moment, I realized not only how much my life has changed, but also how much I’ve changed since utilizing the principles in this book. I’m not fully healed and parts of me still feel sad a lot of the time but I am coping.
As I continued to flip from chapter to chapter (not in any order), I didn’t stay in my happy daisy chain place. My father’s brother hung himself in the shed. No one talked about it. I heard “stories” but never knew he was depressed. I still don’t know who found him. End of story. My mother locked herself in her bedroom every weekend but she was fine too. Maybe she was just tired because she went to work all week or maybe she was drunk but not depressed because we don’t talk about such things. My husband tried to hang himself after an ordeal--the rope broke off from the basement rafter and saved his life. Whenever he would get angry at me I might find empty pill bottles, invoking this fear inside of me. Maybe he was depressed but I was living it. My good friend found her husband dead in the back of their van. He had been missing for days. I didn’t know what to say. I still don’t know what to say but I found myself getting triggered or angry or I don’t even know because it seemed the author couldn’t possibly understand and making daisy chains isn’t the answer.
So many stories and the book tells me to recognize that my emotions are there. Distressing emotions about the people I knew (and myself) and believing their responses were not so normal. The toxins in our head are often our own thoughts.The brain gets caught up in our stories...everyday life stressors become demons and things that harm you maybe once helped you….this makes sense but I kept thinking the author doesn’t understand and this book doesn’t make sense because people died. But it does make sense and she does understand. There is no miracle cure. No one can take away your pain. We cannot control other people but we can take care of ourselves and maybe that’s what this book is all about. I’m still here and maybe I can’t always choose how I feel, I can choose how I think.
No more numbing and ignoring. Talk about things that happened. You are not the problem. We are all trying to figure out how to cope--one day at a time. The key is to reframe your story so you’re not a victim. Move beyond self judgment and fear. Emotions settle and soften. We could place blame, point fingers, wallow in pain from all the things that “should” have been or the “if only”… But there comes a time when we must take the first steps in creating our own future--creating our own PRESENT. We have choices to make every day and while everything in this book won’t be for you, many things will be. You won’t know if you don’t try. You won’t know if you don’t read.
Start where you are at and the first step is always the most difficult but things get easier and easier. Except sometimes they don’t and you pick up and start again. We remember and forget and forget again and remember again. Be upfront and ask questions and don’t avoid feeling whatever it is you’re afraid to feel.
If you are looking to read this book, the reality is that depression has somehow touched your life. Maybe you’re new to this all and the information will be fresh and exciting or maybe you’re jaded, you’ve tried everything and nothing seems to work, or it works for a bit and you begin to feel like crap and want to give up. Keep moving forward--this book is a life prescription for living beyond our circumstances and figuring out what works best for you.
Today my friend shared that her son was diagnosed with mono, I was thinking what a scary time it is and thank goodness he doesn’t have Covid--her response was utter relief that he didn’t have depression. She was more fearful that he was depressed than physically ill.
Last year I went to see a new therapist because I couldn’t nourish myself or think clearly. My husband had just died, I’m a therapist or at least I was and I’m not currently working and I should know better but I didn’t and wanted to shut down and don’t remember much of anything except her telling me “we aren’t going there” and then what seemed like her screaming at me that I was “depressed” and it was “biological” and I needed medication (maybe some Buspar would cure it all). I wasn’t depressed and Buspar wasn’t going to fix me but she wouldn’t listen. I never went back. I have PTSD and an eating disorder and I was grieving and sad and I’ll still argue that I wasn’t and am not depressed and medication has never been helpful. In my 20’s I was prescribed Prozac, only to remember laying on the floor in the middle of an empty room wanting to die. Prozac doesn’t heal childhood trauma.
My brain is all over the place--the author tells me this is just being human! I never read a book in order--found myself on page 197: “Find a bud on a tree, feel it’s texture, bury your face in the grass, or make a daisy chain”-- the author then states, “You may roll your eyes at how this could possibly help resolve depression but a growing body of evidence suggest that these are not just whimsical…” YES!!! And I found myself drawing chains of daisies around the words on the page, just having come in from the outside. I take pictures in the grass with my dogs and post them for fairy yoga Friday on Instagram which all sounds crazy except that it made me smile. In that moment, I realized not only how much my life has changed, but also how much I’ve changed since utilizing the principles in this book. I’m not fully healed and parts of me still feel sad a lot of the time but I am coping.
As I continued to flip from chapter to chapter (not in any order), I didn’t stay in my happy daisy chain place. My father’s brother hung himself in the shed. No one talked about it. I heard “stories” but never knew he was depressed. I still don’t know who found him. End of story. My mother locked herself in her bedroom every weekend but she was fine too. Maybe she was just tired because she went to work all week or maybe she was drunk but not depressed because we don’t talk about such things. My husband tried to hang himself after an ordeal--the rope broke off from the basement rafter and saved his life. Whenever he would get angry at me I might find empty pill bottles, invoking this fear inside of me. Maybe he was depressed but I was living it. My good friend found her husband dead in the back of their van. He had been missing for days. I didn’t know what to say. I still don’t know what to say but I found myself getting triggered or angry or I don’t even know because it seemed the author couldn’t possibly understand and making daisy chains isn’t the answer.
So many stories and the book tells me to recognize that my emotions are there. Distressing emotions about the people I knew (and myself) and believing their responses were not so normal. The toxins in our head are often our own thoughts.The brain gets caught up in our stories...everyday life stressors become demons and things that harm you maybe once helped you….this makes sense but I kept thinking the author doesn’t understand and this book doesn’t make sense because people died. But it does make sense and she does understand. There is no miracle cure. No one can take away your pain. We cannot control other people but we can take care of ourselves and maybe that’s what this book is all about. I’m still here and maybe I can’t always choose how I feel, I can choose how I think.
No more numbing and ignoring. Talk about things that happened. You are not the problem. We are all trying to figure out how to cope--one day at a time. The key is to reframe your story so you’re not a victim. Move beyond self judgment and fear. Emotions settle and soften. We could place blame, point fingers, wallow in pain from all the things that “should” have been or the “if only”… But there comes a time when we must take the first steps in creating our own future--creating our own PRESENT. We have choices to make every day and while everything in this book won’t be for you, many things will be. You won’t know if you don’t try. You won’t know if you don’t read.
Start where you are at and the first step is always the most difficult but things get easier and easier. Except sometimes they don’t and you pick up and start again. We remember and forget and forget again and remember again. Be upfront and ask questions and don’t avoid feeling whatever it is you’re afraid to feel.
If you are looking to read this book, the reality is that depression has somehow touched your life. Maybe you’re new to this all and the information will be fresh and exciting or maybe you’re jaded, you’ve tried everything and nothing seems to work, or it works for a bit and you begin to feel like crap and want to give up. Keep moving forward--this book is a life prescription for living beyond our circumstances and figuring out what works best for you.
May 30, 2020
This timely book challenges the conventional view of neurochemical imbalance as the cause of depression, and invites us to take a deeper look at the root of depression and see ourselves as powerful agents of change in our lives.
“What if we choose to see the cracks of trauma and depression not as a pathology,” Skillicorn writes, “but the space through which light, healing, and new experiences may enter? What if just by reading what you have read so far, even if you do not yet fully accept all of it, you, like the housekeepers, have already shifted your mind-set and awareness, creating new connections in your brain and epigenetic changes in your DNA?”
The alternatives to medication that Skillicorn proposes are varied and complex, as well as refreshingly attainable. Aside from Therapy, there is Mindfulness practice, Exercise, Nourishment, Sleep, Time spent in nature, and the forging of meaningful connections. Each of these self-healing steps is extensively reviewed in the book, and helpful examples and exercises are provided.
I found many of the chapters to be guiding lights for my own life, and Skillicorn’s debunking of conventional psychiatry and its treatment of depression an eye opener. My favorite phrase:
“Maybe it’s not medication that we need but a nourished, rested boy and a curious mind so we have the energy and motivation to explore our surroundings and see what’s beyond the confines of our self-created cages.”
Highly recommend this book!
“What if we choose to see the cracks of trauma and depression not as a pathology,” Skillicorn writes, “but the space through which light, healing, and new experiences may enter? What if just by reading what you have read so far, even if you do not yet fully accept all of it, you, like the housekeepers, have already shifted your mind-set and awareness, creating new connections in your brain and epigenetic changes in your DNA?”
The alternatives to medication that Skillicorn proposes are varied and complex, as well as refreshingly attainable. Aside from Therapy, there is Mindfulness practice, Exercise, Nourishment, Sleep, Time spent in nature, and the forging of meaningful connections. Each of these self-healing steps is extensively reviewed in the book, and helpful examples and exercises are provided.
I found many of the chapters to be guiding lights for my own life, and Skillicorn’s debunking of conventional psychiatry and its treatment of depression an eye opener. My favorite phrase:
“Maybe it’s not medication that we need but a nourished, rested boy and a curious mind so we have the energy and motivation to explore our surroundings and see what’s beyond the confines of our self-created cages.”
Highly recommend this book!
March 19, 2020
To be 100% transparent, I took this book on to help me better understand my best friend’s depression. As I have tried every way I could think of to help her. Her depression has been a lifelong issue. We’ve been best friend’s through thick and thin on both sides. When she gets so low that there is nothing I can do, I feel helpless. I’ve read many books over the years and this one, by far has been the most helpful to me in understanding what she is going through and how I can be a better friend. It is not my job to fix her. However…
Dr. Skillicorn shows all of the research disproving the illusions that psychiatry spreads about depression which blew my mind! She offers an alternative and evidence-based approach to heal the root cause of depression. Fortunately, my friend has not taken anti-depressants in over 20 years as they did not work for her and now I understand why. Evil. The basis of depression is not the fault of the brain neurochemistry, but rather in stress and subsequent inflammation, especially in the gut and brain. Now, that I’ve read this informative and helpful book, I feel confident in sharing it with my friend. As I feel strongly, it will help her break out of depression and reclaim her life by using the self-empowering tools like breath-work, journaling, mindfulness, imagery, nutrition, movement, acupressure, nature, and gratitude.
All I want for anyone is to be able to find a bit of joy in the day. Thank you for your thoughtful book. I know you will help many.
Dr. Skillicorn shows all of the research disproving the illusions that psychiatry spreads about depression which blew my mind! She offers an alternative and evidence-based approach to heal the root cause of depression. Fortunately, my friend has not taken anti-depressants in over 20 years as they did not work for her and now I understand why. Evil. The basis of depression is not the fault of the brain neurochemistry, but rather in stress and subsequent inflammation, especially in the gut and brain. Now, that I’ve read this informative and helpful book, I feel confident in sharing it with my friend. As I feel strongly, it will help her break out of depression and reclaim her life by using the self-empowering tools like breath-work, journaling, mindfulness, imagery, nutrition, movement, acupressure, nature, and gratitude.
All I want for anyone is to be able to find a bit of joy in the day. Thank you for your thoughtful book. I know you will help many.
March 20, 2020
I won this book on Goodreads. It was a wonderful book. The historical information on the testing of antidepressants and antianxiety medications was eye opening. The detailed alternative methods to the drugs was easy to understand and use. I found this to be a very informative and useful book on a subject so many of us need to learn more about.
February 16, 2021
There are not many books I have to have the physical book and audiobook of, but this in one of them! As someone who had a VERY BAD experience with medications for a depression, I saw so many tools in this book that I used to overcome and manage my episodes along with more I had never heard of before. I loved gaining understanding of why I had such a bad reaction as a teenager going through depression from a scientific angle. Then getting so many tools to work with WHOLE health, which covered everything from food to physical activity. I'm always amazed at how much damage I do to myself. I also love that this book encourages getting the outside support too when needed. During this pandemic, I've went back to look at different things to try when I find myself going into a slump. I LOVE having options right at my bedside. I know when I pick up the book, I'm taking a step to feel better. If you know anything about depression, that step is a big deal.
February 20, 2021
This is a clear, quick read. The first section of the book is a discussion of major flaws in the research/medical cultural which promotes the treatment of depression with medication.
The second half of the book includes evidence-based strategies which should be fully explored BEFORE considering medication as a treatment for depression.
I mainly wish doctors would read this book to seed, at least a few doubts, about medicating people they have only met for 20 minutes. Even if half the info turns out to be wrong (and some of it probably is) there’s still compelling and intuitive info that points to major shortcomings in the way we traditionally think about and treat depression.
I also think people who have mild to moderate depression could benefit from reading through and thinking about their own narrative regarding the source of depression: whether it’s a chemical imbalance that’s completely out of your control, or a reasonable sadness that heals with a lot of effort and intention.
——
I’m biased because I spent ~7 years in the academic research world. I also had a handful of experiences where I seriously regretted taking the advice of doctors. Most of these regrets revolved around taking symptom relieving medications like steroids or antibiotics for non-life threatening problems - problems that ended up improving with simple adjustments in nutrition.
What these experiences taught me is that we (science-y PhD educated humans) are often short-sighted. The research world has a rigid infrastructure and often major economic incentives that make it very easy to persist in a wrong and arrogant way of thinking. So, I lean toward trusting sources that fully acknowledge this.
I really enjoyed that this book basically acknowledged and validated a lot of my experiences. Even if you disagree with the overarching ideas, there’s enough evidence here to make you at least stop and reevaluate. Moreover, the suggestions would be beneficial to anyone with or without depression, with little to no negative side effects.
The second half of the book includes evidence-based strategies which should be fully explored BEFORE considering medication as a treatment for depression.
I mainly wish doctors would read this book to seed, at least a few doubts, about medicating people they have only met for 20 minutes. Even if half the info turns out to be wrong (and some of it probably is) there’s still compelling and intuitive info that points to major shortcomings in the way we traditionally think about and treat depression.
I also think people who have mild to moderate depression could benefit from reading through and thinking about their own narrative regarding the source of depression: whether it’s a chemical imbalance that’s completely out of your control, or a reasonable sadness that heals with a lot of effort and intention.
——
I’m biased because I spent ~7 years in the academic research world. I also had a handful of experiences where I seriously regretted taking the advice of doctors. Most of these regrets revolved around taking symptom relieving medications like steroids or antibiotics for non-life threatening problems - problems that ended up improving with simple adjustments in nutrition.
What these experiences taught me is that we (science-y PhD educated humans) are often short-sighted. The research world has a rigid infrastructure and often major economic incentives that make it very easy to persist in a wrong and arrogant way of thinking. So, I lean toward trusting sources that fully acknowledge this.
I really enjoyed that this book basically acknowledged and validated a lot of my experiences. Even if you disagree with the overarching ideas, there’s enough evidence here to make you at least stop and reevaluate. Moreover, the suggestions would be beneficial to anyone with or without depression, with little to no negative side effects.
April 14, 2025
Healing Depression Without Medication
I am so concerned that this book exists and that it seems to only have positive responses. I mean I think it’s great if people somehow were helped by this but I find it overwhelmingly concerning. To oversimplify depression to just being a normal reacting to bad things happening like grief and claiming that chemical imbalances aren’t real is such a crock of shit. Yes, good diet and cute little self care methods can help with symptoms of depression and getting through the day to day a bit but it will not cure you. To claim that you still having depression is a result of you not trying hard enough to be happy and healthy is so wrong and idiotic is ridiculous.
I go to the gym, I home cook healthy meals, I am as a teacher surrounded by wonderful people and vibes, I have great family, a wonderful partner, I do gratitude journals, meditate, etc. and guess what, I still have depression. I still for no logical reason at all break down and want to die. Feeling this way so consistently was what made me decide to start medication in the first place. Medication is an important and necessary thing for a lot of people, most that actually have clinical depression. It. Is. A. Medical. Condition. I swear, these people are the same assholes who sell to you the idea of curing cancer with herbs. Don’t get me wrong, I believe in crystals and stones, I regularly read and execute practices from Wiccan or Buddhist traditions. But I still believe in doctors and shit first and foremost and this book makes me seriously question if this woman has a legitimate psychiatric degree.
Overall:
There are so many more beneficial self help books that exist that offer the same if not better daily enrichment exercises and ways of thinking that aren’t telling you to ignore the expertise of medical professionals…
Hell, here’s a few
•So Much I Want To Tell You by Anna Akana
•Be a Triangle by Lilly Singh
•It’s Not Fair by Melanie Dale
•Be a Triangle by John Cena
I am so concerned that this book exists and that it seems to only have positive responses. I mean I think it’s great if people somehow were helped by this but I find it overwhelmingly concerning. To oversimplify depression to just being a normal reacting to bad things happening like grief and claiming that chemical imbalances aren’t real is such a crock of shit. Yes, good diet and cute little self care methods can help with symptoms of depression and getting through the day to day a bit but it will not cure you. To claim that you still having depression is a result of you not trying hard enough to be happy and healthy is so wrong and idiotic is ridiculous.
I go to the gym, I home cook healthy meals, I am as a teacher surrounded by wonderful people and vibes, I have great family, a wonderful partner, I do gratitude journals, meditate, etc. and guess what, I still have depression. I still for no logical reason at all break down and want to die. Feeling this way so consistently was what made me decide to start medication in the first place. Medication is an important and necessary thing for a lot of people, most that actually have clinical depression. It. Is. A. Medical. Condition. I swear, these people are the same assholes who sell to you the idea of curing cancer with herbs. Don’t get me wrong, I believe in crystals and stones, I regularly read and execute practices from Wiccan or Buddhist traditions. But I still believe in doctors and shit first and foremost and this book makes me seriously question if this woman has a legitimate psychiatric degree.
Overall:
There are so many more beneficial self help books that exist that offer the same if not better daily enrichment exercises and ways of thinking that aren’t telling you to ignore the expertise of medical professionals…
Hell, here’s a few
•So Much I Want To Tell You by Anna Akana
•Be a Triangle by Lilly Singh
•It’s Not Fair by Melanie Dale
•Be a Triangle by John Cena
June 16, 2020
The way that we see proper to help people through their psychological problems has evolved quite drastically over the years. Back in the day, the procedure of a lobotomy was thought the correct way to "fix someone." In our current society, we now know better, yet we've switched our focus from manually altering the brain to doing so chemically through medicines. Jodie Skillicorn, D.O. is here to tell us that we've again got it not quite right. In her proof, "Healing Depression without Medication: a Psychiatrist's Guide to Balancing Mind, Body, and Soul", she explains in great detail how many doctors and psychiatrists today are quick to prescribe medication over a hint of depression.
Set in two parts, each one has its fill of references to back up her claims in the form of studies and scientific information. Being in the field of psychotherapy, I found this book very informative. I was aware of some of the facts given before reading this, such as the process of creating a drug for psychotropic medication, but other information presented was unknown to me. Each chapter presents new and exciting information. I recommend this book to not only people in the healthcare field but also to anyone suffering from depression or knowing someone who does.
Set in two parts, each one has its fill of references to back up her claims in the form of studies and scientific information. Being in the field of psychotherapy, I found this book very informative. I was aware of some of the facts given before reading this, such as the process of creating a drug for psychotropic medication, but other information presented was unknown to me. Each chapter presents new and exciting information. I recommend this book to not only people in the healthcare field but also to anyone suffering from depression or knowing someone who does.
September 27, 2023
Interventions to treat depression without meds
Shocked to learn antidepressants are no better than placebos in many of the medical studies done. Her recommendation for meditating on the breath was definitely something that can relieve depression. In past I would write down my negative thoughts and come up with a positive mantra that was the opposite of one of those negative thoughts. I would focus on my breath and my mantra while meditating. I would meditate 45 minutes 5 days a week and every week I would change my positive mantra . I did this for a year and a half and one day woke up and my usual critical thoughts of myself were absent that morning. I would recommend focusing on breath and a positive mantra versus just focusing on the breath alone.
Shocked to learn antidepressants are no better than placebos in many of the medical studies done. Her recommendation for meditating on the breath was definitely something that can relieve depression. In past I would write down my negative thoughts and come up with a positive mantra that was the opposite of one of those negative thoughts. I would focus on my breath and my mantra while meditating. I would meditate 45 minutes 5 days a week and every week I would change my positive mantra . I did this for a year and a half and one day woke up and my usual critical thoughts of myself were absent that morning. I would recommend focusing on breath and a positive mantra versus just focusing on the breath alone.
January 18, 2026
The author does prove her point, and in great detail. She illustrates how medication might not be helpful in treating depression, and then lays out -- in most of the book -- practices and methods that can address it. She provides inset text, boxed, that talk about how the reader can use journals, exercises, mindfulness to self-treat. Indeed, mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) is a major theme in this book. Diet, breathing, exercise, sleep -- and more -- are components in her methodology, and seem well worth trying by the reader. Walking and absorbing nature -- the outdoors -- are particularly compelling and helpful in her telling.
September 1, 2021
As someone who has battled anxiety since a child and depression in most of my adult years, I have interrogated the types of therapies available—both natural and induced—and tried several.
Jodie Skillicorn's book is important because it educates us about the chemical processes behind our conditions and gives us questions to ponder as we navigate various routes of treatment.
While the book includes medical descriptions, they are accessible and the author has a friendly, casual voice, making it an enjoyable, educational read!
Jodie Skillicorn's book is important because it educates us about the chemical processes behind our conditions and gives us questions to ponder as we navigate various routes of treatment.
While the book includes medical descriptions, they are accessible and the author has a friendly, casual voice, making it an enjoyable, educational read!
Read
August 8, 2020Set aside for the foreseeable future. I’m not DNFing this necessarily, as I may pick it up again later.
The beginning started out really well, but it became a real chore to read the positive thinking and breathing chapters.
The beginning started out really well, but it became a real chore to read the positive thinking and breathing chapters.
February 7, 2023
A must read for anyone battling any sort of mental illness and a massive wake up call for the way we view these diseases. Also extremely helpful with a lot of information beyond the basic "Exercise and sleep". Anyone with mental illness will get atleast something out of this book.
May 4, 2023
Ако човек не е в депресия и чете книгата, то 1вата част със сигурност ще го депресира.
Успее ли да я издържи обаче, във 2рата част има много полезни и интересни съвети и техники. Разбира се, част от написаното ми звучи безумно, но предимно намерих полезни неща.
Успее ли да я издържи обаче, във 2рата част има много полезни и интересни съвети и техники. Разбира се, част от написаното ми звучи безумно, но предимно намерих полезни неща.
July 3, 2020
An important book to read even if you’re not depressed. It reflects on how the society shapes human behaviours nowadays
August 4, 2020
good advice to live for healthy living
May 27, 2021
Very general common sense advice that wasn't very useful to me on a personal level, because it was nothing I didn't already know.
Mindfulness, eating right, etc
Mindfulness, eating right, etc
December 31, 2025
Read for my senior thesis at CCS.
October 16, 2023
I loved this book and all of its helpful advice. However, I tried going off my depression medication and went to a really not-so-good place. Some people (like me) very well may need medicine to regulate, and that’s okay! I’d rather be on my medication, despite the stigma, than feel like that!
April 15, 2024
It has been a little while since I finished this book and I feel like it’s time for a review. This book is 5 stars because it has helped me tremendously with my depression. Without getting into too many details I was on depression medication since I was in elementary school. The dose kept climbing higher and higher to the point where I felt numb. I thought not feeling a single emotion was normal because I was feeling that way consistently. This book has given me so much guidance and insight on depression itself. I’d recommend it for anyone looking to hop off their medication and start living life the way it should be. I have gone from being maxed out on my depression medication to being off completely. This book will give you everything you need to be successful in coming off your medication and to finally be happy.
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