Kathy Leach Livres

The Overweight Mind and Body is a self-help guide to understanding the psychological issues that lead to overeating and weight gain. The book enables the reader to discover the psychological drives that lead to unwanted weight and to find ways of meeting those drives other than with food. It introduces a simple, user-friendly theory of Transactional Analysis to promote weight-related self-awareness. The author includes exercises that empower readers to uncover their own stories. She understands that, for many, carrying extra weight is emotionally and physically painful and so gently encourages readers to explore at their own level. She uses case studies to demonstrate the many unconscious influences on one’s eating and how, when people discover and resolve these influences, they no longer need extra food. Reading them shows that "you are not alone". This book will also be of interest to, and a useful guide for, practitioners in the caring professions who work with clients struggling with eating and overweight.

This comprehensive book evaluates the evidence for the full range of widely used child and adolescent mental health treatments, providing vital knowledge to inform clinical decision making. Organized around major presenting problems, the book synthesizes findings from hundreds of carefully selected studies on both psychosocial and pharmacological approaches. Each chapter introduces the clinical problem at hand, systematically reviews the available outcome research, and spells out recommendations for evidence-based practice. Written by experienced researchers and practitioners, the volume emphasizes the importance of tailoring all interventions to the needs of the individual child.

The book explores the underlying beliefs and behaviours that may contribute to obesity, including psychological needs, addiction, fear of deprivation, parental influences and sexual fears. The author draws a useful distinction between the need to eat and the need to maintain a large body size, and addresses both LT obesity and ST weight gain.