The world needs this book —today more than ever. By reframing the discussion of mental health to brain health, Dr. Daniel Amen obliterates the concept that mental health issues are someone’s fault, or that people should just deal with them any differently than they would the flu or a broken arm. Most important, Dr. Amen gives everyone not just the permission but the validation and hope to seek help for a better tomorrow.
DARRIA LONG GILLESPIE, MD, emergency physician; national TV expert and host; author of bestselling book Mom Hacks
The End of Mental Illness is a radical new way to overhaul psychiatry, using the lessons from neuroimaging in the context of a whole-person functional medicine approach. My family has benefited from Dr. Amen’s work, and I hope you will too.
MARK HYMAN, MD, Pritzker Foundation Chair in Functional Medicine, Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine; director of the Cleveland Clinic Center for Functional Medicine
Dr. Amen’s approach has revolutionized our understanding of the causes and therefore the treatment of mental illness.
DAVID PERLMUTTER, MD, author of the #1 New York Times bestseller Grain Brain and Brain Wash
This is a great book. It presents a radical challenge to the psychiatric status quo and represents the best of the clinical transformative traditions. Dr. Amen makes disciplined observations and pursues them to the end for the sake of his patients without regard to the dense (and increasingly toxic) academic politics that make psychiatry impotent to accomplish much.
MANUEL TRUJILLO, MD, clinical professor in the department of psychiatry; director of the Public Psychiatry Fellowship program at New York University School of Medicine
Through his vast experience with neuroimaging, Dr. Amen has learned that the “wiring diagram” of our brain is not fixed but constantly changes depending on our choices, environmental factors, and experiences. By recommending that we balance our choices in the biological (diet and exercise), psychological (stress control), social (relationships), and spiritual components of our lives, he provides a desperately needed road map to maximize brain health and prevent or reverse many of the epidemic mental afflictions that are often poorly treated in our medical system.
JOSEPH C. MAROON, MD, vice chairman of neurosurgery, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center; team neurosurgeon, the Pittsburgh Steelers; author of Square One: A Simple Guide to a Balanced Life
A truly revolutionary work, at least I certainly hope it will be! Books like this challenge and change the existing paradigm of mental health and brain health. A fantastic and comprehensive approach for patients and health-care providers alike.
ANDREW NEWBERG, MD, bestselling author of How God Changes Your Brain; director of research at the Marcus Institute of Integrative Health at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital; adjunct professor of psychology at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine
A timely must-read that will change the way we think about brain health.
DR. MIKE DOW, New York Times bestselling author of The Sugar Brain Fix
Mental illness is a complex and often confusing world. There is a lack of certainty on what is going wrong and what to do about it. Dr. Amen’s new contribution is a thoughtful and well-planned approach to looking at the actual brain’s health as a fundamental aspect of maintaining a vibrant life in emotions, relationships, and career.
JOHN TOWNSEND, PHD, New York Times bestselling author of Boundaries series, Leading from Your Gut, and People Fuel; psychologist and leadership consultant; founder of The Townsend Institute for Leadership and Counseling
Daniel Amen, a staunch advocate for mental health and one of today’s most important neuropsychiatrists, provides an insightful challenge to the mental illness industry: Focus on brain health rather than deficits! Read this book carefully. Reclaim your brain; reclaim your life.
JEFFREY K. ZEIG, PHD, The Milton H. Erickson Foundation
The End of Mental Illness is a powerful new book that directly attacks the outdated mental health paradigm of making diagnoses based on symptom clusters without any biological data. In simple, straightforward language, Dr. Amen shows readers how to optimize the physical functioning of their brains to improve their minds. It is brilliant, and I highly recommend it!
STEVEN MASLEY, MD, FAHA, FACN, FAAFP, CNS, author of The Mediterranean Method
Daniel Amen has been one of the real pioneers in using imaging technology to correlate brain blood flow and activity patterns with various types of mental health issues. More important, he has developed innovative dietary and lifestyle techniques that can improve these patterns with significant improvement for his patients. The End of Mental Illness extends his leadership. If you want to keep the most complex organ in the body in top condition, this book provides the technical information to do so. I recommend it highly.
BARRY SEARS, PHD, author of The Zone and The Resolution Zone
Dr. Amen’s book The End of Mental Illness is a defining mark in the history of psychiatry. Scientific research has completely eliminated the notion that nutritional deficiencies and nutritional supplements are a form of alternative medicine. Those of us who have practiced integrative medicine for many years understand that objective, biological testing is simply good medicine. Our current symptomatic treatment model in the field of psychiatry has been inadequate for those struggling with mental illness. Dr. Amen captures the essence of hope and healing by transforming a model of mental illness into a model of brain health. Please read The End of Mental Illness and make sure your doctors understand how neuroscience can redefine our current models of treatment.
JAMES GREENBLATT, MD, founder of Psychiatry Redefined; chief medical officer of Walden Behavioral Care
The End of Mental Illness offers a wealth of vital information, including fascinating SPECT imaging results, about how to create optimal mind-body-spirit health and overcome the stigma of “mental illness.” Dr. Amen offers a multitude of options to create a healthy brain and a healthy, happy life.
JUDITH ORLOFF, MD, psychiatrist; author of Emotional Freedom
By outlining the compelling research he and his colleagues have published in peer-reviewed journals, and by including a myriad of elucidating case studies, Dr. Amen provides an optimistic yet realistic approach to life that demonstrably improves brain health. Given his prescience in collecting what is now surely one of the largest databases of brain scans and behavioral, cognitive, and emotional data, we can expect to see even clearer science and more comprehensive lifestyle and medical suggestions in the near future.
J. GALEN BUCKWALTER, PHD, research psychologist and CEO of psyML
As Dr. Amen helps us reframe the discussion from mental health to brain health, people will see their problems as medical, not moral. This new perspective decreases shame and guilt for those who suffer and increases forgiveness, patience, and compassion from their families. The End of Mental Illness will give you a totally new way of thinking about and getting help for anxiety, depression, bipolar disorders, ADHD, addictions, OCD, PTSD, schizophrenia, and even personality disorders. Thank you, Dr. Amen.
DR. DERWIN GRAY, former NFL player; lead pastor at Transformation Church
When someone has a broken ankle, they don’t call it “motion sickness,” but sadly, when the brain malfunctions, we have used the stigma-filled and shaming term mental illness. Dr. Daniel Amen takes the focus off outdated labels and places it properly on the injured and damaged organ by looking at the way it functions, rather than just the symptoms it produces. The path set by Dr. Amen really could be the end of focusing on mental illness and the beginning of creating brain health, which is exactly what Dr. Amen has done for me.
STEPHEN ARTERBURN, MED, New York Times bestselling author of Take Your Life Back; host of New Life Live!
Dr. Daniel Amen has made the natural progression from psychiatrist to brain imaging researcher to neuroendocrinologist in his quest for a greater understanding of the relationship between one’s emotional constitution and the traumas encountered during life. Addressing the underlying inflammation precipitated by these traumas can lead to a normalization of the brain’s function and a return to a life without mental illness. Dr. Amen has unraveled the code that decrypts the means by which illness can become wellness.
MARK L. GORDON, MD, neuroendocrinology, Millennium-TBI Centers, Encino, California
I have conducted research with and known Daniel Amen for many years. With The End of Mental Illness, he delivers an inspiring tour de force on brain health. This book will educate people, make them question the status quo as they seek to know their brains better, and inspire them to change their lives so that they might change their brains . . . for the better.
THEODORE A. HENDERSON, MD, PHD, child, adolescent, and adult psychiatrist; cofounder of Neuro-Luminance Inc. Brain Health Centers; president of the International Society of Applied Neuroimaging
The End of Mental Illness blends cutting-edge brain science with progressive regenerative medicine to deliver revolutionary treatment for anyone suffering from a brain illness. The therapies work —I have witnessed firsthand the tremendous improvements in both my family and clients. Thank you, Dr. Amen, for showing how we can better care for our precious brains.
DR. MARK CALARCO, national medical director for clinical diagnostics, Addiction Labs of America
My dream is that, in future years, after seeing more mental health tragedies, we don’t find ourselves saying, “We should have listened closer to Dr. Daniel Amen’s call for a paradigm shift in the treatment of mental illness. His scientific leadership could have prevented so many of our personal and national disasters.” Dr. Amen lays out proven science-based solutions to this in his book The End of Mental Illness.
JIM FAY, coauthor of Parenting with Love and Logic
Audacious claims and revolutionary ideas come from “out of the box” thinkers like Dr. Daniel Amen. He is leading the way in the fight to end mental illness, and he’s doing it based on solid science and extensive clinical expertise.
WILLIAM S. HARRIS, PHD, president of OmegaQuant Analytics, LLC; professor of medicine, University of South Dakota
As usual, Dr. Amen is on point about mental illness and the use of advanced technologies to help diagnose and treat them. I applaud Dr. Amen’s attention to SPECT scans, genetics, QEEG, and other modern technologies as tools to aid the prescriber. The day is coming soon when not using these techniques will be considered out of the norm, if not malpractice.
DANIEL A. HOFFMAN, MD, FAPA, retired neuropsychiatrist
The End of Mental Illness is a courageous, science-based approach to tackling our society’s most pressing problems. Every day we read about suicide, drug addiction, and abnormal behavior ending in horrific crime. This book helps us understand these difficult behaviors and, most important, gives clear solutions. The book is very aptly titled and is a superb read.
ANDREW W. CAMPBELL, MD, editor-in-chief of Alternative Therapies in Health and Medicine; editor-in-chief of Advances in Mind-Body Medicine; editor of Integrative Medicine: A Clinician’s Journal
Dr. Amen brings a functional medicine approach to mental health so you can learn how to support your brain health, reclaim your mood, and take care of yourself naturally. By sharing how the brain works and what we need to do to care for it, Dr. Amen hopes to end the stigma of mental health issues and replace it with compassion and understanding.
ALISA VITTI, HHC, author of In the FLO; founder of FLOliving.com
Having lost a brother to suicide and dealing with the life struggles of more than 14,000 students who attend my schools each year, I found in The End of Mental Illness the empowerment I need to bravely move forward without the shame and stigma associated with mental health issues. Dr. Amen delivers this valuable information with his neuroscience knowledge, but he is also a brilliant storyteller, which makes his message both relevant and relatable. In addition to a solid plan, The End of Mental Illness provides hope —a commodity rarely offered in the world of psychiatry today.
WINN CLAYBAUGH, dean and cofounder, Paul Mitchell Schools; author of Be Nice (Or Else!)
Dr. Amen is again well ahead of his time with this comprehensive, insightful, and compelling book. This book is a must-read for any individual or mental health professional who desires to obtain a more clear understanding of how to heal our brains for a happier and healthier life. Dr. Amen’s refreshing biological and brain-based approach to understanding and resolving brain-related issues has the power to revolutionize the mental health industry.
DR. KRISTY HODSON, EDD in organizational change and leadership from the University of Southern California