Specify Books During Brain Lock: Free Yourself from Obsessive-Compulsive Behavior
ISBN: | 0060987111 (ISBN13: 9780060987114) |
Edition Language: | English |
Jeffrey M. Schwartz
Paperback | Pages: 219 pages Rating: 4.02 | 1238 Users | 126 Reviews
Identify Of Books Brain Lock: Free Yourself from Obsessive-Compulsive Behavior
Title | : | Brain Lock: Free Yourself from Obsessive-Compulsive Behavior |
Author | : | Jeffrey M. Schwartz |
Book Format | : | Paperback |
Book Edition | : | Anniversary Edition |
Pages | : | Pages: 219 pages |
Published | : | January 31st 1997 by ReganBooks (first published March 1st 1996) |
Categories | : | Psychology. Nonfiction. Self Help. Health. Mental Health. Counselling |
Explanation Concering Books Brain Lock: Free Yourself from Obsessive-Compulsive Behavior
I talked to my therapist recently about a troubling thought that had been in my head since junior high school. It was an irrational worry, but one that was extremely disturbing to me, and one that I'd never before been able to talk about or dismiss. "Oh, that's an obsessive thought," my shrink told me. "It's not a real thought. It just means your brain gets stuck in a loop sometimes. It's pretty common, and in your case it will be pretty easy to fix."This was fascinating and liberating, and got me interested in learning more about Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, which thoughts like this are symptomatic of. Brain Lock is widely considered to be one of the best and most practical books about OCD. Its author, Dr. Jeffrey M. Schwartz, is a psychiatry professor at UCLA, and in this book he explains a four-step plan for self-treating this condition--which can range from the mildly annoying, to the completely debilitating.
OCD is pretty unusual as a neurological issue. It's one of very few mental disorders that don't respond to placebos in scientific studies. Other neurological conditions, even potentially severe ones such as some forms of schizophrenia and depression, are affected by placebos; the act of being treated for the disease, in and of itself, helps cure the disease.
With OCD, it's a different story. Placebos don't work, and meds, which they can be helpful in extreme cases, are not a cure either. It's really up to each patient to cure him- or herself. Schwartz includes tons of anecdotes in "Brain Lock" that are devastating, describing people whose entire lives have been blown apart by OCD. But the patients he writes about have also managed to get control of their symptoms. You don't ever cureOCD, but you can certainly minimize its effects in your life.
Schwartz describes common symptoms of OCD, ones that are familiar to many people from the TV show "Monk" or other pop-cultural portrayals of the disorder. For example, I knew that excessive hand-washing was a common OCD action. Schwartz writes about a patient who washed so much that his hands would instantly lather when he ran water over them, even without applying soap.
Another common OCD fixation is leaving the stove on or leaving an appliance plugged in. Schwartz describes a woman who could not make herself believe she'd unplugged the coffee machine--so she would carry it to work with her in a backpack.
Schwartz's research shows that OCD sufferers can literally rewire our brains to weaken the effects of compulsions and obsessions. By using his four-step method, which is very simple and clearly defined, people can actually "unlock" the affected part of the brain so that it no longer triggers OCD reactions (or at least, triggers them much more mildly).
This book is inspiring to anyone who experiences any level of obsessive or compulsive action or thought--in other words, just about everybody! And if I knew a friend or family member who was suffering from severe OCD, this book is the first weapon I'd hand them to help them fight back.
Rating Of Books Brain Lock: Free Yourself from Obsessive-Compulsive Behavior
Ratings: 4.02 From 1238 Users | 126 ReviewsArticle Of Books Brain Lock: Free Yourself from Obsessive-Compulsive Behavior
Overall, I thought it was helpful, but I didn't like the view of medication and it being a short term crutch. It works well for a lot of people and I think we need to recognize the long term value of it. Definitely will come back to this book and the methods in it. OCD is the friggin worst.
Interesting book about the organic origins of OCD
Great practical advice on how to control OCD thoughts
This is the quintessential book on therapy for OCD. But, even if you do not suffer from OCD, this book is valuable in that Schwartz takes a refreshingly non-materialist view of medicine and the human body. He has no qualms that basis of his therapy assumes that people have a physical brain and an immaterial mind. People with OCD have a perfectly healthy mind but a malfunctioning brain, which is how they are able to look at their compulsions and know full well that the compulsive action does not
I touched the book three times then turned off the oven, again.
It shook me up in a good way that's hard to describe other than being told the way you think about yourself as a diseased person is just wrong. "It's not you, it's your brain' became a mantra. I think it's a balanced theorethical and practical approach to getting around the hairy brain of someone diagnosed with OCD. I was for a few months in which I realized that my OCD was just my state in life and my approach to my practical problems ( like figuring out what to do with myself, who am I, what
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