Head First: The Biology of Hope and the Healing Power of the Human Spirit

by Norman Cousins

Book Overview

"An eloquent plea for two needed emphases: more humane doctor-patient relations, and greater patient involvement in the struggle with disease."--Melvin Konner.

A ground breaking collectoin of stories of physicians, researchers and patients who augment medical treatments with hope and positive emotionsfrom The New York Times bestselling author of The Anatomy of an Illness

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0140139656
• ISBN13: 9780140139655
• Release Date: December 1990
• Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group
• Length: 384 Pages
• Weight: 0.83 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 5.0" x 7.7"
• Age Range: 18 years and up
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher

Customer Reviews

A MUST read for Everyone!

Everyone who is alive should read this book NOW, before you get sick, especially with an incurable sickness like cancer, etc. In the first half of the book, Mr Cousins explores the mind-body relationship by example, not theory. Even if you already have a positive outlook, this will only (and very strongly) deepen the strength of that positiveness (new word?). The second half talks about relationships among doctors. If you have more than one doc diving you medications, chances are they are NOT talking to each other to compare the sysmptoms of mixing the drugs, which may be the cause of a seemingly worse problem. It is a very easy read. READ it now. You will not regret it. It is more than just laughing.

Healing Advice

Cousins connects personal experience with scientific research to make a compelling case for the healing power of positive emotions. Norman Cousins was a journalist who was healed through changing his behavior and thoughts. As a followup to his experience he was brought to the UCLA Medical School to do further inquiry into the topic. He interviewed physicians, patients, and family members in his study.He discusses how his findings were misinterpreted and made to appear shallow by critics. But he felt that he had a valid contribution to make to our understanding of ourselves.Philosophically he makes some cogent points throughout this book. Personally I love what he writes about Southern California. Consider also his comments on life well lived:"The clock provides only a technical measurement of how long we live. Far more real than the ticking of time is the way we open up the minutes and invest them with meaning. Death is not the ultimate tragedy in life."Buy this book! Read it! You'll be thankful you did.

humor is good medicine

This book shows how remarkable and awesome the human spirit truely is. Cousins gives examples of how humor affected the body in a profound healing manor. After facing cancer and the gloom around the therapies, Cousins turned to humor to help fight the battle and overcame many obstacles in his way. Even those whose lives are not touched by cancer in some way can appreciate the benefits of a little humor therapy. Great book!