Customer Reviews

Magnificent Mind at Any Age: Natural Ways to Unleash Your Brain's Maximum Potential

5 star:		(53)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

Today, much psychiatry involves deciding which pill to prescribe. Patients with the same symptoms may respond quite differently to the same medications. Most psychiatrists will candidly tell you that prescribing is mostly a matter of trial and error, with the patient often suffering during the process.

Dr. Daniel G. Amen has a different idea. Conduct SPECT (single photon emission computed tomography) scans to identify brain deficiencies in conjunction with standard psychiatric diagnostic tools. In this book, he shares examples of how various brain dysfunctions can be identified by such scans. After trying a treatment, he can then test the adequacy of the approach by asking the patient about his or her life and by looking at an updated scan. In these before and after images, the results are remarkably different.

As a substitute for such scans, Dr. Amen invites readers to respond to a series of questions that he often finds are indicative of brain dysfunctions. From there, he describes the various alternative (non-medicinal) treatments as well as the indicated meds. In many cases, patients will be helped by an improved diet, exercise, avoiding sources of brain trauma, improving hydration, reducing excess stress, learning how to stop focusing on negative thoughts, getting more sleep, reducing caffeine and alcohol consumption, avoiding aspartame and MSG, eliminating environmental toxins, and reducing television watching, video game playing, computer use, and cell phone calls and texting.

After you identify what you or a loved one might be suffering from, he also describes the treatments that usually help. In the course of this, he describes the latest research that describes why these treatments help.

As someone who isn't a physician, I was struck by the potential of imaging to improve diagnosis. I know what imaging has done for helping identify cancers, cardio-vascular diseases, and glandular dysfunctions. Obviously, I'm not in a position to judge the quality of Dr. Amen's work, but the theory makes sense to me as someone who often designs new measurements to diagnose the causes and sources of problems.

I found that the book's main weakness is that it wasn't always clear to me what Dr. Amen meant by his various screening questions. After I got into the sections that talked about the dysfunctions in more detail, I often found that I had misunderstood the purpose of his questions.

I liked the sections of the book that talk about how to improve your brain, even if you don't have a major dysfunction. I think that anyone will be intrigued by what Dr. Amen reports.

This book is a jewel because of its beauty, which is rare and powerful. For this, I have to write that reading this book gave me a beautiful shock. Let me explain my reaction in two thoughts:

The first is suggested in the title of Chapter 5: IF YOU WERE MY FAMILY, HOW WOULD I TREAT YOU? Few medical doctors share, with modesty, their personal experiences and the tools they use to make their diagnoses and treatments. I was surprised to see how Dr.Amen, candidly shares the four circles of health and healing and why one should consider natural treatments. This concept is not new to the sciences of human behavior. However, to consider the transcendent or spiritual dimension of the person as an equally important dimension as the biological, social and psychological is little regarded by men and women in charge of today's health sciences.

The second concept that has caught my attention is how freely Dr. Amen writes about the power of lies in our lives. In chapter 12: EMBRACE THE TRUTH, Dr.Amen helps us to discover how automatic negative thoughts (ANT's) poisons our brains and pollute our reading of reality as well as the reading of the historical events of our lives. In every chapter, the author transmits his wisdom and generously shares the exercises that many of his patients have found to be beneficial to improve their brain and their life.

I think that this book is a gift of hope for those who are still seeking answers to the questions that nobody has been able to answer them. In my experience as a psychologist, I may say without exaggeration that this book is a gem. I am grateful for it.

Melissa Martínez de Arana, Ph.D.
Psychologist & "Brain Coach"

I have been reading so many brain, depression, happiness books over the past several years that I decided to finally post some of my views. One important observation is to really check out what the author's agenda MIGHT be. As more than a few of the previous reviewers have pointed out, Dr. Amen's books are good advertisements for his clinics. There is some good information to be found here, but most people only read one or two books on a particular subject and then move on to another subject. It would be unfortunate if Dr. Amen's books were a primary source for one's information.
I am recommending just a few of the excellent authors in the brain-stress-happiness area: Daniel Gilbert, Richard O'Connor, Daniel Goleman, Deborah Tannen, Martin Seligman, Jon Kabat-Zinn

I retired from the Colorado Mental Health Institute. I watched many expensive drugs being passed out like so many M&M's. I do have to say the drugs and the artists prescribing them worked simple miracles everyday. But I never once heard anyone even consider natural supplements or nutrition to improve mental illness. Drug representatives were a constant. Nutritional support was not.

I have struggled with mild depression/anxiety and brain fog for years. I have spent thousands trying to find the right herb or the right supplement to clear my mind. If snake oil was being sold, I was the first in line (a bit obsessive compulsive as well). I tried prescription anti-depressants but the side effects were depressing (no, I should not be a 180 pound eunuch).I read this book and started taking the supplements suggested for my particular issues. I can honestly say this book helped me greatly. It even helped me lose weight. I am more relaxed, happier, and have mental clarity for the first time in many years. I wish I would have had this book two decades ago.

Dr Amen also suggests some easy ways to change your inner views and inner chatter. I also found these simple techniques valuable. I have suggested this book to anyone I thought might benefit but truthfully, I think everyone could benefit from a healthy brain.

Ya, Dr. Amen has clinics, ya one could say the books are a marketing ploy but on the other hand would a book from a person with no clinical experience and no medical background be valuable? I can find these people all over the net hawking goods. At least Dr. Amen has the experience, wisdom, and medical background to write intelligently on the subject.

This book was easy to read and just packed with information. Once you read this book you will never feel the same way again about what you eat and how you feel. I sincerely wish that this book could be taught in every high school in the country. If this book was a mandatory course in school, our national health costs would drop significantly.

This book not only describes the nutritional requirements of our bodies, but it explains: How our bodies work, What our bodies need, What we should eat, How it works to make us healthy, What supplements are available, and what the resulting nutritional benefits are (health, happiness, energy, concentration, improved brain function, and natural nutritional ways to mitigate against autism, Alzheimer's, ADHD, and Parkinson's Disease.

We've heard for years that good nutrition will make us healthy, but this book explains precisely not only what good nutrition is (and it names names), but how and why it affects the body (for example, regarding energy, we all want more of it but this book tells us what energy is, where it is located in our bodies (a great surprise to me), and how it works. The information in this book represents a fundamental requirement for how to be happy & healthy as we go through life - Literally a road map for healthy living.

Hi All-

I picked up Dr. Amen's book at a bookstore and found it interesting but a little dry. It takes several chapters to make its point and to understand what it is you need to do to preserve your brain. I found, however, Dr. Amen's recommendations to be sound, following recommendations that are well know or common sense. I would have liked a little more information on why Dr. Amen places so much importance on SPECT Scans.

If you are looking for a lifestyle or diet plan, I found The Anti-Alzheimer's Prescription: The Science-Proven Plan to Start at Any Age by Dr. Vincent Fortanasce to be more useful and easy to follow. The book clearly gives a 4-Step lifestyle plan from the beginning and the author offers personal stories and experiences making it more interesting to read and insightful.

Hope this helps!

Amen writes this book from the perspective of a clinical psychiatrist, with an underpinning of research and clinical expertise. He is not afraid to recommend treatments, which, in his opinion, work well, regardless of whether they are based on medication, counselling, hypnotism, naturopathy, diet and so on.

I thoroughly recommend this book for those who have specific disorders, such as ADHD, or autism, to those who simply want to improve the health of our body's most important organ, the brain.

The volume is written in an easy-to-read style.
A valuable brain questionaire is provided to help
articulate important physiological issues for readers.

Specific behaviors and/or activities impede maximum
brain throughput or efficiency in activity. i.e.
o great stress
o caffeine and nicotine
o aspartame and MSG
o trauma
o excess TV and video games
o lack of exercise

The author asks that we develop a strong personal sense
of control at all times. In addition, we should let go
of the past, the uncooperative aspects of the present
and future uncertainties . The acquisition would be
very helpful in developing effective coping strategies
for the present and the future.

This book should be considered an essential handbook for family relations, child rearing, interpersonal relations outside of the home and guide to personal development. I can't say enough positive to give it full credit. It is a life changing book, if you let it be.

Please consider reading this book, and take a few minutes to complete one of Dr. Amen's questionaires. Dr. Amen understands that not everybody can get a brain scan, so please read and follow the advice and you'll be on the road to a stable mood, and better working brain. Then reach out to others and help them also. At Aurora Counseling Center, we have had nothing but success with the insight gained from thousands of brain scans at the Amen Clinics. We can be much more specific and this allows us to be very individualized about treatment. The result? Our patients improve, and we can use medications only when absolutely necessary. Better yet, read the book, and then practice the 21 prescriptions for a better life today!

Michael Leiker, MA, LPC
Aurora Counseling Center