Title: Unprotected: A Campus Psychiatrist Reveals How Political Correctness in Her Profession Endangers Every Student
Author: Mariam Grossman, M.D.
Publisher: Sentinel, 2007. ISBN 978-1-59-523045-4

Book Review of Unprotected.

My friend Jennifer enjoys learning about new things but rarely takes the time to read. Her main reason for not reading books is that she lacks the discipline to stop reading at bedtime and will stay up half the night to finish a book.

Despite this, she has belonged to a book club as a nonreader. She simply enjoyed the discussion and insights of others.

While I homeschooled my kids, I read aloud several books. During our once-a-week scrapbooking evening, I would often share with Jennifer from our readings. She loves history in particular. So, she much appreciated the Reader’s Digest history lessons I gave while we designed photo page layouts.

In my last post, I wrote a review on Dr. Mariam Grossman’s book Unprotected. Because I want people to know this information, I summarized each chapter for those of you who are like Jennifer. You may not read the book but still would find its information valuable.

My additions to the chapter titles are set in italics.

Chapter 1
Unprotected: the Role of Oxytocin and the Unprotected Female Heart

The PC crowd preaches that “desires are ‘needs,’ to be acted upon and satisfied; that behaviors considered aberrant by society and medicine are natural, while self-restraint is not…and all these activities can be free of consequences, as long as they’re ‘protected’ ” (11).

Dr. Grossman’s response:

“On my campus, sexually active students are much more likely to seek counseling, and to rate their relationships as stressful. Almost daily, I prescribe medication to help students, mostly women, cope with loss and heartbreak. Like it or not, hard science suggests that intimacy initiates a trusting bond…there is no condom for the heart” (11-12) .

In this chapter, Dr. Grossman explains how the hormone oxytocin creates a strong emotional bond in a woman during intimate activity. The woman may later break up with the man because she intellectually knows they are not a good match. However, she may become depressed because breaking that relationship breaks a chemical/emotional bond as well.

The research on oxytocin and its bonding properties has been “swept under the rug” by the PC crowd (8). Their desire to keep women in the dark about oxytocin leaves women vulnerable to unnecessary distress.

Chapter 2
Damage Control: The STD Epidemic Cover Up

The PC crowd says enjoy frequent sex but also practice “safer” sex to avoid contracting STDs. These promoters of promiscuity claim that STDs are no big deal. Everyone gets them.

Dr. Grossman counters this casual attitude towards STDs by focusing on the contagious nature of HPV and how its diagnosis can lead to emotional trauma.

One gynecologist explained:

“The psychological trauma is usually significant when the patient receives a diagnosis of HPV because she is often caught by surprise. Such a diagnosis was not suspected and the patient often feels taken advantage of, betrayed, or violated….It is not uncommon for these patients to become angry and depressed” (quoted on p. 21) .

Popular literature downplays the seriousness of HPV and other STDs despite epidemic growth. In the 1960s, only two STDs concerned doctors; now there are at least 25.

Furthermore, “everyone” doesn’t have to get HPV. It’s completely preventable. People who wait for marriage and marry someone who also waited will never get HPV.

Grossman asks: Why does the medical community give warning to the risks of tobacco and alcohol use but not about sexual matters? “The message must get out: casual sex is a health hazard for young women” (28, italics in the original).

Chapter 3
Memo to the APA: Believing in God Is Good for You

Former American Psychological Association president George Albee, Ph.D., believes that psychologists should work to remove religion from society. In 2001, he said, “It doesn’t matter which religion, they are all patriarchal. And that is one of the major sources of social injustice in our society and in our world” (quoted on p. 44).

This worldview has shaped the schools of psychology. The author cites several psychology text passages that reject religion. As a result, “[p]sychologists are almost five times more likely to be agnostic or atheist” than the general population (32-33).

In contrast, a national study reported that “[o]ver three-quarters of students said they pray, and nearly as many report they are ‘searching for meaning and purpose in life’ ” (34).

Thus, many students often have no campus counselor available to them who shares their faith. Besides, by ignoring the spiritual element of a person’s life, therapists overlook a powerful tool with which to aid their patients. Research demonstrates that both the physical and mental health benefits of faith.

“…regardless of faith and denomination, sincere religious devotion infuses life with depth, meaning, and hope—polar opposites of the emptiness and despair associated with suicide. Indeed, the intolerable mental pain of meaninglessness has been called ‘the essence of the suicidal min.’ ” (quoted on p. 41).

Thus, counselors who reject the religious beliefs of patients do them a disservice.

Again, I highly recommend this book to anyone who works or has a relationship with young people.

Dear Readers, please let me know in the comments what you think of this information and about book summaries in general.

The second half of this summary will be available next week.