Confessions of a Closet Eater


Book Description

Abstract: A recovered bulimia, wife, and mother, describes what it's like to go through a typical binge purge attack. She traces the background of her disorder, explains the mechanics involved in the recovery stages, and describes the role played by her renewed faith in Jesus. The purpose and benefits of the self-help organization Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders (ANAD) are described. Advice is offered to parents and spouses of Anorexia or bulimia on helping their loved ones. The importance of self-esteem is discussed as is the need to accent one's positive traits rather than the negative ones. Several ideas are offered for treating the physical symptoms of bulimia: slowing down before and during eating and walking to relax, tuning in to others rather than to the food present while eating, as certaining what situation trigger binges, and other behavior modification tips. Taking one step at a time is important in overcoming an eating disorder: be patient, face the symptoms, accept certain individual needs, and set small goals so the task of recovering doesn't seem too overwhelming to begin. (as).




Confessions of a Closet Eater


Book Description

It's been about 7 months since I started this journey. I am happy to report that I have lost a total of 50 pounds, and more importantly, kept it off! This doesn't mean I'm "cured", if you want to call it that. Every day, every food decision is a conscious choice. A choice to eat healthy or not. A choice to feel satisfied or stuffed. I think, for the most part, I am making these choices in a conscious manner. Previously, I would eat anything and everything and never realize what I was eating. I could eat a whole cheese ball and half a box of wheat thins (because wheat is healthy, right?) and never realize that I had eaten the whole thing until I was finished. Every day, every bite gets a little easier.




Anger


Book Description

This "landmark book" (San Francisco Chronicle) dispels the common myths about the causes and uses of anger as Dr. Carol Tavris expertly examines every facet of that fascinating emotion—from genetics to stress to the rage for justice. Social psychologist Dr. Carol Tavris explores myths around anger—ideas such as expressing anger is always good for you, suppressing anger is always unhealthy, or that women have special "anger problems" that men do not—and provides a helpful guide on how to use anger constructively and how to diminish anger without being aggressive or hostile. Fully revised and updated, Anger now includes: -A new consideration of biological politics: Should testosterone or PMS excuse rotten tempers or aggressive actions? -The five conditions under which anger is likely to be effective—and when it's not. -Strategies for solving specific anger problems—chronic anger, dealing with difficult people, repeated family battles, anger after divorce or victimization, and aggressive children.







Framing Disease


Book Description

Many diseases discussed here--endstage renal disease, rheumatic fever, parasitic infectious diseases, coronary thrombosis--came to be defined, redefined, and renamed over the course of several centuries. As these essays show, the concept of disease has also been used to frame culturally resonant behaviors: suicide, homosexuality, anorexia nervosa, chronic fatigue syndrome. Disease is also framed by public policy, as the cases of industrial disability and of forensic psychiatry demonstrate. Medical institutions, as managers of people with disease, come to have vested interests in diagnoses, as the histories of facilities to treat tuberculosis or epilepsy reveal. Ultimately, the existence and conquest of disease serves to frame a society's sense of its own "healthiness" and to give direction to social reforms.




My Life from Scratch


Book Description

A former Hollywood insider trades the Hollywood Hills for Green Acres—and lives to tell about it in this hilarious, poignant treat of a memoir. As head of her celebrity sister’s production company, Gesine Bullock-Prado had a closet full of designer clothes and the ear of all the influential studio heads, but she was miserable. The only solace she found was in her secret hobby: baking. With every sugary, buttery confection to emerge from her oven, Gesine took one step away from her glittery, empty existence—and one step closer to her true destiny. Before long, she and her husband left the trappings of their Hollywood lifestyle behind, ending up in Vermont, where they started the gem known as Gesine Confectionary. And they never looked back. Confections of a Closet Master Baker follows Gesine's journey from sugar-obsessed child to miserable, awkward Hollywood insider to reluctant master baker. Chock-full of eccentric characters, beautifully detailed descriptions of her baking process, ceaselessly funny renditions of Hollywood nonsense, and recipes, the ingredients of her story will appeal to anyone who has ever considered leaving the life they know and completely starting over.







The Confessions of an English Opium Eater


Book Description

This autobiography, first published in 1821, describes the author's addiction to laudanum (opium and alcohol) and its effect on his life. He talks about his childhood and the underlying psychological factors that led to his opium abuse. He had spent his late teenage years as a runaway living on the streets of London. He describes the early pleasures of opium and then how his experiences devolved into the more extreme side effects such as insomnia, hallucinations and physical symptoms.