Solution, The: For Safe, Healthy, and Permanent Weight Loss
by: Laurel Mellin
Topics include: six cures, nurturing cycle, good health cycle, essential pain, solve your weight problem, body pride, lifestyle surgery, unbalanced moods, your inner balance, emotional trash, powerless thoughts, six rewards, percent whole wheat bread, cure records, health enhancers, unnecessary lows, mastering the method, weight solution, nonfat dressing, balanced feelings, tender morsel, feelings that arise, hunger signals, body hunger, meaningful pursuits
Amazon.com
These days, it's fashionable to look at the problems of overweight people and write them off as too much food and too little exercise. But for many it's more complicated than that, and Laurel Mellin has identified six root causes of the behaviors that lead to obesity. She believes it's never too late to develop the skills to overcome these problems, whether the root is an inability to set limits or a life lived out of balance. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From Booklist
The number six is very important in this book, which is likely to be the most hyped diet book of the season. Mellin tells us there are six causes of weight loss and six cures for it--two body, two mind, and two lifestyle. The six cures override the six causes . . . well, you get the idea. In fact, the plethora of sixes proves distracting, which is too bad because some of Mellin's material is legitimately interesting and useful. The ubiquitous anecdotal style often found in self-help books ("Kevin hit the candy machine and worked incessantly" ) gets a little heavy (oops!), but certainly readers struggling with their own weight problems will respond to Mellin's suggestions for nurturing your emotional needs, banishing body shame, eating a balanced diet, and establishing an active lifestyle. More than many diet-book writers, Mellin understands that people, especially the overweight, don't want to get off the couch and exercise. That's where her ideas about understanding the emotional and psychological roots of the problem come in, and her theory is that weight loss can be the result of nurturing oneself and controlling eating in a realistic way. Oh, one more thing. You have to exercise, too. Ilene Cooper
About the Author
Laurel Mellin, M.A., R.D., is an associate clinical professor of family and community medicine and pediatrics at the University of California at San Francisco School of Medicine. She is the director of the Institute for Health Solutions, and is the author of The Solution: 6 Winning Ways to Permanent Weight Loss and The Shapedown Program. Mellin lectures extensively to health professionals and self-help groups and has appeared on Oprah, Today, Good Morning America, and the CBS Evening News. Her work has been featured in Time, Life, Newsweek, Fortune, Health, Shape, and U.S. News & World Report. She lives with her three children in Marin County, California.
Reviews:
I've been reading this book, and find it very helpful. The idea that there are six causes to weight problems...only two of which have to do with food and exercise, is very interesting. The author believes that it has to do with not being taught how to effectively take care of ourselves when we are children...mostly because our parents probably didn't have the skills needed, either. Which is why you see obesity run in familys...not because it's genetic, per se, but because we are passing our weak skills on to our children. And so they cope with problems the same way we do, or our parents do, etc. The Six Causes are: 1. Weak Nurturing 2. Ineffective Limits 3. Body Shame 4. Poor Vitality 5. Unbalanced Eating 6. Stalled Living The idea is to work toward learning and using effective ways of taking care of ourselves and our emotional and physical needs. The author believes that learning to become strong in these areas will eliminate our need to overeat, or eat the wrong foods. That rather than having to fight to lose the weight, our bodies will naturally and slowly get down to the perfect weight for us, according to genetics, bone structure, etc. The author has tested this with a lot of people, and found that it really does work. I believe that it would, because if you think about it, for most of us who are struggling with a weight problem, food is more than just food to us. It's comfort and love and acceptance...because even if no one else seems to care about us, at least the yummy food is always there. It gives us something to do when we're bored, calms us down when we are stressed, etc. We use it for much more than just fuel for our bodies, or even just as something enjoyable. After all, there are other things we enjoy, but we don't have to have them in vast amounts. The book goes through ways of learning the skills you need to have strong nurturing, effective limits, body pride, good health, balanced eating, and a mastery of living. I haven't started with the skills yet, but I believe it could really help me. I really believe the author is on the right track, because when we just diet and exercise, and not take care of the root problem that's causing us to overeat in the first place, then we are only treating the symptom, not the problem. We all no that if the main problem remains, we can slip back into the symptoms at any time. But, if the problem is removed, then the symptoms will go as well. The other thing is that the author doesn't just deal with obese people...some people are just a few pounds overweight, but still unhappy with their body, etc...and she's worked with them, also. The interesting thing is that the people who've worked through the skills say that their entire life is better...not just because they've lost weight, but because they are dealing with life more effectively. I think it is very interesting, and could be helpful to anyone struggling with a weight problem.
This book and program are very powerful if you're in the same space I was when I encountered it: frustrated, confused and not always able to stay adult enough to take care of myself around healthy eating. Laurel's voice is kind and nurturing. Her examples are very helpful and the written exercises gave me great results. I'd recommend those exercises to anyone - even if they had no weight to lose. Being able to stay "above the line" (aka "adult") in challenging situations is a skill I can't imagine I ever lived without. I think if you have your hands on this book and Dr. Kirschenbaums' "The 9 Truths about Weight Loss," you have all the tools you need!
Caveat Emptor! Thanks to Bob Green, Oprah and Dr. Phil, everyone must know by now that overeating or other excesses rarely come from physiological needs. Indeed, they are driven by emotional needs and those mentioned have come up with outstanding "self help" plans for addressing these complex issues. When I read the underlying research, academic credentials and other reviews of "The Solution", it seemed to be the mother of all self help approaches. I would like to make other potential buyers aware of what happened when I paid $100 for this product. First, what you receive is "Kit 1" -- there are five more that you'll need to buy sequentially to make it through to a "total solution". Second, when Amazon "recommends" that you also purchase the book, "The Pathway", that is misleading. These two products are not "better" when purchased together -- the fact is you cannot USE the Solution very effectively if you have not read the Pathway. Third, because The Solution Kit cannot stand alone without the book, it refers to processes you need to engage in but no where in the book or on its website does it tell you how to do so. Fourth, the website is a disaster. Every click leads to either a total dead end or an opportunity to spend more money with their organization. Fifth, The Solution is not "self help" -- for it to work, you almost have to sign up for group therapy sessions, either on line or in live workshops at a cost I do not know but I'm sure it is not free. Finally, and probably because they intend for the website to only serve as a marketing tool and not a helpful portal, you will get no assistance by going to the website. The content of the Kit 1 is valid, and if followed, I do not doubt that it could be extremely effective. I just believe that readers that prefer a "self help" approach should fully understand that that is NOT what this product is about.