Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for Bipolar Disorder (Hardcover)

"This book integrates pharmacotherapy and psychotherapy in the management of bipolar illness." --G.A. Fave, Bologna. Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics. Karger 1997.

"In what is probably the best organized book that I have ever encountered, the authors cover every aspect of bipolar disorder and its treatment....Basco and Ruch write in clear prose and keep technical jargon to a minimum. Bipolar patients are often well educated and intelligent individuals, and both patients and their family members alike should find this book intelligible and helpful in coping with the symptoms of the disorder. Patients and family members will also find the list of mental health organizations and the educational material in the appendix very useful. Replete with references and good illustrations and engagingly written, this is a book that will aso be welcomed by both therapists and researchers interested in the biology of bipolar affective disorders." --Edward S. Matalka in Science Books and Films

"Over the nearly 50 that have passed since Cade's discovery of the therapeutic potential of lithium salts, the biomedical model of understanding and treating bipolar affective disorders has dominated the field. However, a significant number of people suffering from this classic psychiatric illness do not respond to standard medications and an even larger number do not adhere to prescribed therapies. Ample evidence also suggests that psychosocial factors such as stressful life events, personality profiles, and social support may further mediate or moderate the clinical course and treatment outcomes of bipolar disorder. Therefore, development of a practical and coherent psychosocial therapy specifically tailored to the needs of patients with bipolar disorder is long overdue. Basco and Rush have accomplished this in fine fashion in their text Cognitive-Behavior Therapy for Bipolar Disorder. This book describes a system of therapy intended to complement and enhance pharmacotherapies and includes attention to self-monitoring of symptoms, improving pharmacotherapy adherence, problem solving, and applying cognitive and behavioral strategies to help manage depressive and hypomanic symptoms. The book is well-suited for use by the full range of mental health professionals and may be particularly helpful to nonmedical therapists who work in tandem with prescribing psychiatrists. I highly recommend!" --Michael E. Thase, M.D.

"This is an excellent which will revolutionize our thinking about the treatment offered to clients with bipolar disorder. Monica Basco and A. John Rush are to be applauded on producing the first textbook that provides systematic and practical guidance on how to undertake cognitive behavior therapy with clients with this very serious and debilitating mental disorder. The authors draw on their rich clinical and research experience to give a detailed description of the techniques and strategies that may benefit this client population. Most importantly, they explain with remarkable clarity how to offer an integrated psychological and pharmacological package of care to individuals with bipolar disorder." --Jan Scott, MD, FRCPsych, Professor of Psychology, University of Newcastle upon Tyne, UK

"This very useful book provides the framework for the comprehensive treatment of persons with bipolar disorder....Instead of being merely a volume about psychotherapy, this book is a comprehensive overview of the current treatment of bipolar disorder....There is generous use of outlines, lists, and tables, all of which enhance the clarity and usefulness of the book. There is a section on questions frequently asked of therapists by persons with bipolar illness and how these may be best answered....For a relatively slim volume, the amount of specific detail is remarkable....The highly structured, specific nature of cognitive-behavioral therapy as described in this book is both cost-effective and time-efficient. For example, outlines of each session describe in detail the clinical focus for the therapist....This excellent book should be helpful to any mental health treatment provider who deals with persons with bipolar illness. It deserves to be considered the definitive text on the subject." --Bulletin of the Menninger Clinic

"...the reader will be impressed with the face validity of many of the recommendations and with the practical and immediate benefits of increasing patients' knowledge of their illness as well as the benefits of family education and involvement....a sensible and practical treatment guide specifically addressing the needs of patients with bipolar disorder." --Am J Psychiatry

"...the book is as carefully conceived as is the treatment. Basco and Rush have contributed a carefully formulated treatment strategy in a thorough, accessible text that will surely prove to be a valuable resource for practitioners and bipolar patients alike." --Journal of Cognitive Psychotherapy

"The chapters on treatment are clearly written with session by session contents, which include the purpose and goals of the session, procedures and homework. Each chapter is also full of case vignettes to illustrate the techniques. I particularly like the chapter on treatment adherence." --Psychological Medicine

"This book is an unusually fine example of a cognitive-behavioral treatment book....The book is a comprehensive treatment manual and the course of treatment is 20 sessions....Unusual for CBT books...this one includes many descriptions of how to work with family members and significant others of patients....This book has set a very high standard for future volumes on this topic. It should be read and used by anyone with an interest in this disorder." --Contemporary Psychology

"The managed care field favors treatment protocols that are empirically based, able to be applied consistently across disciplines, focused on the present, and symptom specific. This text describes a treatment that meets these requirements and that is easily understood by professionals across the mental health disciplines. This text also meets the need for a conduit between psychopharmacological and psychotherapeutic interventions....The book's excellent end-of-chapter summaries are especially useful....Drs. Rush and Basco successfully bring together their combined clinical experience of three decades to produce a timely, pragmatic cognitive-behavioral treatment approach for bipolar disorder." --Psychiatric Services

"...(the authors have) succeeded in presenting a coherent, complete, and practical approach to working with individuals with Bipolar Disorder." -- Psychotherapy

"The book is filled with illustrative case examples and material that provide an excellent introduction for the novice clinician....One of the most helpful sections of the book deals with false assumptions of the therapist....I found this book extremely helpful in adding new techniques to my therapeutic armamentarium. I recommend it highly for both the beginning and experience therapist." --Bulletin of the Menninger Clinic

A comprehensive approach to the treatment of bipolar disorder, this book details an innovative program of interventions that augments rather than replaces pharmacotherapy. Topics covered include patient and family education, early symptom detection for the prevention of relapse, methods for the enhancement of treatment compliance, strategies for the remediation of subsyndromal symptoms of depression and mania, and ways to identify and resolve psychosocial and interpersonal problems. Each chapter provides session-by-session instructions, as well as patient assignments and clear and concise directions for the implementation of each intervention.