Troubled Minds

An authoritative resource for understanding the nature of mental illnesses and for pointing the way to recovery, written by two eminent mental health professionals with almost a century of academic achievement and clinical experience between them.

Many of us take our mental health for granted. But we can feel overwhelmed when confronted by mental illness in ourselves, a family member, or a friend. Troubled Minds is an invaluable guide for anyone whose life has been touched by mental ill-health and who wants to understand and deal effectively with it.

It serves as an ideal introduction to common mental illnesses, developmental disorders, and neurological variations that can lead to distress such as autism, anorexia nervosa, anxiety, depression, alcoholism, post-traumatic stress disorder, and dementia. Innovative chapters cover mental health problems of children and adolescents, and how we have the potential to promote our own mental health and wellbeing.

Bloch and Haslam tell illuminating stories of people they have treated, discuss public figures who have wrestled with mental ill-health, and share their personal experiences. Their book is informed by the latest research, warmed by lived experience and empathy, and seasoned by the insights of philosophers, writers, and artists.

Troubled Minds is essential reading for anyone who seeks deeper psychological insights to help deal with the challenges of contemporary life. It is a balanced and accessible account of a subject that is of profound significance in everyone's life.



'Troubled Minds is wonderfully written, highly readable and a tour de force from authors who have seamlessly brought their voices together ... they have often included illuminating excerpts from the humanities, particularly from literature. This welcome holistic approach lends the text readability and provides a context that is interdisciplinary ... This book is a precious resource clinically, and a summary of where we are now and where we are going.'
-Jennifer Harrison, Australian Book Review

'This is an authoritative guide that covers a great deal of ground with an overview of the field, a description of the principal clinical disorders, some excellent case studies - including some public figures - and current treatments. It is fascinating.'
-Cheryl Akle, The Weekend Australian

'A timely and compassionate view of mental illness and its treatment ... Troubled Minds is as much a book for registrars preparing their essay exam, as it is for the layperson who knows someone with, or themselves suffers from, a mental illness.'
-Australasian Psychiatry