Subjects:  1. History    2. History - U.S.    3. History: American    4. Morphine abuse    5. Opium    6. Opium abuse    7. Substance Abuse & Addictions - Drug Dependence    8. Therapeutic use    9. United States    10. United States - 19th Century    11. United States - General    12. Drug addiction & substance abuse    13. History / United States / 19th Century    14. North America    15. USA   

Reviews (8)

Very complete and well documented.
Great as a reference with good lay language. Not exactly something you'd take to the beach with you but with such a huge percentage of the population on psychotropics, pretty informative. Definitely worth buying whether you are a patient, a relative or friend of a patient, a non-psychiatric clinician, a mental health worker or, I daresay, even a psychiatrist!

Not bad
One glaring omission is that he fails to mention that SSRIs can cause permanent sexual side effects even after discontinuance. Long overlooked by the medical community. Do google search for details.

A Very Informative Book About Mental Illness and Drugs To Treat It
This book is very informative when it comes to describing mental illness' and the drugs they use to treat them. There arechapters devoted to depression ( and all forms of it), anxiety ( all forms of it), schizophrenia,andmanic depression. The 4 most common mental illnesses known. There is one chapter dedicated to sleeping pills. It describes in great detail the symptoms of each illness and gives examples of good treatment and bad treatment regarding patients who complain of symptoms. The most interesting area of the book are the drugs used to treat mental illness. Each drug is explained in detail as to what it is prescribed for, the dosage necessary, side effects, what tests to take if needed during thr drug trial use, and when not to use it. There is also a chapter devoted to drugs that are used to conteract side effects of anti-pyschotic medication. It also talks about how to know if you actually need medication foran illness and provides easy to read charts.I would highly recommend this book it will most definately provide you with valuable information that your doctor may have forgotten to mention or go into detail with you. The book is a little outdated but the only new drugs that are not included are Celexa, Lexapro, Cymbalta, and othernewer anti-psychotics and mood stabilers. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Consumer education    2. Diet / Health / Fitness    3. Drug Guides    4. Handbooks, manuals, etc    5. Health/Fitness    6. Medical    7. Neuropsychopharmacology    8. Popular works    9. Psychiatry - Psychopharmacology    10. Psychotropic Drugs   

Reviews (2)

Thurough and interesting
This book has it all, chemistry, cultural context, use, abuse, past, present and future.Is geared toward someone who has at least taken some o-chem, although non-science types could still get something out of it.The synthesis explanations can be a bit in depth, I have a degree in chemistry and a bit of that was way over my head.Book is also well refrenced, so should you ever get the urge to make some of these drugs you know where to go.

Definitive Guide
While I would not say that the merit of the book lies in its non-committal stance, I was certainly convinced that the author knew his chemistry. My reading was facilitated by the poetic interludes and anecdotes, which seem to have become a genre within science writing. Mr. Perrine should write another book, non-technical, and I am sure he will be as entertaining and informative. Inspired by his book I have released my newsletter with this theme this time. Read more

Subjects:  1. Central Nervous System Agents    2. Drugs of abuse    3. Health/Fitness    4. Life Sciences - Biochemistry    5. Medical / Nursing    6. Neuropsychopharmacology    7. Pharmaceutical Chemistry    8. Pharmacology    9. Psychopharmacology    10. Psychotropic drugs    11. Chemistry | Pharmaceutical Chemistry    12. Cultural studies    13. History of medicine    14. Medical / Psychiatry / Psychopharmacology   

Subjects:  1. Bioethical Issues    2. Depression    3. Essays    4. Ethics    5. Fluoxetine    6. Medical    7. Medical / Nursing    8. Personality    9. Personality change    10. Psychiatry - General    11. Psychiatry - Psychopharmacology    12. Psychology    13. Social aspects    14. therapeutic use    15. Medical / Psychiatry    16. Medical ethics    17. self-identity; self-enhancement; America's culture of self-transformation   

Reviews (5)

This book should be required reading by psychiatrists
This book should be required reading by all psychiatrists. There is still so much to learn from this maverick psychiatrist. Dr.Sydney Walker 111 was an unforgettable and unique and towering giant,we will not find another Dr.Sydney Walker again!!The closest thing to another Dr.Walker in Canada might be the ill-fated Dr.Ed Pakes,a brilliant pioneer bereavement psychiatrist. There is also Dr.Robin Brooks-Hill.Then there is an aloof South African "Shrink",and his son,who wrote some book called "Freud". (Obviously that isn't really the correct title,but it is a free country)Besides,why see Dr.Aloof Shrink when you can watch Meryl Streep films on Video.Bouchard is no longer a power,Richler is dead,Where is Trudeau or Lon Chaney Jr when we need him?

Informative, but left me wanting more
I was very impressed with A Dose of Sanity because so many books critical of psychiatry remind me of Breggin which claim that there is something "spiritual" missing in the patient, and the author ignores the bioligical problems inherent in the behavioral or mood disorder. Much more sensible than most books critical of the field.
This is not the first book I've read that is critical of psychiatry.But compared to Caplan, Breggin, and Szasz, this is the most sensible critique I've seen.Usually, in the anti-psychiatry literature one findsinexcusible nonsequiturs.For example: "Psychiatrists often don'trealize that the medication is causing the disorder (good point). Therefore, biological psychatry is unsound (bad point)." Or"Psychiatric illnesses are voted on by committee (good point),therefore there is no such thing as mental illness (bad point)." Walker avoids making such obvious nonsequiturs. Far from beingagainst biological psychiatry, Walker argues that current psychiatry is notbiological enough.It appeals to highly hypothetical conditions (such asneurotransmitter disorders) while ignoring known conditions (such as pinworms or hypothyroidism).Some might think that this is all that Walkeris saying, but his general point seems to be that since psychiatrists aretaught to run through symptoms lists instead of being medical detectives,there a lot of unknown conditions which they are failing to discover. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Diagnostic errors    2. Mental Health    3. Mental Illness    4. Physiological aspects    5. Psychiatric errors    6. Psychiatry - Psychopharmacology    7. Psychological manifestations o    8. Psychological manifestations of general diseases    9. Psychology    10. Medical / Psychiatry / Psychopharmacology    11. Medical diagnosis    12. Psychiatry   

Reviews (1)

If you ever were curious about psychoactive drugs...
This book leads the reader through both the pharmacology and the history of a whole host of drugs that are used to treat disorders such as anxiety, depression, and Alzheimer's.He also addresses some of the early studies that were conducted to try to elucidate the effects of these drugs on different patient populations---the stuff about ADHD/ADD is fascinating.The author's style is clear and concise and he did a very good job of taking difficult subject matter and distilling the bits out that are of most interest to the layperson.Perhaps the most amazing point that the author makes is that most of the drug classes were originally found as accidents! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. History    2. Medical    3. Medical / Nursing    4. Neuroscience    5. Psychiatry - Psychopharmacology    6. Life Sciences | Neurobiology    7. Medical / Psychiatry / Psychopharmacology   

Features

• Illustrated

Subjects:  1. Medical    2. Medical / Nursing    3. Psychiatry - Psychopharmacology    4. Veterinary Medicine - General    5. Veterinary psychopharmacology    6. Medical / Veterinary Medicine / General    7. VETERINARY DRUGS    8. Veterinary Science   

Subjects:  1. Clinical Psychology    2. Cognitive Psychology    3. Individual differences    4. Medical / Nursing    5. Neurology - General    6. Psychiatry - Psychopharmacology    7. Psychology    8. Psychopathology - Addiction    9. Reinforcement (Psychology)    10. Substance abuse    11. Addiction & therapy    12. Drug addiction & substance abuse    13. Drug-induced states    14. Pharmacology    15. Psychology & Psychiatry / Cognitive Psychology    16. Psychology | Psychopharmacology   

Subjects:  1. General    2. Medical    3. Medical / Nursing    4. Pharmaceutical Preparations    5. Pharmacology    6. Pharmacy    7. Psychiatry - General    8. Psychiatry - Psychopharmacology    9. Medical / Pharmacology   

Subjects:  1. Alternative Therapies    2. Biochemistry    3. Consumer Health    4. Dimethyl sulfone    5. Health aspects    6. Health/Fitness    7. Medical    8. Neuropsychopharmacology    9. Pharmacology    10. Psychiatry - Psychopharmacology    11. Specific Drugs    12. Diets & dieting    13. Medical / Biochemistry   

Subjects:  1. Drug Abuse    2. Psychiatry - Psychopharmacology    3. Social Science    4. Social aspects    5. Sociology    6. Sociology - General    7. Substance Abuse & Addictions - General    8. United States    9. Medical / Psychiatry / Psychopharmacology   

Subjects:  1. Enzymology    2. Life Sciences - Biology - General    3. Life Sciences - Biophysics    4. Medical    5. Medical / Nursing    6. Psychiatry - Psychopharmacology    7. Chemical spectroscopy, spectrochemistry    8. Molecular biology    9. Science / Biology   

Subjects:  1. Amphetamine abuse    2. Amphetamines    3. Medical    4. Medical / Nursing    5. Neurology - General    6. Psychiatry - Psychopharmacology    7. pharmacology    8. Drug addiction & substance abuse    9. Medical / Psychiatry / Psychopharmacology    10. Medicine | Psychiatry & Psychology   

Subjects:  1. Case Reports    2. Clinical Chemistry    3. Psychiatry - Psychopharmacology    4. Psychoanalysis    5. Psychoanalytic Theory    6. Psychodynamic psychotherapy    7. Psychology    8. Psychotherapy - General    9. Medical / Psychiatry    10. Psychotherapy   

Subjects:  1. Handbooks, manuals, etc    2. Medical    3. Medical / Nursing    4. Mental Disorders    5. Practice Guideline    6. Psychiatry - Psychopharmacology    7. Psychopharmacology    8. Psychotropic Drugs    9. drug therapy    10. therapeutic use    11. Pharmacology    12. Psychiatry   

Editorial Review

It seems like it was just yesterday that Prozac was a miracle pill, a medication that could not only make sick people well, but "better than well."Read more

Reviews (64)

Don't Be Fooled. Read This Book.
As a person who has been on antidepressants for over 8 years and developed severe neurological conditions while on them, I can't recommend this book highly enough. It was suggested to me by one of my doctors after constant testing could find no physical cause for my neurological problems. There were no lesions, no tumors, no spinal anomolies yet there I was with severe myoclonus among other things.
scary cover up
I am one of the victims. I was brainwashed,Im off the drugs now and finally see the corruption. I was perfectly healthy before SSRI yet still havent recovered after 4 years. Most doctors ignore victims like nazis denying the holocaust has never have happened. You also gotta consider most of the school shooting was caused by people who were on SSRI. I was very close to committing a very life threating act, fortunatly I was brave enough to come off of it. I have to say this issue should be one of the main concerns that should be on the main stream news media. It is scary that it is not talked about more often in this country.
Incredibly important and useful, unbiased information!
I have been living in a rural area that lacks therapists and Psychiatrists. And so, with no alternatives available, I went to my GP complaining of depression. And I was truly, severely, depressed. The answer? Zoloft. Oh yes...and leave the extremely dysfunctional relationship I was in.
Read more

Subjects:  1. Alternative Therapies    2. Alternative treatment    3. Antidepressants    4. Consumer Health    5. Depression    6. Depression, Mental    7. Diet / Health / Fitness    8. Drugs - Adverse Effects    9. Fluoxetine    10. Health & Fitness    11. Health/Fitness    12. Psychiatry (Specific Aspects)    13. Reference    14. Side effects    15. Coping with drug & alcohol abuse    16. Health & Fitness / General   

Subjects:  1. Medical    2. Medical / Nursing    3. Pain Medicine    4. Popular works    5. Psychiatry - General    6. Psychiatry - Psychopharmacology    7. Psychotropic drugs    8. Popular medicine   

Subjects:  1. Clinical Psychology    2. Medical    3. Neuropsychopharmacology    4. Psychiatry - Psychopharmacology    5. Psychology    6. Psychopharmacology    7. Psychotherapy    8. Psychotropic drugs    9. Pharmacology    10. Psychiatry    11. Psychology & Psychiatry / Psychopharmacology   

Reviews (1)

Unique and important perspective
Sometimes it takes someone outside the field to view it objectively. Gelman, a thorough and well-informed lawyer, has a perspective on psychiatric history that will take decades for psychiatry to get. Psychiatry once had a "vision" of specific antischizophrenictreatments with trivial side effects. Gelman traces the precise unravelingof that vision, and the waffling reactions of prominent leaders in thefield. Like a lawyer placing psychiatrists on trial, Gelman catches them inall their prevarications and inconsistencies, then adds thought provokingreflections of his own. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Antipsychotic drugs    2. Chemotherapy    3. Clinical Psychology    4. History    5. Mental Illness    6. Psychiatry - Psychopharmacology    7. Psychology    8. Psychopathology - General    9. Schizophrenia   

Subjects:  1. Community Health    2. Health Care Issues    3. Medical    4. Medical / Nursing    5. Neuropsychopharmacology    6. Physiology    7. Psychiatry - Psychopharmacology    8. Medical / Psychiatry / Psychopharmacology    9. Pharmacology    10. Psychiatry