Self help book recommendations

[jesca18]

I’m sure there are a ton of threads on this so sorry in advance for asking again but do you have any book recommendations specifically for self help? Ones that you consider to be life changing?

I read a book recently that greatly helped me. Highly recommend. “Best self: be you, only better” by mike Bayer

[jesca18]

I’m currently reading “the road less traveled”. It is very good so far.

What should I read next?

[Hidden in reply to jesca18]

I think the books mentioned by TailWags are among the best out there. I would only add DBT to the list. It is similar to CBT.

[jesca18 in reply to Hidden]

Thank you for responding!

[TailWags]

There is an old standard, Feeling Good, by DAVID D. BURNS, MD. Cognitive behavioral therapy CBT. Has you go through exercises to evaluate your thinking and ways to change it. One thing I liked was it had the self test for depression. The higher the score, the more depressed. I keep a copy of it around to take the test and see how I am doing over time. Of course you know how you feel, but it is helpful for me to see my scores from the past and if they are really high, I know I was that bad and got better. If they are really low, I know I was doing that well before and can again. Kind of helps me for some reason. He is supposed to be having another book out in September, Feeling Great.

There is also Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction, or MBSR. It has some similarities with the CBT, like just because you think it, it doesn't mean it's true. Anyhow, it stresses living in the moment and not trying to predict what will happen. You calmly watch what happens and try not to judge it. You don't try to run from your feelings, you face them and experience them. At least that is what I got out of it. You can take a class that is several weeks long, like I did, or read the book and work on your own. Full Catastrophe Living by Jon Kabat-Zinn . I believe there is a companion workbook especially for depression. One thing I liked about the class was I was feeling really bad at the time. A hard time of my life. I was pretty miserable. We did some meditations which I found to be an escape from the misery. For that half hour, or however long, I was not miserable. It was meaningful to me because being able to not be miserable for even a short time gave me hope that things could improve in the future. I also ended up writing "Don't believe everything you think" on a post it and sticking it on my monitor at work. A helpful reminder.

These are things I found helpful, but everyone if different. Maybe one or the other will look interesting to you.

Best wishes

[jesca18 in reply to TailWags]

Thank you so much for your detailed response! I will read both books and/or take the class! Both sound very interesting. I love anything self improvement. Thanks again!