Customer Reviews

Rosacea: Your Self-Help Guide

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Dr. Brownstein (ably assisted by her co-authors)writes from a unique and very helpful perspective. Trained as a naturopathic physician and well acquainted with conventional and alternative medical approaches to rosacea, Dr. Brownstein herself suffers from this chronic skin condition. Writing with great depth and clarity about her own struggle with rosacea, Dr. Brownstein offers an empathetic guide to fellow sufferers, sharing with them the many insights and even "tricks" she has learned about learning to live with a condition that has afflicted everyone from W.C. Fields to Bill Clinton. Using her own skin as a laboratory of one, the author offers hope and common sense advice about coping with both the cosmetic and psychological effects of rosacea. In the last analysis, the book is triumphantly encouraging, and should not be neglected by any of the estimated 14 million Americans (and many more worldwide) who have rosacea and are looking for ways to control it medically, nutritionally and even psychologically. This is an essential book for anyone seeking guidance in the management of rosacea.

This is a gentle book. It makes very gentle claims about the broad applicability of what it has to say. The book could be summarised in one sentence. "We believe that eating right, taking appropriate supplements, and optimising your digestive system can improve your rosacea, not to mention your overall health."

The book starts off talking about the author's discovery and subsequent distress at having rosacea. She went first for the traditional dermatologist directed treatment path. For a naturopath this is an honest admission - that she firstly thought that she need to consult mainstream medicine to `get rid of it'. Becoming disappointed with the results she then turned to her background.

The introduction section follows the theme of the book - lots of gently stated facts about rosacea. The treatment section mentions the regulation treatments and then talks about naturopathy and homeopathy. The much loved ZincO even gets a mention.

I'm not a fan of trying to control one's rosacea by avoiding known triggers. This comes from a desire to be rid of the disease by not giving in and changing your life dramatically. Thus, the seemingly obligatory section on triggers and stress doesn't really help. Next, is a short section on makeup and lasers.

The remainder of the book deals with nutrition for your skin. As well as dealing with supplements, the book asks us to forget the `food pyramid' and embrace the `food wheel'. The section on Fats and Oils is particularly detailed. This is the highlight of the book for me, information about for eg. borage oil and flax seed oil. These are often talked about in the Rosacea Support Group, especially in regards to ocular rosacea.

The book finishes with some discussions about the psychology of your face, asking us to remember that we are not `just our face'. This is good advice especially for us that obsess about our appearance.

Approaching the disease from the nutritional side, this book is one of the better introductory rosacea texts.

...

I reviewed this book and gave it a poor rating a few months ago, and now I find that the review has disappeared.

Here is the problem with this book in a nutshell: WAY too much data that is also very poorly presented, especially if you are a new sufferer of this condition. Perhaps a long-time sufferer of rosacea could pick through this helter-skelter mosaic and find some grains of wisdom, but the newbie like me will probably be overwhelmed and fall into despair. Fairly disorganized in general, there is too much anecdotal information with far too many contradictions in the medical sections (particularly the parts about acid balance in the diet). You're just dropkicked into various technical sections without any handholding and then thrown to the wolves of information overload.

When I was first diagnosed with rosacea, I needed some simple guidelines. I was depressed, felt like Mother Nature had screwed me over, and needed some positive steps to move forward immediately. Do yourself a favor and visit rosacea-dot-org or some other website that offers clearer, more direct guidelines on health, medicine, and other regimens so that your skin can start to look and feel better right away. That's what I did. It's free. After three months of treatment and some dietary adjustments, my face looks much better!

I am so grateful to Dr. Brownstein for writing this book. My whole life has changed (for the better!) because of it. She covers everything about this terrible condition from conventional medicine to alternative medicine to what has worked for individual people. And she gives a clear road map for fellow sufferers (yes, she has rosacea too!)to follow to come to grips with this condition psychologically and physically. It's loaded with suggestions and things to try; everything from sucking on ice chips while exercizing (this works for me!) to how to take an enjoyable bath, to natural anti-inflamatory supplements (my eyes have improved 200% from using these!). I can't promise that you'll totally get rid of your rosacea by reading this book, but it will surely get you as close as is possible. Thank you Dr. Brownstein! If your have rosacea, do yourself a favor and get this book!

I have suffered for most of my life from rosacea. Told so many times that I simply would have to live with this dismaying condition, imagine my relief (joy really!) to find in one comprehensive, well-written, yet very accessible book all of the information I've ever sought. This is an extraordinarily helpful work, presented in everyday terms that any sufferer (whom the authors jocularly deem "The Rosaceans")can readily understand and immediately put to use. Everything from "trigger foods" to the effects of sun and wind, to the latest in medical and alternative treatment. Thank you for this wonderful book, Arlen Brownstein and Donna Shoemaker!"

I discovered I had rosacea about 2 years ago. Now I know why after reading this great book. I had a hysterectomy 2 years ago and from reading this book I gather that it is one of the factors that brought on my roseacea. I am only 27, and have always had clear skin. There is a good checklist for symptoms and what to avoid if you have this. I only give it 4 stars because I would have liked to have seen some actual photos of people with roseacea. This book didn't have one picture. For me that would have been helpful.

it was great to read a book that explained in simple terms so much about this disease that makes me crazy, lots of ideas about dealing with redness, bumps, emotions.

What I really like about this book is that someone finally deals in practical terms with the psychological impact of a chronic disease sitting right there on your face with all the world to see. The authors really make you think about what you can do to put rosacea in proper perspective so it no longer controls your life. I needed someone to point it out to me and I needed ideas on how to do it. That, along with countless suggestions on how to deal with the physical symptoms of rosacea, make me enthusiastically recommend this book.

I have just found out that I have Rosaeca. The doctor gave me pamphlets that contain very basic information. I was so pleased that I ordered this book. It contains information on everything a person with Rosaeca needs to know. It is like an owners manual for Rosaeca. It contains help with everything from psychological, diet, different methods to deal with this condition. This book gives me the peace of mind of knowing what I am dealing with and how to deal with it.

Dr. Brownstein has performed an important public service for the millions of rosacea suffers with this timely, comprehensible self-help guide. Avoiding jargon or needless complexities about the skin condition, "Rosacea: Your Self-Help Guide" is full of practical --and natural--ideas on preventing rosacea outbreaks and improving the appearance of the skin of those afflicted with the "embarrassing disease." Dr. Brownstein's co-authors, Donna Shoemaker, Nutritionist, and Dr. Sean O'Laire, Psychologist contribute important chapters on the role of nutrition and on the "psychology of face," which offer,respectively, a practical guide to eating right and a sense of perspective about the cosmetic aspects of the condition. Dr. Brownstein tells us how to avoid "triggering" the condition (weather, alcohol, chocolate, etc.), but also about the latest medical breakthroughs that can treat and ameliorate the condition (laser treatment, photoderm, among others).

But perhaps the most useful advice for those who have been forced to deal with this frustrating condition is Dr. Brownstein's account of her own struggle to overcome rosacea. This is the most encouraging news of all, and we're in her debt for sharing this valuable perspective.