The Woman Who Cracked the Anxiety Code: the extraordinary life of Dr Claire Weekes - Softcover

Hoare, Judith

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1912854163 ISBN 13: 9781912854165

Publisher: Scribe UK, 2019

Synopsis

The true story of a little-known mental health pioneer who revolutionised how we see the defining problem of our era: anxiety.

Panic, depression, sorrow, guilt, disgrace, obsessions, sleeplessness, low confidence, loneliness, agoraphobia ... The international bestseller Self-Help For Your Nerves, first published in 1962 and still in print, has helped tens of millions of readers to overcome all of these, and continues to do so. But when it was first released, its diminutive author, Dr Claire Weekes, wasn't taken seriously. Seen as underqualified and overly populist by the medical establishment, she was dismissed even as thousands of letters from readers poured in, thanking her for helping to improve -- and in some cases to save -- their lives.

Notable for her insight into the anxiety state and the effectiveness of her techniques for addressing it, Dr Weekes' work provided an alternative to the brutal, invasive, and expensive treatments that were popular at the time. For a handful of dollars, Weekes offered treatment unavailable anywhere else. Few understood she was a serious scholar whose understanding also came from first-hand experience: in order to do her work, she had had to overcome a crippling anxiety disorder herself.

At a crucial moment in history, Dr Weekes' work showed people around the world that they were not alone in their suffering, and addressed an epidemic hiding in plain sight -- one that remains an urgent problem in our society today. This book is the first to tell her story.

About this title

Review:

‘It’s truly astonishing that Dr Claire Weekes is not a household name ... this book shines a light on her considerable achievements with great respect and meticulous detail.’

– Leigh Sales

‘By thinking outside the box, and exercising extraordinary clinical sensitivity, the brilliant physician Claire Weekes created a treatment protocol to the unending benefit of tens of millions of patients over the years.’

– Dr David Barlow, professor emeritus of psychology and psychiatry at Boston University

‘Australian doctor Claire Weekes found worldwide fame with her bestselling books on ‘nervous illness’ in the 1960s and 1970s ― but despite gratitude from thousands of sufferers, she is almost forgotten today. This revelatory biography should change that ... Journalist Judith Hoare has comprehensively captured the unconventional life of this brilliant woman who was lauded for her evolutionary studies.’ FOUR STARS

– Julia Taylor, Books + Publishing

‘A vivid portrait of an intriguing woman ahead of her time, this is a story of hope, empowerment, and vindication.’

– Gina Perry, author of Behind the Shock Machine and The Lost Boys

About the Author:

Judith Hoare is a journalist who worked for the ABC and the Australian Financial Review over several decades. She started her career on Chequerboard, the earliest reality-TV program in the 1970s, and reported on federal politics in Canberra. She shifted to a career editing long-form newspaper journalism at the AFR, during which she was deputy editor of features and the founding editor of the AFR's widely read 'Saturday Perspective' section.

About this edition

• Publisher: Scribe UK
• Publication date: 2019
• ISBN 10: 1912854163
• ISBN 13: 9781912854165
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 416