Customer Reviews

Skin Deep: A Mind/Body Program for Healthy Skin

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For 10 years I have been struggling with eczema. Creams and treatments only did so much, and it never went away for long. I found that stress provoked my eczema and thought that there were underlying psychological reasons, but didn't know where to get help. Desperate I turned to the web and found this excellent book that details the reasons behind skin conditions, how to relieve the condition and to explore and deal with the underlying problem. The exercises to relieve itching work and the accounts of other people's conditions are enlightening.

This is the best self-help book I've read. The healing exercies oulined by the authors are not in the least bit "new-agey" and etheral, but are parctical and down-to-earth. As a reader you are encouraged to dig deep into your own psyche to discover the sensitive issues behind your skin problem and you are emotionally supported every step of the way as if you were actually in the doctor's office. Anyone with the drive to acquire self-knowledge will gain valuable insights from reading this book. For me personally, the "animal test" and the sections on "what if it got better/what if it got worse" were particularly enlightening. This book should be a mandatory read for all doctors applying for board certification in dermatology.

The program Dr. Grossbart presents in his book Skin Deep is impressive and effective.The book provides not only a vivid account of what he does in his office in Boston, but a wide range of practical techniques that people can use on their own. As a colleague, I've referred many people to him. I've seen the approach work with psoriasis, eczema, herpes, warts , and other skin diseases. Often symptoms disappear, or are substantially reduced in frequency or severity. People come away with both skin help and markedly increased self-understanding that leads to improvements in many other areas of their lives. I've heard that people with skin problems that have not responded to the usual medical treatments come from all over the world to see him. I think this is justified. His program is "the real thing."

Whenever my eczema flared up, my friends would tell me I'm too stressed out. I didn't feel that way, not much more stressed out than usual, so the timing of the flare ups and the stress level at that time was sometimes confusing.
After reading this book, however, I recognized it's much more than just the simple stress - more deeply rooted issues I've apparently held for a long time. I had vaguely suspected this may be the case, but didn't know how/where to start. This book gave me the guidance to do that on my own.

I agree with 3 other reviewers completely. I no longer feel helpless and scared when I can feel my skin starting to flare up. I am not yet free from eczema, but knowing what may be the underlying cause of it, and how to calm it down, I have much stronger sense of being in control of my skin, body and my life.

Great Self Helf Book which gives you wonderful insights into the emotional factors of your condition. Let's suppose skin conditions are partially genetical, partially caused by wrong food intake, partially caused by external conditions (wheather, dust mites, etc...) and partially caused by emotional/stress factors (some say ALL skin conditions are caused by inner anger). I suggest you take an integral approach to treat your condition and optimize your food intake and do whatever you can about external conditions. This will take the balance of your condition into the right direction. The next step is to explore the emotional/stress factors of your skin condition. That is what this book is great for!

What advantages and safeties does your condition give you? What is the condition doing for you? Why are YOU affected? Why THERE and why NOW? This book provides great methods (a comprehensive list of most common needs the skin is trying to acquire via its condition; great excercises in self-knowledge; creating a Time Line to effectively understand why your skin condition is worse or better at particular moments; why particular places at your body are affected; what it does for you (what safeties and advantages); and let's you think about what if it got better or worse) to explore the emotional cause of your skin condition. This is the first step and understanding will already bring you towards curing of your skin condition! The next part of the book gives techniques to get yourself into a healing state which will give the next boost towards healing. It also outlines what professional help can do for you.

I eventually embraced a hypnotherapist into my healing process. My own condition is moving towards complete recovery (full body eczema). This book is a must read if you want to be cured!

I was extremely pleased with content and recommendations in Skin Deep. The author is knowledgeable of a variety of skin conditions and their resulting emotional attachments or reactions. For the person needing relief, there is such with numerous relaxation strategies that are actually helpful and can get you started Day 1. I highly recommend this book.

I checked this book out from the library when I had the most horrible eczema outbreak of my life: sores up and down my arms and legs, peeling of the skin three layers down on my hands. My doctors were useless.

This book was a part of a turning point for my life - reading what it had to say about the psychological origins of skin conditions prompted me to take action that improved my life on all levels.

I came across this book while reading about it on an acne forum. I had mostly clear skin as a teenager, until around late 2009 (when I was 23 y/o) when my skin started to break out (face, back, etc).

It got to a pretty bad point this year in mid-2011. I recently cut out sugar from my diet (no cookies/smoothies/etc for 3 weeks and counting), the same time I started reading SKIN DEEP.

I don't know whether it was diet or lifestyle factors in my case (probably a combination of both--I have had a tendency to "over-worry" about certain things), but I recently saw a book on sale written by a couple of dermatologists who'd worked and researched for companies like L'Oreal, etc. I can't remember the title of that book, but the recommendations in that book read like a catalog for the acne-treatment/age-defying/blah-blah-blah products that the dermatologists were or had been associated with. I couldn't put much faith in it, especially since I HAD been trying out such products over a number of years, usually with little to no effect. In fact, the problem(s) usually got worse (I just used a gentle facial cleanser and some spot-treatment product occasionally, as a teen).

In comparison, SKIN DEEP cuts all that kind of fluff and immediately gets straight to the point about the skin being a reflection of one's emotional/internal state.

I'm about 3 chapters into the book, but already have gained a deep understanding of the perspectives that guide Dr. Grossbart's work and practice. Ironically, the negative review (here on Amazon, at the time of this posting), precisely shows the type of aggressive/angry individual that has unresolved issues (which could very well be turning up externally on the skin / as Grossbart states in his book, "What is your skin trying to tell you?" -- a simple question that's much easier to ask than answer).

I've been keeping a (part-time) skin journal, eating more vegetables (been experiencing withdrawal symptoms from lack of cookies/chocolate/sugar high), and my acne and eczema have gone down. I think (in my case) a lot of it had to do with not properly dealing with anger issues.

I hope I will "break out" less often (with the aim/dream of having clear skin again one day), and am doing my best this time to find the root issues/causes and work through/resolve them. I write for a living; my creative work has slowed down in the meantime (I used to rely on the "sugar high" for sustenance), but I think I have to put my health first this time.

I thank Dr. Grossbart for all the fantastic work he's done and continues to do for people with aggravating skin problems!

Get ready to explore more deeply little deeper. The Doctors/ author of this book have written from a place of deep compassion as well as dermatological expertise. This comes through on every page. Even if you've "tried everything," keep going. Leave no stone unturned when seeking relief from an ailment only you know the details about. This is not a new age self-helper, but a multi-pronged approach that puts you, the person with the skin condition ( that covers territory as far and wide as eczema to self-injurious behaviors) in the drivers seat. You live inside your skin, why not read a program that can truly help you become more comfortable in it? I rather enjoyed the slow pace of the writing. The issues discussed here are worthy of careful reading, pondering and re-reading. Healing skin conditions might be a journey, not a quick fix out of a tube of ointment. Do your self or the person in your life with a 'chronic' skin condition and get this book.

I was glad to start my understanding of mind/body/skin relationship with this easy to read and still scientific grounded book. This book talks about different skin conditions.