Troubled Minds: understanding and treating mental illness

An authoritative resource for understanding the nature of mental illnesses and for pointing the way to treatment, written by two eminent mental health professionals with almost a century of academic achievement and clinical experience between them.


Many of us take our mental health for granted. But we can feel overwhelmed when confronted by mental illness in ourselves, a family member, or a friend. Troubled Minds is an invaluable guide for anyone whose life has been touched by mental ill-health and who wants to understand and deal effectively with it.


It serves as an ideal introduction to common mental illnesses, developmental disorders, and neurological variations that can lead to distress such as autism, anorexia nervosa, anxiety, depression, alcoholism, post-traumatic stress disorder, and dementia. Innovative chapters cover mental health problems of children and adolescents, and how we have the potential to promote our own mental health and wellbeing.


Bloch and Haslam tell illuminating stories of people they have treated, discuss public figures who have wrestled with mental ill-health, and share their personal experiences. Their book is informed by the latest research, warmed by lived experience and empathy, and seasoned by the insights of philosophers, writers, and artists.


Troubled Minds is essential reading for anyone who seeks deeper psychological insights to help deal with the challenges of contemporary life. It is a balanced and accessible account of a subject that is of profound significance in everyone's life.