Background

Harold H. Bloomfield, M.D. the best selling author of Hypericum and Depression is a psychiatrist and practitioner in alternative medicine and integrative psychiatry.  His numerous books have sold over six million copies and Dr. Bloomfield is a well respected leader in the field.  Healing Anxiety Naturally was formerly titled Healing Anxiety with Herbs and was written in 1998.

Book Review & Commentary

Based on the title, former title, and information on the cover of this book, I fully expected Healing Anxiety Naturally to be an informative yet dry ‘how to’ book explaining the effects of different herbs on different symptoms of anxiety and depression.  When I began reading this for a stress management consultant certification course that I am completing, I had no intention of writing a book review upon its completion (after all – this is a coaching/personal growth and development website!).  Much to my surprise, this book wasn’t all about herbs, in fact – Dr Bloomfield dedicates the first fifty pages explaining what anxiety is, how it shows up in our lives, and its relationship to stress.  A significant portion of the book (about 90 pages) is completely dedicated to the use of herbs in treating different anxiety disorders (interestingly it also talks about the use of herbs as first line treatment in other countries and their lowered relative toxicities), but the part that I most thoroughly enjoyed was the 150 pages dedicated to Natural Self Healing.

In the section committed to natural self healing, Dr. Bloomfield provides coaching and mentorship on topics ranging from connecting with your ‘natural self’ (which discusses principles of the ego and the self concept) to our frantic pace of life, to physical health, nutritional suggestions, breathing, visualization, meditation, emotional intelligence, psychotherapy, anger, communication traps, spirituality and loss.  I was very surprised to find that this book dedicated over half of its material to suggestions and strategies for lifestyle change – not just quick fixes of the herbal format. 

The book is well written, well organized and shares scores of suggestions that can have a significant impact on one’s life. 

Who is this book for?

Because of the way the book is packaged, I would guess that people are first drawn to this book because of the recommendations for herbal supplements that might be able to help manage stress/anxiety.  While he suggests that all readers consult their physician before making any changes, I suspect that a number of the readers are looking to ‘self prescribe’ and are looking to alternatives to conventional and potentially toxic manufactured products that may provide similar results.

After reading the book however, I believe the true target audience is not just people looking for suggestions on herbal remedies, but its really written for anyone suffering from minor to moderate anxiety (its not intended for those with severe episodes of anxiety or clinical depression).  The lifestyle discussions are extremely powerful if one is to put the suggestions into practice (always the key), so I’d suggest this book to anyone that is considering any natural and non-invasive approach to healing anxiety – not just those looking for herbs. 

As a side note, I’ve committed my life to personal growth, proactively managing stress and maintaining life balance.  Even as such, everyone including myself has bouts of higher periods of stress.  I truly believe that proactively managing life and stress such that it does not evolve into chronic stress situation is huge.  If you feel like your stress levels are pretty good, and you generally don’t let things get to you – consider becoming a student of life balance, such that when stressors do arise (and they will), you are that much more capable to manage these and come through them with flying colors. 

• Paperback Version: Healing Anxiety Naturally

Be Well

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