Allan Young – författare

Like its classic predecessor, Asian Medical Systems, Paths to Asian Medical Knowledge significantly expands the study of Asian medicine. These essays ask how patients and practitioners know what they know--what evidence of disease or health they consider convincing and what cultural traditions and symbols guide their thinking. Whether discussing Japanese anatomy texts, Islamic humoralism, Ayurvedic clinical practice, or a variety of other subjects, the authors offer an exciting range of information and suggest new theoretical avenues for medical anthropology.

This stimulating collection of essays is the product of face-to-face dialogues among anthropologists, sociologists, and philosopher-historians, all of whom focus their attention on the newly created biomedical technologies and their application in practice. Drawing on ethnographic and historical case studies, the authors show how biomedical technologies are produced through the agencies of tools and techniques, scientists and doctors, funding bodies, patients, clients, and the public. Despite shared concerns, these essays reveal that the authors have achieved no consensus about the objectives of their research, and the deep epistemological divides clearly remain - making for provocative reading.

As far back as we know, there have been individuals incapacitated by memories that have filled them with sadness and remorse, fright and horror, or a sense of irreparable loss. Only recently, however, have people tormented with such recollections been diagnosed as suffering from "post-traumatic stress disorder." Here Allan Young traces this malady, particularly as it is suffered by Vietnam veterans, to its beginnings in the emergence of ideas about the unconscious mind and to earlier manifestations of traumatic memory like shell shock or traumatic hysteria. In Young's view, PTSD is not a timeless or universal phenomenon newly discovered. Rather, it is a "harmony of illusions," a cultural product gradually put together by the practices, technologies, and narratives with which it is diagnosed, studied, and treated and by the various interests, institutions, and moral arguments mobilizing these efforts. This book is part history and part ethnography, and it includes a detailed account of everyday life in the treatment of Vietnam veterans with PTSD.To illustrate his points, Young presents a number of fascinating transcripts of the group therapy and diagnostic sessions that he observed firsthand over a period of two years. Through his comments and the transcripts themselves, the reader becomes familiar with the individual hospital personnel and clients and their struggle to make sense of life after a tragic war. One observes that everyone on the unit is heavily invested in the PTSD diagnosis: boundaries between therapist and patient are as unclear as were the distinctions between victim and victimizer in the jungles of Southeast Asia.

Mood disorders affect around 1 in 5 people, but the diagnosis and management of these conditions can be challenging. This practical handbook presents a comprehensive overview of these disorders, as well as detailed guidelines for their treatment. The handbook takes a transdisciplinary approach to mood disorders, focusing not only on the biological aspects but also on psychosocial features of importance for optimal diagnosis and management. Content covers nosological considerations, historical aspects, peculiarities along the lifespan, and the associations between mood disorders and other conditions, with a focus on their implications for the optimal management of patients. Practical and evidence-based information is discussed on the role of guidelines related to treatment in selected population groups, including youth, the elderly, and women. With a practical, reader-friendly approach, this book will be invaluable for mental health professionals involved in the treatment of patients with mood disorders, including trainees from different mental health areas.

When was the last time you pushed yourself beyond your comfort zone and dared to fail? In Disruptable, Allan Young shows you how embracing your different, getting outside your comfort zone, observing the impossible, daring to fail, and taking purposeful action will set you on a path of intentional personal disruption that will change your world forever. If you are ready to face your fears and embrace your failures, you can also enjoy the freedom of limitless growth. Join Allan on his journey of intentional disruption that has led him from a five-year-old entrepreneur to founder and owner of an Inc. 500 company and multiple start-ups that have generated over $500 million in sales.