DEPRESSION: How to Recognize It, How to Cure It, and How to Grow From It

by Wina Sturgeon ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 28, 1979

This book by a layman for laymen lacks the kind of professional authority and cautiousness that would give it credence Journalist Sturgeon makes unsupported pronouncements: that depression of one sort or another affects at least 80% of the country's population; that it is primarily a physical disorder resulting from a neurochemical imbalance (a position reinforced with constant references to people who ""came down with depression,"" as if it were the flu); that it is a contagious disorder threatening all those who come into contact with its ""energy field""; that electrochemical therapy is probably the treatment of choice with ""intensely suicidal"" cases (though in an even more subjective vein Sturgeon describes the people she's seen go through it as suffering from ""bland serenity""). The book does distinguish among depression types--endogenous, agitated, chronic, masked--and offers a personalized set of symptom descriptions (Sturgeon herself suffered a bout with severe depression, and delves into other cases she's seen). But the very possibility that it may encourage self-diagnosis and treatment, despite warnings to the contrary, mitigate against it.

Pub Date: June 28, 1979

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Prentice-Hall

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 1979

Categories: NONFICTION