While there are a number of books on positive psychology, Positive Psychiatry is unique in its biological foundation and medical rigor and is the only book designed to bring positive mental health ideas and interventions into mainstream psychiatric research, training, and clinical practice. After an overview describing the definition, history, and goals of positive psychiatry, the contributors—pioneers and thought leaders in the field—explore positive psychosocial factors, such as resilience and psychosocial growth; positive outcomes, such as recovery and well-being; psychotherapeutic and behavioral interventions, among others; and special topics, such as child and geriatric psychiatry, diverse populations, and bioethics. The book successfully brings the unique skill sets and methods of psychiatry to the larger positive health movement. Each chapter highlights key points for current clinical services, as practiced by psychiatrists, primary care doctors, and nurses, as well as those in allied health and mental health fields. These readers will find Positive Psychiatry to be immensely helpful in bringing positive mental health concepts and interventions into the clinical arena.

For hundreds of years, psychology has looked into the dysfunctions and symptoms of the mind. It’s only over the last few decades that the field has started to pay attention to what constitutes a functional and content life. Instead of using disease to understand health, positive psychology studies the components of a good life and helps people not only avoid mental health problems but develop happiness. The work done in positive psychology is now at a point where applications are being developed in positive psychotherapy and extended to those with psychiatric diagnoses in positive psychiatry. While these fields are a recent development they hold the promise of helping all of us live a fulfilled life. Medicine in general, and psychiatry in particular, suffers from a worldview that is symptom- and deficit-oriented. By adopting a positive approach, psychology, psychotherapy, and psychiatry add a more holistic, integrative, resource oriented, and preventive perspective. There is great urgency in developing resources and potentials in our patients, not only freeing them from their disorders. Psychiatrists and psychotherapists alike are incorporating these positive tools into their practices with positive clinical outcomes. Standing on the shoulders of pioneers like Nossrat Peseschkian, in positive psychotherapy, and Dilip Jeste, in positive psychiatry, this textbook is the first to bring together these innovations in one volume that will serve as an excellent resource for medical professionals looking to reap the benefits gained by the studies in these areas. Currently, the majority of texts that are available are targeting psychologists and researchers, whereas this book seeks to use positive psychology as the foundation on which the clinical applications are built. As such, this book will be of interest to psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, and other mental health professionals. It may be used in educating a new generation of mental health professionals in these tenets that are expanding the reach of psychology, the practice of psychotherapy, and the scope of psychiatry.

The guide opens with an overview of the history of the positive in psychiatry, a summary of the effectiveness of positive interventions, and an over-arching conceptualization of the field of positive psychiatry. Thirteen detailed cases follow, organized into three sections: mental health, medical care, and educational and coaching interventions.

Long overdue, Positive Psychiatry provides a rigorous and clinically useful guide to the growing body of research that strongly suggests that positive psychosocial factors such as resilience, optimism, and social engagement are associated with better outcomes, including lower morbidity, greater longevity, and a heightened sense of patient well-being. Because most of the research has been conducted outside of the field of psychiatry, it has had relatively little influence on everyday clinical practice. This volume, written and edited by luminaries in the field, hopes to remedy this situation by introducing clinicians to the guiding principles of positive psychiatry, which hold that mental health cannot be defined as the mere reduction or even elimination of mental illness, and that mental health professionals must focus on more than simply controlling the symptoms of illness. To that end, the book, while biologically grounded and exhaustively referenced, is also structured and written to be accessible. It includes many useful features: Bulleted outlines of key clinical points are included where appropriate, fostering direct application of positive psychiatry constructs, measures, interventions, and outcomes into clinical practice and training. An abundance of interesting and compelling clinical vignettes illustrate how to incorporate positive psychiatry techniques and treatment strategies into practice. Comprehensive coverage makes this volume the "go-to" resource for researchers and clinicians seeking an overview and details of what positive psychiatry is, why it is needed, and how to integrate it into research, practice, and training. The roster of contributors is a "who's who" in the field of positive mental health, rendering this the definitive source of information on positive psychiatry. Chief among the book's strengths is its emphasis on empirically grounded applications, and the editors have ensured that limitations in the available evidence base are identified, as well as directions for further research. Positive Psychiatry fills a critical gap in the treatment literature, and researchers, clinicians, and trainees in psychiatry and allied mental health fields will welcome its publication.

At a time when mental illness is on the rise worldwide and conventional treatment methods are often symptom-centred, Positive Psychiatry represents a new and revolutionary approach. This book explores how psychiatry can not only help to alleviate suffering, but also how it has the potential to promote wellbeing, resilience and personal fulfilment. Based on the findings of positive psychology, the authors combine scientifically sound research findings with practical case studies. They show how psychiatric interventions can not only treat deficits, but also build strengths and help human potential to blossom. A holistic model of mental health is presented that includes both prevention and rehabilitation. At the same time, however, the book also takes a critical look at the challenges and limitations of positive psychiatry. It highlights the danger that the focus on positive aspects such as resilience and well-being could overlook the serious needs of people with serious mental illness. Ethical issues are also discussed, such as the extent to which the pressure to always be ‘positive’ can create new burdens. The authors also examine how societal expectations of mental health might change in the context of this new view and the role of economic and cultural factors. This book is aimed at healthcare professionals, students of psychiatry and psychology, and anyone interested in a deeper understanding of mental health and wellbeing. It offers practical tools and inspiration for a new way of looking at psychiatry - as a discipline that not only ensures survival, but enriches lives. At the same time, it encourages critical reflection on the potentials and risks of this approach, contributing to the informed development of mental health care.

A highly practical book for all mental health professionals wanting to know how to apply positive psychiatry in their daily work Positive psychiatry is the science and practice of psychiatry and clinical psychology that seeks to understand and promote wellbeing among people who have or are at high risk of developing mental health problems. In this new approach, the person takes center stage, not the disease, and the focus is not only on repairing the worst, but also on creating the best in our patients.. The authors from the fields of medicine and clinical psychology present over 40 applications and many cases and stories to illustrate the four pillars of positive psychiatry: positive psychology, solution-focused brief therapy, the recovery-oriented approach, and nonspecific factors. The book shows how mental health professionals can significantly increase patient collaboration to co-create preferred outcomes through discovering possibilities and competencies and through building hope, optimism, and gratitude. Essential reading for psychiatrists, clinical psychologists, other professionals working in the field of mental health care as well as students who want to take a positive focus to make psychiatry faster, lighter, and yes, more fun. We have high hopes that positive psychiatry will become a firm part of the psychiatry of the future.

Psychiatry has developed a number of tools to help manage symptoms of mental disorders, broadly categorized as psychotherapy, or â oetalk therapyâ , and psychopharmacology, or â oemedicationsâ . One question left open in this regard, though, is what to do after those symptoms are controlled? How can those with depression be helped to build a better life after the remission of symptoms? Weaving together Positive Psychology and Aristotelian philosophy, this book details an approach to creating a path towards a flourishing life. Building on the two translations of the Greek term â oeAreteâ , virtue and excellence, it links Aristotleâ (TM)s ideas to those of Martin Seligman, the founder of Positive Psychology, and Howard Gardner, a proponent of the Multiple Intelligences Theory.