Customer Reviews

The Half-Empty Heart: A Supportive Guide to Breaking Free from Chronic Discontent

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Dr. Downs writes in practical terms, not abstract theory, and that alone makes this a unique book in the genre. I did not turn a page without coming across at least one or two "Aha! I do that, but didn't know why!" moments.

I would give this book 5 stars, but I have never encountered a published book that had more typos, spelling errors, and the like in it. Where was the proofreader to put together the final draft of Downs's amazing writings?

I agree with the author -- persistent low level depression (dysthymia/ dysphoria) is the most common psychological problem in the USA today -- the common cold of discontent in our civilization. His description is significant: "Emotional dishonesty ranges from simply hiding our true feelings from others to actively falsifying our feelings in ways that may be more acceptable and less confrontational.... We hide our true feelings from other people when those feelings aren't convenient or might be uncomfortable." This is a complex problem needing multi-faceted solutions. It is time for the realistic psychology of true human emotions to replace the superficial "don't worry, be happy" positive psychology movement. Many of us need to get in touch with "The Positive Power of Negative Thinking" (and feeling). To learn to be more real and speak up more honestly, I like Dr. Held's book "Stop Smiling, Start Kvetching." In this new book, "The Half-Empty Heart" Alan Downs has added his thoughtful and helpful contribution to the realistic psychology movement. Excellent and important book.

If you've ever felt like your blues just won't go away, this is the book for you. It's not about serious clinical depression -- instead it's a book for the millions of people who have low-grade sadness, a feeling of blah, a series of disappointments that chip away at that inner happiness we all have somewhere in us. It is useful and truly insightful -- read it and work on really feeling great again!

I must take issue with the author's statement that psychiatric medications are ineffective in treating dysthymia (see the appendix). His review of the literature supporting this assertion is incomplete at best; at least one study which he mentioned actually *supported* the use of medications (he quoted it out of context to argue *against* their effectiveness)! As a student of psychology, I recently did library research on the treatment of dysthymia and found that the majority of studies indicate that medications are at least as helpful as psychotherapy in treating dysthymia.

Having said that, I do believe that psychotherapy is useful with or without psychiatric meds, and I think that "The Half Empty Heart" gives an interesting characterization of chronic discontent and some potentially-useful tools for overcoming it. If you think you suffer from chronic discontent, you'll probably want to read this book.

For most of my relationship with my significant other, I have struggled with his lack of ability to include me in his life. There were many times that he would be very open and honest with me while in the next instance he would withdraw and cage himself in some other place. After finding the review of "Half Empty Heart" in a magazine, I felt as if the author had been following my boyfriend around, taking notes on his daily life.

I purchased the book for both of us and although it is early in the study of the book, it is the first time I have felt hope for someone I love so much. We are reading it together and talking daily about a chapter. We haven't started the daily exercises yet, but when we do I am hoping that there will be major break through in his happiness.

I am very appreciative for the insight this has given me. I am more understanding of where my boyfriend is coming from and hopefully where he now has the ability to go.

I have been reading the library copy of this book, and decided I needed my own copy so I could highlight significant lines. All my life I have felt what I called "melancholic", and now I finally have a real diagnosis for myself. So many things in this book speak to me, such as feeling unloved all my life, and unworthy of attention. I'm looking forward to reading this over and over again, and hopefully, I can benefit from it. I've never considered myself depressed, per se, but this comes much closer to what I feel. I used to describe myself as living inside a "bubble"; in the world, but not part of it. Now I know why.

I think this is so far the best descriptive aspect of chronic discontent. Particularly it is coming from a person who have been there.I feel that the Dr Downs has done a really great job not only in describing one of the aspects of life which is common yet not acknowledged often, it shows the way how to fight it( i have some doubts on the methods he describes simply because i think chronic discontent is almost a part of the personality,hence ingrained i.e hardwired,hence only partly can be addressed through psychological methods). I think that it is too simplistic to differentiate chronic discontent from dysthymia.
But truthfully all these matters little. I sincerely think he has done a really brilliant job and to my knowledge this is the first systematic account of a concept which is still unclear amongst scientific society.

I have struggled with undiagnosed depression all my life. About 8 years ago I went into major depression. The meds helped immensely but for the last few years or so their effects were diminishing. This book is really pointing me in a direction to go, giving me a way to help myself. If you are not quite ready for the loony bin, but keep saying,"there's got to be more to life than this" try this book.

The first thing I would like to say is a bit off the subject but I think that potential buyers should know that there are many type-o errors. Actually, it may be worth the price to see how a book like this got published while containing so many mistakes. If I were Dr. Downs I'd be PO'd that this book was released. I guess he really needed the money.

Anyway, this book does a good job of identifying what your problem is but seems to be lacking when it comes to the "cure". If you have been struggling with Dysthymia for more than five years or so, you may not "get it" - very little of the "cure" makes any sense to me consequently, it does not help. I'm curious if this book has really helped any of Dr. Downs' patients or not.
Perhaps it will help you - buy it used.

As a clinical psychologist and psychotherapist I find this book to be a very well written conceptualization, in everyday yet substantial language, of chronic depression or dysthymia (DSM IV-TR) as "chronic discontent." Very helpful for the mental health professional/clinician and for the ordinary person, in this book the author sheds light on the indicators (signs, symptoms) and the author's suggested approach to understanding and working through chronic discontent regardless of the theoretical orientation of the reader. The suthor has successfully put his personal experiences at the service of others.