Dancing with Fear is a comprehensive guide to understanding and relieving the many forms of fear, anxiety and stress. Research shows that teaching people to change their thinking can reduce their anxiety symptoms as much as antianxiety medications can. Offering a positive, self-help approach to the most common - and costly-emotional problem in our country, Dr. Foxman explains:
the different anxiety disorders and their diagnostic criteria
the negative - and positive - traits of the anxiety personality
a comparison of what incomplete and complete recovery feel like
the pros and cons of the drugs used to treat anxiety
During his 30-year professional tenure in hospitals, mental-health centers and private practice, Dr. Foxman has researched and compiled effective treatments for anxiety and stress. In this book he also shares his own story and describes self-help strategies and nonpharmaceutical alternatives that offer relief and long-term self-empowerment. These include:
herbs and natural remedies
meditation, yoga and bioenergetic breathing exercises
health practices and dietary changes
exercises to replace worry with positive thinking
techniques for increasing energy and improving sleep
Dr. Paul Foxman has written a truly optimistic, balanced book, that addresses men as well as women. Now there is good reason for everyone with anxiety to be optimistic about the chances of a lasting recovery.
REVIEWS AND TESTIMONIALS
There have been endless books written by countless authors on the subject of anxiety and how best to identify and cope with its paralyzing manifestations. What makes Dancing with Fear so special and so welcome is that Paul Foxman speaks eloquently and intelligently to the two key people involved in accomplishing full recovery from this insidious problem: the sufferer and his therapist. Because Dr. Foxman knows, firsthand, what gut-wrenching anxiety feels like, he never minimizes its impact nor does he hide his own humanness behind his degree. It become obvious from the first chapter that Dr. Foxman is a consummate professional who, thank heavens, can honestly teach from his heart. - Ann Seagrave coauthor of Free from Fears
Dr. Foxman's book, Dancing with Fear, is a comprehensive and compassionate overview of the most crippling of our 'social diseases'-fear-with a wealth of practical approaches to loosening its hold on us. The work will find a wide and appreciative audience. - Joseph Chilton Pearce author of Magical and Evolution's End
For anybody who recognizes that stress can't be avoided, only managed, psychologist Paul Foxman's Dancing with Fear is a splendid resource. Dr. Foxman delivers the coping tools and techniques all the more effectively for his wisdom, compassion, insight, and graceful prose. - John Stickney, Senior Features Editor, Fitness Magazine
This book by Dr. Paul Foxman has all but paved the path to peace, the way to freedom from anxiety. He offers a clear exposition of what severe anxiety is, where it comes from, and what to do about it. He shares his personal experience with trauma and anxiety, as well as his understandings gained from decades of helping others. Is his easy style, Dr. Foxman provides unlimited hope and specific information on how anxiety can be overcome..."undoubtedly the finest book ever on this topic...Surely the most profound and yet readable book on anxiety and its treatment...You will feel greatly rewarded by reading this best of all possible books on anxiety and its cure. You will be excited by this powerful book. - John R. Pullen, Ph.D., National Director of CHAANGE (Center for Help for Anxiety/Agoraphobia through New Growth Experiences)
Paul Foxman offers not only inspiration and hope, but also a practical road map that explores the various aspects of recovery from anxiety. Readers will be in good hands as Foxman compassionately shares his hard-won wisdom, starting with the sometimes-brutal origins of his own anxiety and continuing with his personal and professional journeys. This timely book is a godsend to those struggling to find inner peace in an ever-shrinking world of accelerating changes. - Erika B. Hilliard, MSW, RSW, author of Living Fully with Shyness and Social Anxiety
Anxiety, stress and fear are emotions we all feel at one time or another. A test, a certain work assignment, or a near miss at the red light, can cause us to feel this way. But what if you felt this way all the time? Approximately thirty seven million Americans suffer from severe anxiety disorders and live with constant worry and fear.
Dancing with Fear is an in-depth look at anxiety disorders and the process for recovery. Dr. Foxman writes from the perspective of a psychologist as well as the perspective of one who has lived with an anxiety disorder...I found the book to be exceptionally well organized. Chapters included topics such as “What is Anxiety?”, “How Anxiety Develops”, “Facing Your Fears and Phobias”, “Spirituality and Anxiety”,and “Should You Take Medication for Anxiety – Or Not?” Extremely useful information written ina plain and easy to read format.
This book is intended for those who suffer from anxiety disorders, their family members, and the mental health professionals who treat them. As a family member of someone with an anxiety disorder, I found Dancing with Fear very helpful in my understanding of anxiety disorders, their causes, and solutions for recovery. Talking to my husband about his anxiety is not easy. Usually when the topic comes up, it is during an anxious moment, when he is not at his most calm or rational. By reading “Dancing with Fear”, discussing his anxiety became easier. As I read the book, we would discuss the chapters each evening before bed. This was a calm time, and we were able to discuss my husband’s anxiety in a non-threatening way. We practiced the breathing exercises together and talked about his symptoms and strategies for recovery.
I would recommend Dancing with Fearto anyone interested in the topic of anxiety for personal or academic reasons. Dr. Foxman is very knowledgeable about the subject and as is stated on the cover “This book provides information on relieving anxiety and replacing fear with peace, optimism, and joy.” Who could ask for more? - April Sullivan for Reader Views Contents:
Foreword
Preface to the New Edition
Acknowledgments
Introduction
Part I: Insight: How to Understand Anxiety
Chapter 1: My Anxiety Story
Chapter 2: What Is Anxiety?
Chapter 3: The Anxiety Disorders
Chapter 4: Three Ingredients in Anxiety Disorders
Chapter 5: Development of Anxiety
Chapter 6: Controlling Stress
Chapter 7: Don't Just Do Something, Sit There
Chapter 8: Take a Deep Breath
Chapter 9: Play Is for Adults, Too
Chapter 10: Food, Eating, and Anxiety
Chapter 11: What If?
Chapter 12: Facing Your Fears and Phobias
Chapter 13: Feeling Safe with Feelings
Chapter 14: Anxiety and Relationships
Chapter 15: Sex and Anxiety
Chapter 16: Spirituality and Anxiety
Chapter 17: To Take or Not to Take Medication?
Chapter 18: Toward a Life Beyond Panic and Anxiety
Bibliography
Resources
Index About the Author: Paul Foxman, Ph.D., is a psychologist and Director of the Center for Anxiety Disorders in Vermont. He is the author of Dancing with Fear, The Worried Child, and the coauthor of Conquering Panic and Anxiety Disorders. Dr. Foxman wants children to feel safe and grow up without fear or anxiety. To help keep the magic in childhood, he co-founded the Lake Champlain Waldorf School in Shelburne, Vermont. |
