The family guide to mental health care /

More than 50 million Americans experience some form of mental illness annually. A large number of these individuals fail to get appropriate treatment. Some don't even receive a correct diagnosis. Sederer's guide helps folks (particularly family members and friends of people afflicted with psychiatric conditions) familiarize themselves with all aspects of mental illness: symptoms, treatment, prevention, health-insurance issues, and the law. Tucked in the middle of this useful guide is a valuable chapter, A World of Hurt: The Faces of Mental Illness, that summarizes many mental-health disorders generalized anxiety, obsessive-compulsive, panic, personality, bipolar, binge eating as well as depression and schizophrenia but not alcohol or substance abuse. Treatments of these problems, including medications, psychotherapy, electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), and repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (rTMS), are described. Written by a psychiatrist who is a mental-health administrator, the presentation is practical and compassionate. The main message about mental illness is urgent and uplifting: recovery is possible but requires effort, excellent treatment, assistance from loved ones, patience, and steadfast hope.--Miksanek, Tony Copyright 2010 Booklist

Sederer sees families as an early-warning system for mental illness, and here, New York State's top mental health official gives kin of the mentally ill a thoughtful, compassionate, and fact-packed guide for recognizing illness and getting help. "[T]reatment approaches for mental illnesses are no different from treatment approaches for other serious and persistent medical illnesses," Sederer writes. Recovery takes time- "Never, ever, give up." With passionate optimism, Sederer examines the facts about diagnoses, treatments, and doctors, and suggests questions to ask at every step of the way: What symptoms are being treated? Why this medication? Is the treatment working? There are heartbreaking case studies, but there are success stories too, including his own and that of a fellow doctor and author who is "thriving" with illness. The heart of this remarkable resource, however, is a wide-ranging breakdown of the "faces of mental illness," including depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, as well as eating, personality, and bipolar disorders-and how each may manifest. "Trust your instincts," he urges. "To do the right thing, you must face the unwanted visitor of mental illness and act before it defeats the person you love-and you as well." With a moving forward by actress Glenn Close, who calls mental illness "a family affair," this extraordinary guide offers valuable information and inspiration. Agent: Jeanne Dube, Forte Associates. (Apr. 15) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.