John D. Preston

Julie Fast offers effective strategies to be productive when you're depressed. Her writing is clear and concise and I like the fact that she doesn't spend much time discussing why you're depressed-- I find that knowing the cause of depression doesn't really decrease the depression (sometimes it even makes it worse), but getting something done makes me feel better immediately. A lot of the things in this book will be hard for a depressed person to hear (or read), but I found it extremely helpful. Her strategies are quite simple and a lot less tedious to do than the lengthy writing exercises in [b:Feeling Good: The New Mood Therapy|46674|Feeling Good The New Mood Therapy|David D. Burns|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1255630070s/46674.jpg|1892311]; I was able to use my time directly on whatever work I needed to get done instead of doing extra writing exercises to convince myself to work. However, as with all books on depression, this book won't be very useful unless the depressed person him- or herself is open-minded and willing to try out some of the strategies. The main point of all these books is that you must take action in order to feel better quickly. This book won't be helpful at all if the person himself cannot muster up the (sometimes small, sometimes big) effort.… (meer)

I'm not sure if my rating has any value, I just realized I'm facing a different kind of issue. I feel like I'm mostly over the depression part, I just have a hard time getting things done. It's like my brain learned the depression habit and now I don't know how to change the habit anymore. I do know how to plan, I know how to break up my tasks, I just have a problem with getting started on things.

Anyway, what I do like about the book is, that it gives concrete advice. Things you can do. I felt like this was the problem at some point, that you sort of knew that you should do something, but you didn't know what it was, so that's a plus. What I don't like is, that it assumes everyone has family around. When you live abroad and you've lived in the place only about 2 years and you don't speak the language very well, for example asking for help gets complicated. I have colleagues and friends who are happy to help, but I already have to ask for a lot of help just because of language stuff. And it's hard to push those relationships even more. It would be very different if my family was around or friends I've known for 20 years.

So, I'm a bit disappointed on the level of the advice. It applies in a certain kind of situation, but I feel this is so not written for me.… (meer)

On the whole, this is a straightforward and helpful overview of strategies to help you take control of your own depression enough to get things done. The book helped me see myself, and my depression, a bit more clearly, and really did inspire me to get myself on more of a track toward healing than I'd been able to see for some time. Yes, it is self-helpy sounding, enough so that it annoyed me at various points. And yes, it does speak to the reader in a tone that at times seems too simple for the matter at hand. However, it also gives a solid overview of enough strategies that there's bound to be something here for anyone who might be driven to pick up the book. Also, there's more than one passage that I ended up reading aloud to my husband. While the tone would be off, and they're not the target audience, I think this book also has a real potential for helping individuals who know someone who's seriously depressed, but doesn't have the personal experience to directly understand it. I often have a hard time explaining my feelings to my husband, and to friends who I should be being more honest with, though I know they want to understand--this book can be a really effective tool in that path forward.

My only criticisms? After a while, the exercises, and some of the passages, begin to be repetitive. I don't know that that's not what's needed, but nevertheless, the repetition grated on my nerves at times. Also, in the end, there are some chapters about managing depression by spending money, finding a therapist, and using anti-depressants. I appreciate the worth of the chapters, but they're not helpful for someone like me who: has no money to spare (literally); has had repeated negative experiences with therapists in the past, to the point that I have little to no faith in their being able to help me; and, similarly, has had very negative experiences with anti-depressants, to the extent that I won't try them again unless my life is really in desperate need of any chance for help, however slight. I know that anti-depressants and therapists help many people, but I would have respected the authors more if they'd acknowledged that these just aren't the right answers for some people out there.

Simply, there was a lot of helpful matter in this book. There were moments where the book clearly didn't apply to me, or didn't offer any solution if the situation specifically described didn't apply (ie. I have sleep problems because of anxiety, I acknowledge, but none of those anxieties can realistically be eliminated or lessened in my life, as the book recommends), but many of the strategies have already helped me confront my thoughts and think seriously about how to move forward instead of letting my depression control my path.

So, in the end, it helped. If you're looking for strategies or for a way for your loved ones to understand your depression, this might very well be worth your time. Just go into it with the understanding that you have to pick and choose what works for you, and what applies to you, and use what you can.… (meer)