“When I finally put the pieces together, I realized that I had stumbled upon something beyond my wildest dreams. I had developed a unifying theory for the cause of all mental illnesses. I call it the theory of brain energy. …
To be clear, I am not the first to suggest that metabolism and mitochondria are related to mental illness. In fact, I am building on decades of research. Without these other researchers and their pioneering work, this book wouldn’t exist. I’ll share many of their groundbreaking studies in the pages to come. However, for the first time, this book puts the pieces of the puzzle together to reveal one coherent theory. This theory integrates existing biological, psychological, and social research, and offers one unifying framework for explaining and treating mental illness.
Brain Energy not only provides long-elusive answers, it offers new solutions. I hope it will end the suffering and change the lives of millions of people throughout the world. If you or someone you love is affected by a mental illness, it might just change your life, too.”
~ Christopher M. Palmer, MD from Brain Energy
This is a VERY important book.
As some of the authors on the back cover put it (including Robert Lustig, author of Fat Chance; Mark Hyman, author of Eat Fat, Get Thin and The Food Revolution; and David Perlmutter, author of Grain Brain, Brain Maker, and Brain Wash), I think this book has the potential to revolutionize the way we approach mental health care.
For years, we have talked about the importance of getting our ENERGY optimized so we can show up powerfully in our Work and in our Love.
In our Mastery Series and Heroic Coach program, we’ve also discussed the fact that our PHYSIOLOGY drives a *LOT* more of our PSYCHOLOGY than most of us (and most positive psychology researchers let alone most general psychologists/psychiatrists) think.
This book provides the underlying theoretical framework that ties all that wisdom together.
Christopher M. Palmer, MD, is a Harvard psychiatrist and researcher working at the interface between metabolism and health. He’s an assistant professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and has held leadership roles at Harvard, McClean Hospital and nationally.
In this thoughtful, scientifically-grounded book (which is written more as a research-dense foundation for a new movement in mental health care rather than a breezy self-help book), Palmer shares his “theory of brain energy” that, in short, establishes the fact that “mental disorders are metabolic disorders of the brain.”
← THAT, my Heroic friend, is a VERY (!!!) Big Idea.
Before we jump in and discuss why this theoretical framework matters AND discuss some practical Ideas on how we can apply the wisdom to our lives TODAY, I want to say that I got tears in my eyes when I read the inside flap then Christopher’s dedication.
The inside flap says: “In Brain Energy, Harvard psychiatrist Dr. Christopher M. Palmer unites our existing knowledge about mental illness within a single framework: Mental disorders are metabolic disorders of the brain.
Palmer explains this new understanding of mental illness in detail, from symptoms and risk factors to what is happening in brain cells, and sheds light on new treatment pathways for all mental disorders, including anxiety, depression, ADHD, alcoholism, eating disorders, bipolar disorder, autism, and even schizophrenia.”
I circled “ALCOHOLISM” and thought of my dad (and his dad and my brother) when I read that. Then I turned the page and read Christopher’s dedication: “To my mother… My futile attempts to save you from the ravages of mental illness lit a fire in me that burns to this day. I’m sorry I didn’t figure this out in time to help you. May you rest in peace.”
I got tears in my eyes and goosebumps (again) as I typed that. Amen. I feel the same way about my father and I feel an intense fire to help YOU and your families deal with the extraordinary challenges we all face and the unprecedented mental turmoil we are all experiencing in the process. With that and with love as our fuel, let’s get to work.
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