The End of Mental Illness by Daniel G. Amen

The End of Mental Illness Reviews

• 
  Ozenc Demirkan

  I started to read it as someone with ADHD diagnosis. His system is awesome and all but he is just selling his clinic and his SPECK scan which is not affordable if you are not rich. If you are a rich person or a celebrity yes you can try that out but it doesn't change the status quo of many people who suffer from these symptoms. In my opinion it only adds to the stigma around these diagnosis.
• 
  Sammie Marshall

  snake oil salesmen
• 
  Nick K

  I don't write reviews, especially negative reviews like the following one, but this book deserves one for its problematic, borderline pseudo-scientific, narratives.
  
  First, the intriguing part: a psychiatrist that seems motivated to apply "breakthrough" techniques to psychiatric diagnosis and therapy. Especially the part about psychiatry being the only medical specialty not looking at the organ-in-question, namely, the brain, resonated with me. This beautiful premise fell apart just after the first 100 pages and after a brief bibliographic search on the validity of the claims.
  
  So, here comes the avalanche of problem areas (in bullet points, for your convenience):
  - The title: pompous, even he admits having a 85% success rate. Also, the etiologies of many mental disorders have not been properly discerned, so claiming to end them without even knowing how they are manifested in the first place just makes my own brain hurt
  - His methods (SPECT scanning) are not endorsed by any of the major scientific associations in US as a definite diagnostic tool for psychiatric disorders, due to inadequate evidence published in peer-reviewed scientific journals
  - Even with a basic medical foundation, it is common knowledge that physical disease (like trauma, infections and endocrine disorders) should be ruled out before diagnosing someone with a mental disorder. Psychiatrists must go through 4 years of med school too, apparently.
  - The "therapeutic" measures proposed can be summarized as follows: eat healthy, exercise, sleep well, don't do drugs. Who would have thought.
  - I actually got a case of "health anxiety" just by reading about all the necessary nutrapharmaceuticalwhatevers for my brain. Provided with appropriate doses, because everyone has taken a course on pharmacokinetics and will be responsible enough not to mix 100 different "natural" pills.
  - The use of the words "chemicals" and "toxins". A revelation: our whole body is made solely of chemicals. That is why doctors have to endure biochemistry. Additionally, water can be toxic too - if you drink 5 lts at once. Ask people with polydipsia.
  - Product placement. Product placement everywhere. Isn't there something called conflict-of-interest, I wonder.
  
  I have a few other points on style, but they seem irrelevant compared to the inaccurate content of this book. Sure, it may offer hope for people with psychiatric disease, because frankly, these diseases are harsh to live with. But thousands of scientists work day and night trying to fight them - in labs, in clinics, in the public health sector, without expecting huge salaries, just for the common good. Such a book offers empty hopes and hundreds of dollars to his author, giving back only basic healthy life advice.
  
  For more info, check this out:
  https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifest...
• 
  Ilana

  Need to write that review because this book needs to be read. It will help you HEAL YOURSELVES. Only that. It helped me SO MUCH and I dislike self help books so that says a lot.
• 
  Aidan

  Started reading "The End of Mental Illness" by Dr. Amen a bit ago. Page 31 is where I call the effort dead. I am very disappointed in the attempts at manipulation, the clear agenda over truth and facts, the poor logic, and the lack of intellectual and academic honesty. I do not recommend it.
• 
  Michael Reyes

  In this paradigm-shifting book, Amen argues that mental health should really be framed as brain health, and that when you frame it this way, it removes stigma because “everyone wants a better brain.” Early on in his training to become a psychiatrist, Daniel Amen realized this simple truth: psychiatrists are the only doctors that treat an organ (the brain) that they never actually look at. With the expertise gained from 100,000+ SPECT scans (a form of brain imaging), Amen has learned how if you can change your brain you can change your life (also the title of another of his books). Amen advocates for treatment that places more emphasis on lifestyle changes and natural solutions than a traditional pharmaceutical approach. Amen details eleven risk factors that everyone can address to optimize brain health that range from common ones such as sleep and exercise to lesser known ones like head trauma and toxins. Scientific, yet easy to understand, Amen gives us a glimpse into what the future of treating psychiatric illness might look like.
• 
  Andi Fritz

  After reading this book, I wish brain scans were a typical practice in the mental health field and that there were more Amen clinics nationwide. The future of brain health/mental illness treatment will be positively impacted by the implementation of the Amen practices in the book. I’m looking forward to reading more books by Dr. Amen. Love your brain!
• 
  beautyandthebookworm_

  This was such a fascinating read. I’ve followed Dr Amen for a long time, and while I don’t necessarily agree with all that he says, he is the most informative and interesting Doctor when it comes to brain health.
  
  This book is a very detailed look at why we should be looking at mental health as brain health, and how much the state of the brain effects everything.
  
  I loved and agreed with the importance of new learning. A brain that is no longer learning dies- this is so evident in people who retire too early, and do very little. Their brain and physical health usually declines very quickly.
  
  The importance of diet and the side affects of sugar, alcohol and caffeine in the brain was very interesting and in fact eye opening to me, especially as a sugar addict.
  
  I think what fascinated me most was the relationship between head trauma and the brain’s health/mental health issues. Very, very often, mental health issues can be related to a prior brain injury (sometimes a very small one too).
  
  Dr Amen highlights inflammation as a root cause of brain and mental health issues which have not responded to medication/treatment.
  
  The author’s entire view point is that brain health should be well examined and scanned before treatment for mental health issues. Often the issues are physical and result in the awful conditions that many of us suffer with.
  
  I must note here, that the one thing I cannot agree with is his reluctance to treat many mental health conditions with medication. Whilst I do agree, that the prescribing of anti-depressions and many other meds is out of control, medication saved me. I would never want others to go through the desperation of not having access to the right medication. It is very easy to judge if you have never suffered from a mental illness, or declining mental health, but those who have, truly understand the power the right medication and treatment can have.
  
• 
  Brian Sachetta

  I’m a big fan of Dr. Amen’s work. I read “Change Your Brain, Change Your Life” a few years ago and was totally floored. I’d never heard of SPECT brain imaging before, never mind its use in diagnosing and treating various forms of mental illness.
  
  This book builds on the SPECT-inspired “Change Your Brain, Change Your Life,” much like Amen’s other works do. I guess that’s to be expected since SPECT scanning is his “thing” and is what he’s based so much of his career on.
  
  This one opens strongly, citing daunting statistics around mental illness and calling for change. From there, Amen paints a historical picture of how our approaches to mental health have changed over time, then introduces his “BRIGHT MINDS” framework / acronym to outline the subjects he’ll discuss in the book.
  
  Once he jumps into his framework, he dedicates one chapter to each underlying word in that BRIGHT MINDS acronym. For example: “B is for Blood Flow” and “R is for Retirement and Aging.” Within each chapter, he discusses what it is about each subject that can be so detrimental to our mental health. He then goes on to recommend behaviors, habits, and supplements that we can implement / take in order to improve our standing in regard to each word / phrase in the acronym.
  
  The reason why I’d give this book four stars instead of five is that these BRIGHT MINDS chapters become a little disengaging or repetitive after a while; I found myself spacing out sometimes during a few of them. Don’t get me wrong, the information in each one is valuable. It’s just that when you’re on the 300th recommended supplement of the book, each additional one holds, marginally, less weight.
  
  My guess as to why this was the case is that the topics within the BRIGHT MINDS framework are wide-ranging, meaning several of them won’t apply to you. For example, not everyone reading the book is heading for retirement in the next few years.
  
  As such, if I were to give a conclusion / recommendation, it would be this: read part one, then focus on the BRIGHT MINDS related chapters that are most relevant to you. All the content in the book is interesting, as is the book as a whole, but some of it will more be more engaging for you specifically depending on your age, genetics, and personal history.
  
  -Brian Sachetta
  Author of “Get Out of Your Head: A Toolkit for Living with and Overcoming Anxiety”
• 
  Holly

  Disappointing 2 stars. I usually enjoy books by this author, but this was too full of lists, repetitive and annoying references to his nieces, contradictions, sexism, and outdated info. This would be better as a webpage with clickable lists based on symptoms or goals. It also felt like a giant ad for his clinic, coaching, and his wife’s cookbook. Skip it.
• 
  Kristi

  Loved it!
  changed the way I look at and understand mental illness and also was surprisingly beneficial for me! I got it from the library but am tempted to buy it and just have it around as a reference.
• 
  Nicole Hoffmann

  Every person should read this book. The content is SO good and could seriously change your life by evaluating the way you take care of your body and it’s direct impact on your health. His scientific results are astoundingly clear that there is a bigger cultural issue at play when it comes to our health habits. I’ll definitely be making some lifestyle changes after reading this book!
• 
  Kayla

  I loved this book. I find the title to be a little misleading. While it does talk a lot about mental illness, the focus is mostly on how to get a healthy brain and keep it healthy.
• 
  Erin

  Excellent! Dr. Amen's passion and compassion is infectious. We really can improve our lives by taking steps to improve our brain health.
• 
  Benjamin Inks

  A great resource if you're considering a more naturopathic, holistic approach to mental health. But as with everything, absorb what is useful, discard what is not.
• 
  Melania

  Good info, will try to read again in future.
• 
  Jaime

  An excellent book for someone who isn't used to reading boring scientific nonfiction. The information is fantastic, of course - it's Dr. Amen after all. I found myself skimming through a lot as I didn't like the way the book was laid out, but if this information is completely new to you then I recommend it.
• 
  Amy

  What an important read. I love his use of clear scientific examples. He shows you brain scans of people before and after treatment for different issues. He states clearly what needs to be done to protect our brains and why. And he has the science to back him up. This book was written clearly and interestingly enough for a nurse but easy for the lay person. It's very organized. It's a touch repetitive but it's not overdone. I really enjoyed this. Very interesting!! Love this man!!!
• 
  Ietrio

  Amen is a simple mind who can't read the statistics: sure, there is an increase in diagnosis, but why has never crossed his mind. Of course it's because homosexual marriage, or some other point of dogma in his church. And ”end”, really? Just because the abstract of a dubious study Amen can't understand mentioned something in that general direction?
• 
  Kendra

  Interesting perspective on causes and treatments of mental illness, with tips for improving brain health. Quite repetitive, but overall a helpful resource
• 
  Kari Olfert

  My only real criticism is Daniel continually patting himself on the back for 'saving' his neices, like ok we get it, they were in a not great situation but it felt like it was bad taste.
  
  If you have money or great connections this book will likely feel like music to your ears. Other times it feels like a low key dad lecture.
  
  I really did like the book, super informative and great tips!
• 
  Myles

  I understand that books written by scientists are held to a different standard. But this book was a little rough.
  
  Dr. Amen's premise is that mental illness is a side-effect of damage to and disease in the brain, that many of us are living with low-functioning brains, and that we can fix it even without knowing which issues are by following his plan.
  
  Unfortunately, his plan is not particularly well-presented. After getting you on board with his idea of brain imaging and mental health risk factors, he writes a chapter for each risk factor — eleven, total. However, his book is written in a way that seems like it should be for kids — there's an evil king trying to steal your mental health and a good king trying to save it — and for advanced readers — he doesn't explain some medical terminology and concepts that adult readers may not understand. He also has numerous appeals to emotion; while I understand starting each chapter off with a story to explain what can happen if you fix this particular issue, the chapters inevitably end by saving his nieces, who he names. It feels kind of gross to be so blatantly exploiting their story when they're still teenagers.
  
  However, the real problem with this book is the readability. Not only does it not explain important things, it also doesn't lay out how to fix or mitigate certain issues in a sensical manner. Much of the chapter was anecdotes about patients, with very little devoted to why that particular topic was a risk factor and what could be done. On the other hand, each chapter had two or three different ways to explain what could be done, though not in any straightforward manner.
  
  Then there was the fact that many chapters referenced issues with other chapters. I recognize that with health, issues overlap (sleep issues can cause obesity, obesity can slow blood flow, low blood flow can cause low immunity, and so on), but it doubled back over certain topics so many times that I couldn't tell whether we were still on the same risk factor anymore.
  
  The book was hard to get through and hard to retain because so much of it was unhelpful drivel. The concepts are interesting and helpful to apply, but the editors and reviewers should have been more judicious with what they allowed out the door.
• 
  Marlise

  This book is quite repetitive but I’m still giving it a 5 star rating because the content is life-saving. I’ve learned so much from this book, and even the things I already knew are neatly organized so I can take action immediately. Highly recommend to anyone who wants better brain function.
• 
  Angela

  Early March 2022:
  I went into this knowing a bit about the author. I have heard Dr. Amen explain some things about TBIs, mental illness, and brain scans in videos before (Laura got a brain scan
  https://www.facebook.com/laura.clery/..., so did her husband Stephen
  https://www.facebook.com/laura.clery/..., who was later diagnosed with autism
  https://www.facebook.com/watch/?ref=s.... They were both addicts due in part to not getting/having needed treatment/healthy coping skills for the issues brought on by their neurodivergency. Their son is also autistic; she shares her thoughts here
  https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=104... and the diagnosis process here
  https://www.facebook.com/watch/live/?...). A lot of what he says in those videos makes sense, a lot depends on getting [likely prohibitively expensive and locationally inaccessible] brain scans, and some things he says seem to deny the reality of what people live with and the biological roots of those problems. The videos I saw specifically mentioned autism and ADHD, and I disagreed with some of what he said, like how autism is due to brain injury and environment and genetics isn’t a factor. (Though it’s possible that he just didn’t explain that as well on video as he did in the book–the book made more sense.)
  
  I went into this book wary but curious, as he comes off as a very intelligent and caring man who sincerely wants to help/understand/fix, but similar to certain chiropractors, fails to acknowledge/validate the very real struggles and often unfixable aspects of certain illnesses or disorders in favor of healing/eliminating them altogether. That’s a great goal, but there is only so much “healing yourself” you can do. If I got my body in perfect alignment and fed myself all the perfect things and had no blips on a brain scan and generally had nothing out of place, I would still have an imperfect, mortal body and a life that has to deal with many kinds of problems and imperfections in myself, others, and the world. We can’t just erase people’s history, DNA, etc. and heal people 100% in order to get rid of a problem; that requires rewriting history, having a massive amount of privilege that’s unattainable for the vast majority, and is impossible to maintain. That is looking beyond the mark and is unhelpful, irresponsible, impossible, and impractical. I love that he wants this, but we need to focus on what we can do, and recognize what’s out of our control (like genetics and past injuries).
  
  I do wonder how getting brain scans done more frequently might benefit people, as there is probably value to be had in measurements and visuals that you don’t get from “softer” approaches like therapy and messy ones like trial-and-error medication experimentation that rely heavily on unquantifiable, biased, unreliable self-reporting. However, as with any technology, I wonder how over-reliance on that might make us miss other things or misunderstand/misinterpret/mis-apply the data provided. That was my bias/mindset/understanding as I started reading the book.
  
  February 2023:
  He talks about meds changing people's brains, but that's the whole point. He meant that they also change them in ways that cause other issues instead of just treating what they’re used for but doesn’t get into that until later. He frames increasing diagnoses as a bad or overdone thing, which it can be, but fails to mention that so many people were missed, misunderstood, or hurt in the past because we didn't understand their issues yet. It would be good to mention that, because then he could point out that even medical and diagnostic ignorance in the past can’t account for all the synthetic stuff added into our environments and diets that he discusses later; people in the past didn’t have that either.
  
  SPECT is supposed to tell three things about the brain: healthy, overactive, or underactive. Dangerously bold claim to say "healthy" in that list when all it can read is blood flow. There's way more to brain function than that. Is just blood flow enough, or is that like chiropractic but for the brain: seems thorough and sensible but drastically incomplete. Scans help validate, decrease stigma, increase patient compliance and effort, catch stuff early, catch things in a different context. It's hard or impossible to change things you don't measure.
  
  So much of what keeps our brain healthy is what we're taught at church about knowing your worth, appreciate nature, care for your body, appreciate nature, gratitude, not believing negative thoughts, improving yourself (but not in a comparative/judgy way), maintaining good relationships, getting along, meditation, healthy food, volunteering, apologizing, connection to ancestors, connection to some sort of higher purpose, morality, courage, setting goals, spirituality having power to override physical circumstances, fasting, etc. Science just measures the effectiveness but we don't have to be told that to know it's beneficial. I appreciate that he unashamedly included little bits of his faith here and there. Nothing overbearing, just his life and values in relevant ways.
  
  Goes through the book applying the following to various mental/brain health issues:
  Optimize the four circles of a whole life–biological, psychological, social, and spiritual. BRIGHT MINDS approach: Blood flow, Retirement and aging, Inflammation, Genetics, Head trauma, Toxins, Mind storms (abnormal brain electrical activity), Immunity and infections, Neural hormone issues, Diabesity, Sleep.
  
  After reading, I found it to be fascinating, super informative, and well-researched. (He mentions his “nieces, Alize and Amelie,” too much.) I took lots of notes. We often look at illnesses and issues and very narrow ways but this gets really broad. It is overwhelming at times but it's important, and even though it's impossible to do everything perfectly we should always strive for progress. So much of what he says makes sense, especially with rising cases of things that weren’t as prevalent in history (and not just due to ability to recognize them).
  
  I took too many notes to share, so if you're interested go read for yourself; at least the sections that affect you, and then more because there's more to it than that.
• 
  John Zimmerman

  Another celebrity doctor claiming they can cure what no one else can while they deter sufferers of mental illness away from established effective treatments and towards pseudoscience treatments which they personally profit from! Amen is either totally deluded or straight up psychopathic. But the worst part is the book is well written and compelling, effective in sucking in more victims. His lies are cleverly hidden between numerous segments of genuine good advice. Please be cautious with this one. Listen to the science of happiness podcast instead.