Beat Depression - 50 Things You Can Do Today: An Easy Self-Help Guide (Unabridged) [Unabridged Nonfiction‪]‬

An objective review - in my opinion

Please bear in mind that I appreciate a large majority of the activities within this book - and yes, I suffer depression so I do recognise the generality of the methods in the approach to this illness. Whilst it is a complex and far reaching disease, depression has many many common traits, similar to a drug user using drugs - as all users do. The only thing that changes is the flavour of drug choice.
Paul Vincents approach is a systematic and common sense approach to the basic fundamentals of depression and overcoming the shadow that follows the sufferer. Sure, this helps anyone who takes the time to follow the guide utilising time, individuality, will and reprogramming your personal approach to the cyclic nature of depression. This approach will harvest relief from depression.

While all this seems to be unconnected to the actual content of the book - this is deliberate as I can't review something which ultimately takes time and incremental relief to prove a "successful result" from the guide he has written here. Although I do have one critisim, in chapter 8; Paul discussed the solitary aspect of depression and states that [sic]"to be happy spending time with oneself and feel comfortable with it demonstrates happiness and therefore no longer demonstrate depressive feelings" I completely and utterly feel that this 'specific' generalisation is way off beam. I quite happily, for example, spend time along not being introspective, moody or low but can feel low when in groups of people or even friends. The more I read about and discuss depression, I find that the common thread goes against what Paul is saying. I am not dismissing his view but feel that this specific generalisation is a mixed message and should have been explored in a more subjective manner.

On one hand an insightful guide, but, with a mixture of generally good common sense advice and on the other, mixed advice. It is a very general self-help guide as most are.