The Cure Within: A History of Mind-Body Medicine

by Anne Harrington
The Cure Within: A History of Mind-Body Medicine
book data
21 ratings, 3.67 average rating, 9 reviews (more data...)
edit

published
January 21st 2008 by W. W. Norton

binding
Hardcover, 354 pages

isbn
0393065634    (isbn13: 9780393065633)

description
"Is stress a deadly disease on the rise in modern society? Are good friends the best medicine? Can mind-body practices from the East help us beco...more




Sign in to Goodreads to see your friends' reviews of this book.


There are no discussion topics on this book yet. Be the first to start one »

friend reviews

To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up.
This book is currently not featured on any Listopia lists. Add this book to your favorite list »

other reviews (showing 1-20 of 93)

sort: default (?) | date
filters: all | text-only


Finbar
05/21/08
Finbar rated it: 3 of 5 stars

bookshelves: health, history, science
Read in July, 2008
This one starts off well, but falters near the end and then falls flat on its face with the conclusion. I liked the narrative survey format that is used, but there are many associative leaps used to tie together the ideas presented in order to make them fit the narrative structure. Harrington also relies on loaded language to make her point where simply stating her case would have been more effective. She ends up distracting the reader from her argument and bringing her own bias into the dialogu...more
Like this review?   yes  
  add a comment

Alisha
04/11/08
Alisha rated it: 4 of 5 stars

Read in April, 2008
This is a really fascinating look at the different narratives we have about mind/body healing--that our bodies are "broken by modern life," that "positive thinking" can sometimes do more than doctors...and most intriguing, the historical origins of these stories. What I found particularly interesting is that not only do these different narratives about how our minds/bodies work together and/or don't help us make sense of illness, they also *define* how we can make sense of it...more
Like this review?   yes  
  add a comment

Jennifer
12/21/08
Jennifer rated it: 4 of 5 stars

Read in September, 2008
To be shared at a later time.
Like this review?   yes  
  add a comment

Abi
05/24/08
Abi rated it: 4 of 5 stars

recommends it for: Cordel, Elizabeth, and every other soon-to-be physician.
What an amazing historical perspective through which to view Western biomedicine! Seeing as our scientific, physicalist methods of treating the body are only 150 years old, are they the true "alternative" medicine? And what does "traditional" mind-body healing have to teach modern medicine? This book made me completely reorganize the way I approach the mind and its effect on the body - or can the two even be separated?
Like this review?   yes  
  1 comment

Janis
05/26/08
Janis rated it: 4 of 5 stars

Read in May, 2008
Author Anne Harrington provides a clear and interesting history of mind-body medicine by looking at it from six different viewpoints. I liked that structure and appreciated taking this historical look at a topic I've heard quite a lot about over the last years. I only wish the author, chair of Harvard's History of Science Department, had revealed more about her own opinions in the concluding chapter.
Like this review?   yes  
  add a comment

Rhonda
06/24/08
Rhonda rated it: 4 of 5 stars

Read in July, 2008
recommended to Rhonda by: NYTImes review
great book for anyone interested in health generally, and esp health care workers. well written, organized around 6 "narratives" with solid historical info. saw this one favorably reviewed in NYTimes and so glad i found it in local library. will probably purchase a copy.
Like this review?   yes  
  add a comment

Carol
04/01/08
Carol rated it: 5 of 5 stars (review of other edition)

Read in April, 2008
Fascinating, clear, really gets at the six fundamental narratives we tell ourseslves in understanding the relationship to mind/body in sickness and healing.
Outstanding
Like this review?   yes  
  add a comment

Ida
01/27/08
Ida marked it as to-read

bookshelves: to-read
NYT review makes it look interesting: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/27/books/...
Like this review?   yes  
  add a comment

Hiten Soni
06/20/08
Hiten Soni rated it: 3 of 5 stars

Must read for anyone in heath care field.
Like this review?   yes  
  add a comment

Heather
07/02/09
Heather marked it as to-read

bookshelves: to-read

Ty
07/01/09
Ty is currently reading it

bookshelves: currently-reading

Sandi
05/12/09
Sandi rated it: 3 of 5 stars


Sofia
05/01/09
Sofia marked it as to-read

bookshelves: to-read

Stephanie
03/12/09
Stephanie marked it as to-read

bookshelves: to-read

Sarah
03/10/09
Sarah is currently reading it

bookshelves: currently-reading

Andy
03/06/09
Andy marked it as to-read

bookshelves: to-read

eq
02/20/09
eq marked it as to-read

bookshelves: to-read

Amanda
02/16/09
Amanda rated it: 4 of 5 stars

Read in February, 2009

Koliba
01/08/09
Koliba marked it as to-read

bookshelves: to-read

Deena
01/07/09
Deena marked it as to-read

bookshelves: to-read


« previous 1 3 4 5


recent status updates | recommend it | blog it

The Cure Within










The Placebo Effect: An Interdisciplinary Exploration (Paperback) by Anne Harrington
Visions of Compassion: Western Scientists and Tibetan Buddhists... by Anne Harrington
Reenchanted Science (Paperback) by Anne Harrington
Medicine, Mind, and the Double Brain (Print on Demand (Paperback... by Anne Harrington
The Cure Within: A History of Mind-body Medicine (Paperback) by Anne Harrington

More…