Tao of Bipolar , livre ebook

New Harbinger Publications - Alexander Simpkins C.

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107 pages

English

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Sujets

Sociologie, société et politique

Mind

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Publié par	New Harbinger Publications
Date de parution	01 mars 2013
Nombre de lectures	0
EAN13	9781608822942
Langue	English
Poids de l'ouvrage	1 Mo

Informations légales : prix de location à la page 0,0678€. Cette information est donnée uniquement à titre indicatif conformément à la législation en vigueur.

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“Annellen and Alex Simpkins have produced another great book that represents their lifelong commitment to helping people using unique resources. . . . This step-by-step guide of systematic meditation techniques is designed for people diagnosed with bipolar disorder. The reader learns to enter into a different mental state that permits both relaxation and alertness, where once there was only mania or despair.”
— Michele Ritterman, PhD , world lecturer on “The Three-Minute Trance,” and author of The Tao of a Woman and Using Hypnosis in Family Therapy
“The Simpkins have written a wonderful book. It begins with a solid foundation of ancient Eastern philosophy integrated with modern Western science and a clear description of bipolar disorder. The benefits of a variety of meditations are described and clear guidelines are offered to match these with the individual symptoms that different people experience. Simple, easy-to-follow exercises are offered throughout the book so each reader can experience their own process, leading to sustained improvements. This is a wonderful book and will be appreciated by many people suffering from bipolar disorder. I recommend it enthusiastically.”
— Robert McNeilly, MBBS , an international teacher of Ericksonian approaches to psychotherapy and hypnosis
“A wonderfully well-written book integrating ancient philosophy of Tao and modern neuroscience for self-help with bipolar disorder.”
— Kathryn and Ernest Rossi , authors of the video e-book Creating New Consciousness in Everyday Life
“ The Tao of Bipolar is a how-to guide to clearing your mind, easing your moods, and developing your talents. I’m pleased to have this powerful resource to offer to my patients. The Simpkins offer you the tools you need to gain a high level of awareness and control over your bipolar symptoms. Their easy explanations and practical meditation exercises will help you develop powerful, life-changing habits.”
— Ashley Davis Bush, LCSW , author of Shortcuts to Inner Peace and Transcending Loss
“Even though the book is mainly directed to persons with bipolar disorders, it is also helpful for any therapist. The book nurtures the mind, body, and spirit of every reader; satisfies the need for sound knowledge; and gives the pleasure of reading a well-written book enriched by metaphors and cases that enhance the passionate hope that the meditations proposed in the book really work. . . . The deep message the book conveys is: Nurture your potential by committing yourself to doing the meditations. Find healthy daily routines of waking and sleeping, balance your moods to harmonize your relationships, and become what you want to become, trusting in the power of both Tao and nature.”
— Consuelo Casula, psychologist, psychotherapist, and the president-elect of the European Society of Hypnosis
“Throughout this helpful, holistic, clear, and cogent book the experienced authors skillfully depict both the bipolar condition and the many therapeutic ways its symptoms may be alleviated. Compassionately reassuring the sufferer, they encourage an attitude of non-judgmental awareness accomplished by meditation and breathing exercises to follow each day. . . . This book will be of great help to any who reads it and applies it to their lives.”
— Tasha Halpert , meditation teacher, columnist, blogger, and author of Heartwings: Love Notes for a Joyous Life
“A true self-help book. The authors expertly guide the reader through a description of bipolar disorder and teach, step-by-step, how to meditate to increase the ability to manage the mood swings that go with bipolar disorder. A great introduction for anyone considering treatment, and a thoughtful addition to talk and medication therapies.”
— Tanya H. Hess, PhD , director of training at Coaching into Care, Philadelphia VA Medical Center
Using Meditation and Minfulness to Find Balance and Peace
C. Alexander Simpkins, PhD, and Annellen M. Simpkins, PhD
New Harbinger Publications, Inc. -->
Publisher’s Note
This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information in regard to the subject matter covered. It is sold with the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering psychological, financial, legal, or other professional services. If expert assistance or counseling is needed, the services of a competent professional should be sought.
Distributed in Canada by Raincoast Books
Copyright © 2013 by C. Alexander Simpkins and Annellen M. Simpkins
New Harbinger Publications, Inc.
5674 Shattuck Avenue
Oakland, CA 94609
www.newharbinger.com
Cover design by Amy Shoup
Acquired by Melissa Kirk
Edited by Nelda Street
All Rights Reserved
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Simpkins, C. Alexander.
The tao of bipolar : using meditation and mindfulness to find balance and peace / C. Alexander Simpkins, PhD, and Annellen M. Simpkins, PhD.
pages cm
Includes bibliographical references.
ISBN 978-1-60882-292-8 (pbk. : alk. paper) -- ISBN 978-1-60882-293-5 (pdf e-book) -- ISBN 978-1-60882-294-2 (epub) 1. Manic-depressive illness. 2. Manic-depressive illness--Treatment. 3. Tai chi. 4. Exercise therapy. I. Simpkins, Annellen M. II. Title.
RC516.S563 2013
616.89’5--dc23
2012047227
To our parents, children, grandchildren, and extended family.
And to all those who have suffered from bipolar disorder. We recognize your talent and great potential. May you find meditation to be a valuable tool for opening your heart and mind to positive change—and transcend.
Contents
Introduction
Part 1 Fundamental Principles and Facts
1 Looking through the Lens of the Tao
2 All about Bipolar Disorder
3 How Meditation Can Change Your Brain
Part 2 Learning Meditation
4 Warming Up to Meditation
5 Focus on Breathing: The Gateway to Moods
6 Open Focus: Developing Mindful Awareness
7 No Focus: Clearing Your Mind
Part 3 Easing Your Moods, Fulfilling Your Talents
8 The Way Out of Stress
9 Moderate Your Depression
10 Harmonize Your Mania
11 Balance Your Relationships
12 Nurture Your Potential
Recommended Reading
References
Introduction
Your bipolar disorder need not hold you back from accomplishing your goals and doing what you care about. Throughout the ages and into the present, many have suffered from bipolar disorder. And yet, a percentage of those who receive this diagnosis manage to accomplish great things and lead productive, happy lives. So can you!
Typically, people have a pessimistic view of bipolar disorder. You may have been told that bipolar disorder is a lifelong medical problem with a strong effect on the brain. As a result, you might be thinking there’s not much you can do. But we invite you to join those who are successfully managing their bipolar disorder, by opening yourself to the idea that you can help yourself. If you catch a cold, you might believe that all you can do is endure it. But going out in the rain, missing sleep, or exposing yourself to other illnesses will certainly make things worse, whereas getting plenty of rest and drinking liquids will probably help. Most medical conditions, including bipolar disorder, can be improved when the patient takes an active role.
If you view a house only from the outside, you will never know what’s inside. But after you enter the building, you can walk to all the different rooms within. Similarly, you may be thinking about bipolarity from an external perspective, based on the negative things people have told you. These pessimistic perspectives might keep you from trying to do anything to alter your condition. Meditation lights the lamp of your inner experience, thereby allowing you to guide your actions from an illuminated source within, whereby you will discover new potential and options for improving your life.
This book offers you an optimistic view of bipolar disorder drawn from the ancient wisdom of the East and combined with the latest findings on bipolar disorder from neuroscience, psychology, and Western medicine. You will look at your mood problems through a different lens. Taoism is an ancient philosophical tradition that focuses on the principle of harmony and balance known as the Tao , which can be found through meditation. By viewing your mood problems through the lens of the Tao, you add another perspective and many practical methods for improving your bipolar disorder. This time-honored perspective, with its meditation techniques, will bring you feelings of well-being, balance, and happiness. Your life will be enhanced as you live with greater awareness, and this book shows you how to do it.
What Are Moods?
Without your feelings and experiences, who are you? Emotions are like music, lending harmony or discord to experience. You can find examples all around you: When a good friend you rarely get to see visits, you spontaneously feel happy, even elated! Then, having shared some wonderful time together, you feel sad when that person has to leave. Eating your favorite food, you feel enjoyment, whereas when you take a sip of sour milk, you feel disgust. Each of these emotions occurs naturally in relation to what you are doing and experiencing, and all of them elicit your sense of meaning about the events in your life. Whether your feelings are positive or negative, they add information that deepens your understanding of yourself and the world. The emotional center of the brain, known as the limbic system , is highly interconnected with many different regions all around the nervous system. These extensive links help to explain why your feelings are so much a part of what you think and do.
When an emotion endures, it becomes a mood . Moods are also a way of knowing what’s happening. For example, when people find themselves continually feeling irritable, it often reflects a problem in their lives. Then when the problem is solved, the irritable mood goes away. Emotions and moods are normal, built-in reactions of the mind-brain-body system. The