CURRENT BOOKS: Harnessing the Power of Worry

Irina deFischer, MD

The Worry Solution: Using Breakthrough Brain Science to Turn Stress and Anxiety into Confidence and Happiness, by Martin Rossman, MD, 256 pages, Crown.

Dr. Martin Rossman, who has practiced mind/body medicine in Greenbrae for many years, is a pioneer in the field of integrative medicine, a clinical instructor at UC San Francisco, and the author of several books. He has taught many physicians and lay people how to use guided imagery for increased personal awareness, self-healing and greater enjoyment of life.

Rossman’s newest book, The Worry Solution, is based on a series of classes he has taught. In the book, he promises to turn worry upside down and shows how it can be beneficial if handled wisely. His premise is that our instinctive fight-or-flight response to stress, though good for our ancestors in the wild, is ineffectual in dealing with most of the problems we have today.

Bad worry, according to Rossman, leads to suffering and sleepless nights, as well as a host of ailments, both physical and emotional. He maintains that you will be healthier and happier if you learn to modify your response to stress through relaxation; to sort your worries into those you can and can’t do anything about; and to tap into your problem-solving inner wisdom using guided imagery and creative visualization.

Rossman also offers a section on “best quality imagery” to strengthen desirable personal qualities. He gives several examples of patients who were helped by these techniques, as well as an overview of the current brain research. The book also includes a series of exercises in relaxation and guided imagery, which require the reader to either record the instructions or enlist a helper to read them out loud. There is also an optional CD with Rossman reading the scripts, which I would recommend, as he has a calm and soothing voice.

The Worry Solution is a good introduction to mind-body medicine, a useful tool in the physician’s armamentarium. It is written for the lay public, using language that patients can understand. For more details, visit www.worrysolution.com or www.thehealingmind.org.

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Dr. deFischer, a family physician and geriatrician at Kaiser Petaluma, chairs the MMS Editorial Board.

Email: irinadefischer@gmail.com