There is wealth of self-help books out there and it can be overwhelming deciding which ones will be most useful. In this article, I list and describe some of the books that I have found most useful in relation to specific problems, in a bid to make choosing the book for you a bit easier!

For Obsessive Compulsive Disorder

My book of choice is “Overcoming Obsessive Compulsive Disorder – A self-help guide using Cognitive Behavioral Techniques” by David Veale and Rob Willson. This book is a clear and practical step-by-step guide to regaining control of your OCD and your life! The book contains a CBT approach that is specifically aimed at OCD. This is very important since some CBT approaches used to treat other problems such as anxiety and depression can be unhelpful when applied to OCD. This book is applicable to OCD in it’s varying forms, e.g. for those who experience pure obsessions, for those who carry out internal mental rituals and for those who display compulsive behaviours. What I like about this book is that it is very frank and can help to show the person with OCD that they need not be ashamed of the content of their intrusive thoughts, images and urges. Some of the people I work with using CBT have found that they need help in applying the book from a therapist.

For Depression

I recommend ” The Cognitive Behavioral Workbook for Depression” by William Knaus. This book combines Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, Rational Emotive Behavioural Therapy and common sense in an easy to follow format that includes practical exercises that can help you find your way out of a depressive state. By practicing the techniques presented in the book, you can learn the skills to defeat depressive thinking. The book takes into account all factors related to being depressed that can make any action difficult and gives you tips on how to deal with procrastination, lack of energy and motivation.

I also recommend “The Mindful way Through Depression – Freeing Yourself From Chronic Unhappiness” by Williams, Teasdale, Segal and Zinn. Mindfulness is a technique that has its origins in Buddhism but that is used without any religious connotations within the field of cognitive therapy to help people learn to break the cycle of mental habits such as rumination and self-blame which perpetuate depression. Mindfulness involves disengaging from this type of mental activity. This book is written in the format of a program and includes a CD to follow of guided mindfulness meditation practices.

Mindfulness techniques are very useful for anxiety and OCD disorders also.

For Anxiety and Stress

A useful book that I use with people seeking CBT therapy, Edinburgh is “The Anxiety and Phobia Workbook” by Edmund Bourne. This is a really comprehensive book that gives step-by-step guidance in overcoming anxiety and covers various factors including relaxation and meditation skills, exercise, coping with panic, dealing with negative self-talk and irrational beliefs, visualisation, self-esteem, medication, nutrition and more.

Finally a book that it more general but useful for anxiety, depression or stress is “Mind Over Mood – Change the Way you Feel by Changing The Way You Think” by Greenberger and Padesky This is a simple to follow book that really targets illogical and irrational thinking styles that drive depression and anxiety. It includes worksheets to follow.

Finally, its important to remember when considering a book to begin self-help that like therapy, self-help books and the exercises they direct you to do, must be practiced diligently and consistently in order to work.

The most successful treatment approach to dealing with anxiety is through the application of Cognitive therapy since anxiety is a reaction to our thinking, beliefs and underlying assumptions about life. It is usually not our primary anxiousness that creates our distress. It is our secondary thoughts and feelings – the “anxiety about our anxiety” that intensifies our symptoms.

Almost everyone experiences anxiety, but not everyone catastrophizes about it. Let’s say you are taking a midterm exam in college. There are several ways you might respond when you open the test booklet and note that there are numerous questions that you are not prepared to answer. First, you might respond by saying, “wow, none of these answers look familiar. I don’t remember studying for us- I’m going to flunk this test. If I fail it, there goes my grade for the semester. Wait until my parents find out, they will kill me!” Or and alternative, rational response might be, “Gee, I don’t understand these first three questions – that’s okay, I’ll just take some deep breaths, relax and work on the questions that I am familiar with. Then I’ll go back and tackle the ones I couldn’t answer before.”

An individual’s manner of self-talk determines the level of anxiety. When we “awfulize” about anxiety, it tends to intensify it. When we respond rationally to our anxiety, that diminishes its effect. Rationally responding to anxious thoughts is critical to minimizing its effect.

Many people tend to believe that their panic or general anxiety “appear out of the blue.” They may feel confused and perplexed by the sudden emergence of their feelings. Cognitive therapists view anxious feelings as a byproduct of faulty thinking. There is no mystery to it. Teaching others to respond rationally to self-defeating talk is the primary goal of therapy.

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Individuals who experience panic attacks are usually troubled by symptoms such as racing heart, sweating, dread of dying, hyperventilating and a need to escape social situations. Helping individuals to manage panic attacks takes understanding and patience. Assisting people to realize that their panic is time-limited is important. Since panic tends to take on a life of its own, it is important to address the secondary symptoms or the “panic over the panic.” When people panic, they tend to magnify their symptoms through self-defeating thinking, perpetuating the attack. Teaching people to relax into their panic is necessary.

The following are some guidelines for those who experience anxiety and panic:

* Anxiety is time-limited. It is comforting to know that it always diminishes in its impact over time.

* Don’t fight with your anxiety. It only makes things worse. Lean into your anxiety, embrace it, and it will subside.

* Schedule a “worry time.” Go into a quiet room, relax and try to expose yourself to your anxieties. Try to bring on your symptoms and you will find that it is difficult to do.

* If you have a tendency to panic, create an exit strategy. Plan a way to remove yourself from anxious situations to bring relief.

* Refocus your attention away from your anxiety. For example, when people experience panic attacks that involve a racing heart, I might encourage them to do jumping jacks to demonstrate that there is nothing physically causing their symptoms. This strategy actually lightens the situation and their symptoms.

* If you are anxious, chunk things down into smaller parts. People tend to feel overwhelmed when they look at the entire picture. Rather than clean the entire house, pick a few specific tasks such as shredding a few unnecessary documents.

* Stay in the present. Don’t rehash your history or anticipate your future. Worrying about your future or history serves no useful purpose. You can’t control it anyway. Cognitive therapy emphasizes replacing self-defeating thinking with more rational ways are responding to stressors. Identifying goals of therapy, approaching them in a practical manner, and providing homework assignments are significant ingredients to addressing anxiety.
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1. Define Your Terms

You had no ideas your ex was having affairs. You were blind. Define blind. The dictionary says “completely without sight.” That wasn’t you. You saw that your ex was withdrawn from you and was spending an enormous amount of time “working late.” You weren’t blind, just too trusting of someone you had every reason to believe was trustworthy.

2. Solve The Problem

You blew up when you came home early and found your ex, who moved out months ago, unexpectedly in your house. Since that ugly scene, you have been thinking that your “terrible temper” has turned you into a “monster.” Possibly, but the problem in this case is not your temper. The real problem is that your ex still has keys to your house. Maybe it is time to change the locks.

3. Take A Survey

Your ex insists that your refusal to take the kids for an extra day after a holiday weekend proves you are vindictive. You maintain that you are open to a rescheduling time with the children, but not when the real reason is to allow your ex to jet off to a luxurious resort with a new lover. You feel justified, but after a screaming argument on the phone, your confidence is shaken. Perhaps you are a vindictive creep. Now’s the time to call a few friends and solicit their views. Chances are they will say you are justified.

4. Talk To Yourself As You Would To A Best Friend

Suppose a friend were getting divorced and felt like a selfish, uncaring, vindictive failure. What would you say? Probably something like: You are not a failure simply because your relationship ended. Many marriages end in divorce, and many winning teams lose a game now and then. It is rough to endure a divorce, and break-ups never bring out the best in people, but I have known you for years, and you are a warm, kind, caring person.

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5. Examine The Evidence

Take in the big picture. Write it down if you have to. Your ex says you are lousy in bed, but are you really? Until you learned of your ex’s unfaithfulness, the two of you had a great sexual relationship. Of course, after your heart was broken, you did not have any energy for sex, especially with the person who rejected you. That is not being lousy in bed. That is a normal reaction to betrayal.

6. Look For Partial Successes

Instead of thinking that your marriage was a complete failure, consider the many ways that it was successful: You took turns putting each other through school, and now you both have much more fulfilling careers than you had when you met. You have two great kids, and the problems that led to your breakup have given you valuable new insights into the kind of person you will look for in your next relationship.

7. Experiment

See how this negative thinking about yourself in this one area stacks up against your behaviour in other areas. Your ex called you selfish for wanting to keep the house, but are you really? If you were truly selfish, you wouldn’t give to charity, wouldn’t help friends in need and wouldn’t share credit for your group’s accomplishments at work. Test your reactions the next time a charitable solicitation arrives or a friend calls with a problem or your group’s efforts are recognized. If you write a check, offer to lend a hand or praise a co-worker, you are not entirely selfish. You may not be as magnanimous as you like to be, but you are not the ogre your ex says you are.

Counseling involves meeting with a counselor and having the opportunity to explore via talking, difficulties you may be having or distress you may be experiencing. The counselors role is to listen attentively to what you are telling them in order to begin to form an understanding of your perspective of the difficulties you may be experiencing. Counseling does not involve giving advice or guiding a client to take a particular course of action. Through the process of being listened to by a counselor, who is trained to reflect and help you to clarify your problem, counseling can be a way of enabling change, more choices or of helping you release strong emotion and feeling, which you have kept bottled up or have felt unable to share with family or friends.

During counseling you are able to explore and talk freely about any aspect of your life, be it past, present or in the future, in a setting which is confidential. Counselors accept and respect their clients and provide a safe environment for the client to explore their life, relationships and themselves. Counseling can be very useful for helping people to deal with distressing emotions associated with bereavement and loss. Counseling can be very useful for you if you feel you would benefit from being listened to or feel burdened by troubles.

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Cognitive approaches such as CBT and NLP are both approaches used to promote positive change in individuals. Like counseling, the therapist will treat you with respect and provide a confidential environment for you to work through your problems. Cognitive approaches are effective at alleviating emotional distress and behavioural problems. Unlike counseling, cognitive techniques can be practised by the individual and are based on the philosophy that the content of our thoughts have a major influence on our emotions and behaviour. Through cognitive therapy, it is possible to learn ways to eradicate or manage the types of thoughts you have, which means that the state of mind they sustain, such as anxiety, can be resolved. CBT and NLP are solution-focused techniques that focus on the ‘here and now’. Unlike other talking treatments, such as counseling, the focus is not on trying to find the cause of your distress (the therapist will take a full history and discuss your past but practical strategies to promote well-being in the present is the main focus) rather you will learn to improve your state of mind right now. This involves learning which factors maintain your distress or problem and learning strategies to overcome your problem which you will practice in your own time.

NLP is an intimidating name for what is a common sense, practical and effective therapy. ‘Neuro’ means brain, ‘linguistic’ relates to how we use language both to communicate with others, and within our own brain and ‘programming’ relates to how we create and use patterns of behaviour in everyday life in order to get results. We know that we experience the world through our senses and that this information is translated into thoughts. How you use this internal language in your own brain directly affects your physiology, emotions and behaviour. People tend to develop habits and patterns of using internal language that have positive or negative effects on their emotions and behaviour. NLP therapy, Hert encourages new perspectives and options in thinking, giving you more choices about your behavior and emotions, enhancing your communication and relationships and generating lasting life skills.

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy focuses on how you think about a problem (cognitive) and what you do about it (behaviour). CBT can teach you how to recognise and change faulty thinking patterns. This doesn’t mean that you will always think positive thoughts. It is a way to gain control over racing repetitive thoughts, which feed anxiety and depression. CBT can help you make sense of overwhelming problems by breaking them down into achievable parts.

Both these therapy approaches are practical and focused on problem solving in order to meet your therapy goals. This means that unlike counseling, sessions are more structured and less free flowing as you move towards change with the support of your therapist. Often people will seek cognitive therapy such as CBT, Herts or NLP, Herts, when they want solutions to their problem or to move on from limiting thinking, feelings or behaviour.

Relabeling and reattribution techniques are designed to assist in objectifying the disorder and realizing that people are more than their obsessions. For example, I teach people to internally respond by saying, “A part of my brain works in ways that make me repeat things continuously. This is merely my disorder speaking; I am more than my disorder.” This way of perceiving one’s obsessive features helps people to detach the nature of their problem from their sense of self.

Relaxation techniques may involve exercise, music, message, meditation and vacationing in a soothing environment. These strategies slow down the sympathetic nervous system minimizing anxiety and making it easier for people with OCD to manage their thoughts and behavior. One’s level of anxiety is directly related to the impact of compulsive behavior.

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Refocusing techniques refers to assisting patients to shift from obsessional thinking and behavior to other more self-rewarding activities. A change in activities lessens the impact of the OCD thinking and behavior. For example, a child may have a ritualistic pattern of continuously changing the television remote control in a certain order. A therapeutic goal might be to get the child to leave his obsession by getting up and leaving the room, possibly departing the house for a brief walk. I have people track the intensity of their anxiety during the time that they are away from their ritualistic behavior. When removed from an obsessional behavior, anxiety initially becomes worse and then dissipates in strength over time. Once the child returns to the obsessional pattern after voluntarily leaving it, it usually has decreased in its impact and intensity. The child may say, “I was able to keep from repeating the pattern continuously. I only did it twice!” Reinforcement and encouragement are important for people attempting to minimize obsessive patterns.

Those who experience OCD are typically anxious about their symptoms and fight to get rid of them. It is essential that those who suffer from OCD learn to accept their symptoms rather than struggle with them. Acceptance of any form of anxiety helps one to minimize the symptoms. For example, one might say, “Here come those “crazy feelings” again. They sure are annoying but they won’t hurt me. If I learn to “let them be” they will eventually dissipate in their effect on me.”

It is important for those who experience OCD to share their problem with a close friend or therapist. Expressing one’s feelings about the pattern may help in dealing with any feelings of shame or embarrassment. For the OCD sufferer, it is significant to remember that most people experience features of the disorder. All behavioral problems lie on a continuum. Struggling with OCD is no exception. When we share our problems with others, we realize that we are not alone in our difficulties. It takes courage to admit that we are less than perfect and to allow ourselves to share our humanity with others. When we learn to quit fighting with our imperfections, the issue eventually seems less troublesome.

1. Write Everything Down

The act of writing automatically puts some distance between you and your negative thought. Jotting things down provides perspective and helps people detect distorted thinking more easily. If you are in a situation where you just can’t put pen to paper, it is recommended saying things out loud.

2. Identify The Upsetting Event

What’s really bothering you? Is it simply the fact that you got a flat tire? Or is it that you soiled your outfit while changing it? Or that you knew you needed a new tire but did not replace it? Or that the flat made you late for your daughter’s soccer game?

3. Identify Your Negative Emotions

You might feel annoyed about the flat, frustrated that replacing it soiled your outfit, angry at yourself for not replacing it in time and guilty for being late for the soccer game.

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4. Identify The Negative Thoughts That Accompany Your Negative Emotions

About failing to replace the tire: “I always procrastinate. I never take care of things in time.” About soiling the outfit, “ I’m a slob. I can’t go anywhere and look okay.” About being late for the game: “My daughter will make a scene. She’ll think I do not love her. And the other adults there will think I am a bad parent.”

5. Identify Distortions And Substitute Rational Responses

About the tire: “ I don’t always procrastinate. I juggle my job and family and accomplish just about everything that has to get done. I would have replaced that tire in time, but I had to deal with an emergency at work, and the tire just got by me.” About the stained outfit: “ I’m not a slob. I’m usually very careful about my appearance, more so than most people, which is why things like this upset me.” About the tardiness: “ My daughter knows I love her. She knows that if I am late, whatever detained me was beyond my control. She is unlikely to make a scene, but if she does, the other adults there will comfort her. I have done the same for their kids and never thought them to be bad parents. No one will think the worst of me.”

6. Reconsider Your Upset

Are you still heading for and emotional tailspin? Probably not. But you still feel annoyed about getting the flat.

7. Plan Corrective Action

“As soon as the game is over, we are getting that tire. That will take the time I have planned to spend cooking dinner, so I have pick up some take-out instead.”

A child who has moved into a higher school would be stressed because his parents back home would expect him to excel because the amount of competition is high. A middle aged man has to toil harder by working even after his office hours to hold onto his job because his company is reducing the number of employees.

We just saw two instances which makes people suffer from anxiety and if you think anxiety is a simple word, then think again. Anxiety may cause distress and may severely affect a person’s life. The range of intensity may vary but yet the results are dangerous. You may wonder how come people do not get affected even though anxiety is quite normal. This is because although due to the present day scenario most people suffer from anxiety, people can lead a proper life without anxiety causing any major worry to their lives if it is dealt with properly.

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If you are still doubtful whether anxiety therapy is needed, take a look at the problems caused by anxiety:

Ø As a victim of the most generalized type of anxiety, you may have recurring thoughts about losing everything that you posses. The symptoms are quite dangerous because people who suffer from similar experiences are bound to face problems in concentrating on their daily task.

Ø Many people develop various types of phobias that can be really dangerous and that may lead to various other mental illnesses.

The problems mentioned above are just a couple from a never ending list; the impact may vary from person to person. Anxiety therapy is extremely important because if anxiety is not dealt with properly it may cause recurring panic attack, psychological disorder, depression etc.

Here is a brief insight on ways to fight anxiety.

Behavioral Therapy:

This therapy employs techniques that work in reduction or stopping of undesired behavior. A common technique used makes use of relaxation and deep breathing that stops breathing problems that anxiety may cause.

Cognitive Therapy:

Cognitive bevavioural therapy is an excellent Anxiety therapy because it is a different but realistic approach to those who understand how anxiety causes problems since it enables them to take steps to stop the reasons that create anxiety.

Most people, especially in times of stress, may have experienced OCD-type symptoms such as doubting you have turned off the oven or locked the door. However, for those with OCD, persistent doubts, urges or images are much more frequent, intrusive and distressing and can really lead to a reduced quality of life and disruption in occupational performance. For some the distress of living with OCD can also lead to depression
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Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) is considered to be the therapy of choice for OCD, with research studies backing its effectiveness. CBT is a short term and structured psychological therapy that looks at the relationship between what we think, what we feel and how we respond. CBT is a combination of cognitive therapy, which examines cognitive processes such as unwanted thoughts, attitudes, and beliefs and behavioural therapy, which focuses on behaviour in response to those thoughts.

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For example, a person with OCD may experience an unpleasant intrusive thought. Sometimes, although not always, the person with OCD may feel compelled to engage in a less than rational, compulsive behavior or mental ritual in a bid to reduce the anxiety associated with the thought. For example, excessive checking of door locks, washing of hands to avoid contamination or mental ritual of some kind. These very acts, which the person with OCD uses to cope with or reduce their OCD anxiety, in fact keep OCD going.

The aim of CBTis to helps the person with OCD understand that by resisting the compulsive urge to check the locks, wash hands or mentally ritualize, they can eventually “sit out” their anxiety until the anxiety level naturally diminishes and fades over time. This is a technique known in CBT as exposure and response prevention. This technique helps OCD get better.

The treatment of OCD also involves other techniques and methods such as equipping the person with relaxation and mindfulness skills, which are both very useful in managing OCD. Time is also given to helping the person set goals to begin re-engaging in life activities, which are important to them, if OCD has led to disruption in life roles.