Prescribing Health: Transcendental Meditation in Contemporary Medical Careincludes important contributions from leading experts on Transcendental Meditation and health, and provides the reader with the most important, cutting edge health research on the effects of Transcendental Meditation (TM) on serious mental health problems and medical disorders. It features practical, proven programs to improve health outcomes, decrease morbidity/mortality, and reduce health care costs with a wide range of patient populations. The authors explore advances in neuroscience and the brain changes associated with not only the impact of TM on health recovery, but also the effects of meditation in daily activity and permanent changes in neuropsychological functioning resulting from the purification of consciousness through meditation. Included is coverage of an ancient yet newly introduced approach to therapy, Vedic Psychotherapy, and methods for integrating Transcendental Meditation and other Vedic health approaches into primary medical care.

David F. O'Connell,Ph.D., M.S, CFC, DABPS,is a board certified forensic psychologist and a medical psychologist. He is also a conditional prescribing psychologist in primary care in New Mexico. He has been practicing Transcendental Meditation for 40 years. He has written about it previously in theAlcoholism Treatment Quarterlyand in a previous edited book entitled,Self Recovery: Treating Addictions Using Transcendental Meditation and Maharishi Ayurveda(1994). OConnell has taught graduate level courses in counseling psychology at Rosemont University and undergraduate psychology courses at Drexel University and Alvernia University. He has served on the editorial board of theJournal of Adolescent Chemical Dependency. This will be his 7th book.

Deborah L. Bevvino,PhD, NP is currently the behavioral medicine faculty associate in the Family Practice and Community Medicine Residency Program at Reading Hospital& Medical Center. She holds adjunct assistant clinical faculty positions at Penn State University School of Medicine and the Sidney Kimmel Family and Community Medicine College of Jefferson University. She is a practicing psychologist at the Center for Mental Health at Reading Hospital and is also an Adult Nurse Practitioner. She has been practicing Transcendental Meditation and Ayurveda for twenty years.

Foreword:- Norman Rosenthal, M.D.

Preface: David F. OConnell, Ph.D.
Deborah L. Bevvino, CRNP, Ph.D.

The Editors

The Contributors

Acknowledgements

Section I-Theory

Chapter I-The Transcendental Meditation Technique (TM): What, How, and Why
Robert W. Boyer, Ph.D.

Chapter II-How Meditation Heals: The Brain and Higher States of Consciousness
Fred Travis, Ph.D.

Chapter III- Stress, Illness and Transcendental Meditation: A Triad Worth Exploring
Deborah L. Bevvino, CRNP, Ph.D.

Section II-Research

Medical Disorders

Chapter IV-Transcendental Meditation and Cardiovascular Health
Vernon A. Barnes, Ph.D.

Chapter V-Transcendental Meditation, Diabetes and Other Disorders
David Lovell-Smith, Ph.D., M.B., CH.B., FRNCGP

Mental Health Disorders

Chapter VI-Transcendental Meditation Research on Anxiety& Anxiety Disorders
Sarnia Grosswald, Ed.D.
David F. OConnell, Ph.D.
James Krag, M.D.

Chapter VII-Transcendental Meditation in the Treatment of Depression
James S. Brooks, M.D.

Chapter VIII-The Use of Transcendental Meditation in Promoting Recovery and Preventing Relapse for Addictive Diseases
David F. OConnell, Ph.D.
Alarik Arenander, Ph.D.

Chapter IX- The TM Program and the Treatment of Childhood Disorders
William R. Stixrud, Ph.D.
Sarnia Grosswald, Ed.D.

Section III-Applications

Chapter X- The TM Technique as a Preventative Approach for Improving Health-care Outcomes
Maxwell V. Rainforth, Ph.D.
Robert E. Herron, Ph.D.

Chapter XI- Addressing Societal Problems Through the Transcendental Meditation Program: Aging, Prison Rehabilitation, and Collective Health
David W. Orme-Johnson, Ph.D.
David F. OConnell, Ph.D.

Bibliography

Index