Freedom From Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder: A Personalized Recovery Program For Living With Uncertainty (Hardcover)

by Jonathan Grayson (Author) "A few years ago, I was in a donut shop, waiting to be served..." (more)
Key Phrases: imaginal exposure script, sample hierarchy items, neutral obsessions, Cost-Benefit Analysis, Downward Arrow, Socratic Questioning (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
A preeminent psychologist's uniquely successful method of understanding and overcoming obsessive-compulsive disorder.

What would prompt People magazine to include a profile of a Pennsylvania psychologist among its pages of celebrity features? Answer: his groundbreaking treatment of obsessive-compulsive disorder, an illness whose six million sufferers are driven by anxiety over life's uncertainties to become enslaved by ritualistic behaviors.

For more than two decades, Dr. Jonathan Grayson's extraordinary methods have included taking patients at his Philadelphia Anxiety and Agoraphobia Treatment Center on an annual camping trip, during which they participate in activities even non-sufferers would find difficult to endure. They sleep in tents, use latrines without the benefit of running water, and take torturous hikes. Dr. Grayson's remarkably empathetic key to understanding obsessive-compulsive disorder empowers sufferers to not only surmount these challenges but also to make enormous breakthroughs in coping with their behaviors and feelings.

Freedom from Obsessive Compulsive Disorder offers a self-guided version of Grayson's program, a highly personalized treat-ment that focuses on lasting recovery and relapse prevention. While some experts emphasize medication to treat the biological roots of OCD and others stress its psychological component, Grayson's compassionate approach combines the best of both schools of thought. Reaching beyond the generic symptom reduction offered in other books, this unparalleled volume enables those struggling with OCD to stop the disorder from controlling their lives.

About the Author
Jonathan Grayson, Ph.D., is the director of the Anxiety and Agoraphobia Treatment Center and an assistant clinical professor of psychiatry at Temple University Medical School. A nationally recognized expert who has worked with OCD sufferers for more than two decades, Dr. Grayson organized the first OCD support group in the country. He lives near Philadelphia.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: Tarcher (September 25, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1585422460
• ISBN-13: 978-1585422463
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.2 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #203,622 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

47 of 48 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A MUST-READ FOR ALL OCD SUFFERERS!, February 12, 2004

By A Customer

My friend bought this for me for my birthday. If she hadn't gotten it for me, I would never have touched another book about OCD. I tried reading some other ones, but I found them to be depressing with no real solutions. They seemed to elaborate more on the symptoms, which triggered and made my OCD worse. Dr. Grayson is a true OCD genius. He talks directly to you in a compassionate and understanding way. The book teaches you how to set up your own recovery program. I have never heard anyone describe OCD the way he does. You will develop a better understanding of yourself. I never thought anyone would be able to tell me anything new about OCD that I didn't already know, but he has. For someone who has received no professional help in 17 years of suffering, this book has been a source of hope. I highly recommend this book to anyone with OCD, especially to those of you who are skeptical like I was before I picked it up!

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Clear path to recovery, March 14, 2005

By	Claudia McGill (Wyncote, PA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

The author presents a very clear outline of a self-help treatment plan that can be used by anyone in their struggle with OCD. Beahvioral-cognitive techniques are described as well as the role of medication. The opening descriptions of the disorder can be a good tool in trying to educate others about OCD, and the sections about how to set up a self-directed recovery plan are very clear and concise. The tone is caring and the author seems to understand what it feels like to have OCD as well as how to treat it from a therapist's point of view. I especially found the section on cognitive techniques very helpful, as the author describes how to use them correctly.

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Best book i have seen on ocd, May 1, 2005

By	Moment_29 "Sam" (Florida) - See all my reviews

This is best one for OCD. It has explained the orgin and nature of OCD...The answer lies in the question - - THis is what OCD is about.The author discusses several cognitive techniques but also warns not to use some cognitive techniques. He selectively picks up best ones to fit OCD problem.
Also discusses Responsibilty ocd, pure 'O' ocd problem. Lot of techniques tailored for specific forms of OCD.
I recommend using this along with

[...] - Dr.phillipson