The Fall Bookshelf

Recent Books by Faculty of Harvard Medical, Dental and Public Health Schools

Jeff Brown and Mark Fenske with Liz Neporent
The Winner’s Brain: 8 Strategies Great Minds Use to Achieve Success
DeCapo

Jeff Brown, HMS clinical professor of Psychology at McLean Hospital, and Mark Fenske, of the University of Guelph, contend that creating a “failure-resistant” brain trumps many commonly cited hallmarks of success like IQ, financial resources and circumstance. In prose that is both understandable and practical, they present the science behind motivation, concentration and achievement with suggestions on how to train the brain to achieve at a higher level. Stories from both everyday heroes and notables such as B.B. King, Laura Linney and Whoopi Goldberg are interwoven among outlines of eight crucial “win factors.” Each of these strategies, including focus, emotional balance and adaptability, are rooted in modern neuroscience and psychology and placed into real-life contexts.

Myrna Chandler Goldstein and Mark A. Goldstein
Healthy Foods: Fact Versus Fiction
Greenwood

Discerning consumers must filter an ever-growing mass of nutritional advice—a task that is daunting and often riddled with contradictions. Mark Goldstein, HMS assistant professor of Pediatrics at Massachusetts General Hospital, and Myrna Goldstein, a journalist and nutrition writer, mined the current research base for the most up-to-date information on 50 health foods, from avocados to walnuts (while excluding from their analysis foods with insufficient data). Each of the entries distills scientific proof behind marketing hype, weighing evidence for health claims such as cardiovascular benefits, cancer prevention and weight management. They include caveats and provide a supplementary list of resources and references. The book also warns against leaning exclusively on any single food or nutrient, emphasizing that all beneficial foods should be consumed within the context of a wholesome, balanced diet.

John R. Peteet
Depression and the Soul: A Guide to Spiritually Integrated Treatment
Routledge

In an age when psychotherapy has taken a backseat to pharmaceuticals, and antidepressants rank among the most widely prescribed medications, matters of the soul are sometimes overlooked. John Peteet, HMS associate professor of Psychiatry at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, navigates the emerging use of spiritual approaches to emotional healing—both secular and faith-based. In examining the multidimensional nature of depression, Peteet considers the spiritual aspects of diagnosis and treatment and the implications for neurobiology and psychopharmacology. He provides a conceptual framework for addressing the spiritual dimension of depression and describes practical implications for treatment, along with clinical vignettes.

John R. Peteet, Francis G. Lu and William E. Narrow, Editors
Religious and Spiritual Issues in Psychiatric Diagnosis: A Research Agenda for DSM-V
American Psychiatric Association

In the decades following Freud’s famous denouncement of religion as immature wish fulfillment, spirituality and psychiatry led largely separate lives. Yet scholarly interest in this intersection—and the spiritual and philosophical issues involved in distinguishing a psychiatric disorder from a spiritual condition—has grown steadily in recent years. This volume, edited by John Peteet, HMS associate professor of psychiatry at Brigham and Women’s Hospital with Francis Lu, of the University of California-Davis and William Narrow, of the American Psychiatric Association, broaches this territory and systematically addresses the integration of spirituality and religion in the revision of the field’s core text, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM). The collection analyzes the implications for diagnosis, course and outcome of major psychiatric disorders, and provides suggested DSM revisions. At the conclusion of each chapter, expert commentaries put research findings into clinical context. In addition to identifying gaps in diagnosis and treatment, the volume targets areas for further research.

Julian Seifter and Betsy Seifter
After the Diagnosis: Transcending Chronic Illness
Simon & Schuster

Julian Seifter, HMS associate professor of Medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, with his wife, Betsy, frankly recounts the discovery of his own chronic illness, diabetes, and his parallel development as a physician. Seifter explores ways to manage the physical problems, emotional issues and the social stigma that often accompany chronic illness. He also explores the patient’s relationship to the medical establishment. Seifter contends that a deeper understanding of these challenges will not only bring support and comfort but also better medical care. His perspective comes to life through rich vignettes outlining his patients’ struggles and transformations, and stories from his own relationship with diabetes. Seifter’s narrative imparts new ways to cultivate emotional resilience and openness toward creative solutions and, ultimately, to practice the art of graceful living in the face of a serious illness.

David, Kate, Michael, and Sam Treadway
Home Before Dark: A Family Portrait of Cancer and Healing
Union Square

When David Treadway, a clinical psychologist, was diagnosed with Stage 4 non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, he challenged his family to write about their individual experiences over the course of the tumultuous year that followed. In alternating chapters, his wife, Kate Treadway, HMS associate professor of Medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital, and two sons, Michael and Sam, collectively recount David’s illness, from the shock of the diagnosis to the difficulties of chemotherapy and his eventual remission. The parallel accounts trace the family’s history as they address the everyday struggles and larger existential questions invoked by serious illness. Infused with dry wit and gripping honesty, the story unfolds through the separate lenses of each family member’s varied life stage, individual personality and familial role. These interwoven stories work together to provide a candid portrait of how the family handled David’s illness, individually and together, and the conversations and changes it inspired.