The Library has recently added the following new books to our print wellbeing collection:
How to stay sane by
This title explores techniques to help you find emotional equilibrium, such as practising mindfulness, being emotionally honest in your relationships with others, challenging your brain in new and exciting ways, and finding cause for optimism. There is no simple set of instructions that can guarantee sanity, but if you want to overcome emotional difficulties and become happier, psychotherapist Philippa Perry, author of The Book You Wish Your Parents Had Read and The Book You Want Everyone You Love* To Read, argues that there are four cornerstones to sanity you can influence to bring about change. By developing your self-observation skills, examining how you relate to others, breaking out of your comfort zone and exploring new ways of defining yourself, Philippa demonstrates that it is possible to become a little less tortured and a little more fulfilled. How to Stay Sane is at once a brilliant explanation of our minds and a profoundly useful guide to facing up to the many challenges life throws our way.
But you don't look autistic at all by
Autism - that's being able to count matches really fast and knowing that 7 August 1984 was a Tuesday, right? Well, no. In this book, Bianca Toeps explains in great detail what life is like when you're autistic. She does this by looking at what science says about autism (and why some theories can go straight in the bin), but also by telling her own story and interviewing other people with autism. Bianca talks in a refreshing and sometimes hilarious way about different situations autistic people encounter in daily life. She has some useful tips for non-autistic people too: what you should do if someone prefers not to look you in the eye, why it is sometimes better to communicate by email, and, most important of all, why it is not a compliment if you say: "But you don't look autistic at all!"
Grief works: stories of life, death and surviving by
Death is the last taboo in our society, and grief is still profoundly misunderstood. So many of us feel awkward and uncertain around death, and shy away from talking honestly with family and friends. 'Grief Works' is a compassionate guide that will inform and engage anyone who is grieving, from the 'expected' death of a parent to the sudden unexpected death of a small child, and provide clear advice for those seeking to comfort the bereaved.
The book that you want everyone you love* to read by
Life is all about relationships and the quality of those connections, whether that's with family, partners, friends, colleagues or most importantly yourself. If you can get those relationships on a functional and even keel, then the other tricky stuff that life throws your way becomes easier to manage.In this warm, practical and witty book, No.1 Sunday Times bestselling psychotherapist Philippa Perry shows you how to approach life's big problems.How do you find and keep love? What can you do to manage conflict better? How can you get unstuck and cope with change and loss? What does it mean to you to be content? Are other people just annoying or are you the problem?With a healthy dose of sanity, Philippa Perry's compassionate advice could help you become a happier, wiser person.Includes some material adapted from the Ask Philippa columns in Observer Magazine.
Just one thing by
If you were going to do just one thing to transform your health, what would it be? We all want quick and easy ways to improve our health, but when it comes to diet, fitness and wellbeing it can be hard to separate the facts from the fads. And harder still to find changes that fit easily into our daily lives. Based on the popular BBC podcast, Just One Thing, this book brings to life Dr Mosley's mission to find things you can introduce into your daily routine which will have a big impact on your mental and physical health. Did you know that eating chocolate can help your heart, that singing can give you a natural 'high' and that having more house plants can improve your mood and boost your productivity? Dr Michael Mosley unearths a range of Just One Things whose impacts are so surprising and intriguing you will be desperate to try them out. He chats to experts, road tests all his tips and enlists some special guests to help you find that one small thing that could really make a difference to how you feel.
Notes on grief by
A personal and powerful essay on loss from Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, the bestselling author ofAmericanahandHalf of a Yellow Sun.'Grief is a cruel kind of education. You learn how ungentle mourning can be, how full of anger. You learn how glib condolences can feel. You learn how much grief is about language, the failure of language and the grasping for language'On 10 June 2020, the scholar James Nwoye Adichie died suddenly in Nigeria.In this tender and powerful essay, expanded from the original New Yorker text, his daughter, a self-confessed daddy's girl, remembers her beloved father. Notes on Grief is at once a tribute to a long life of grace and wisdom, the story of a daughter's fierce love for a parent, and a revealing examination of the layers of loss and the nature of grief.
Odd girl out: an autistic woman in a neurotypical world by
What do you do when you wake up in your mid-forties and realize you've been living a lie your whole life? Do you tell? Or do you keep it to yourself?Laura James found out that she was autistic as an adult, after she had forged a career for herself, married twice and raised four children. This book tracks the year of Laura's life after she receives a definitive diagnosis from her doctor, as she learns that 'different' doesn't need to mean 'less' and how there is a place for all of us, and it's never too late to find it.Laura draws on her professional and personal experiences and reflects on her life in the light of her diagnosis, which for her explains some of her differences; why, as a child, she felt happier spinning in circles than standing still and why she has always found it difficult to work in places with a lot of ambient noise.Although this is a personal story, the book has a wider focus too, exploring reasons for the lower rate of diagnosed autism in women and a wide range of topics including eating disorders and autism, marriage and motherhood.Odd Girl Out gives a timely account from a woman negotiating the autistic spectrum, from a poignant and personal perspective.
Languishing by
Do you feel demotivated and aimless? Are you running on empty? Is it hard to pinpoint what's wrong? This is an experience millions of us are struggling with, and until now, we've lacked the vocabulary to understand it. But Dr Corey Keyes has identified this feeling as languishing, and here he draws on the latest research and real-life case studies to trace its spread to a level of global epidemic, asking the fundamental question of how we find lasting wellbeing. Breaking down the science of emotional exhaustion, Keyes shows that our very obsession with happiness complicates the process of finding it. Only by shifting our focus from feeling good to functioning well can we unlock the key to flourishing
How to change by
In How to Change Milkman identifies seven human impulses, or 'problems', that commonly sabotage our attempts to make positive personal and professional change. Then, crucially, instead of getting you to do battle with these impulses she shows you how to harness them and use these as driving forces to help instil new, positive behaviours - better, faster and more efficiently than you could imagine. Drawing her own original research, countless engaging case studies and practical tools throughout to help you put her ideas into action, Milkman reveals a proven, inspiring path that can take you - once and for all - from where you are today to where you want to be
The happiness trap: stop struggling, start living by
Popular ideas about happiness are misleading, inaccurate, and are directly contributing to our current epidemic of stress, anxiety and depression. And unfortunately, popular psychological approaches are making it even worse. In this controversial, but empowering self-help book, Dr Russ Harries, reveals how millions of people are unwittingly caught in the 'The Happiness Trap', where the more they strive for happiness the more they suffer in the long term. He then provides an effective means to escape through a groundbreaking new approach based on mindfulness skills Mindfulness is a mental state of awareness, openness, and focus.Mindfulness skills are easy to learn and will rapidly and effectively help you to reduce stress, enhance performance, manage emotions, improve health, increase vitality, and generally change your life for the better. The book provides scientifically proven techniques to: reduce stress and worry; rise above fear, doubt and insecurity; break self-defeating habits; improve performance and find fulfilment in your work; build more satisfying relationships; and, create a rich, full and meaningful life.
The body keeps the score by
A world expert presents a sympathetic exploration of the causes of trauma and the new treatments making it possible for sufferers to reclaim their lives. THE INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER - OVER 3 MILLION COPIES SOLD'Dr. van der Kolk's masterpiece combines the boundless curiosity of the scientist, the erudition of the scholar, and the passion of the truth teller' Judith Herman, author of Trauma and Recovery The effects of trauma can be devastating for sufferers, their families and future generations. Here one of the world's experts on traumatic stress offers a bold new paradigm for treatment, moving away from standard talking and drug therapies and towards an alternative approach that heals mind, brain and body.
An Introduction to Coping with Grief by
Grief is a natural reaction to loss but in some cases it can be devastating, preventing you from moving on in your life and affecting your relationships and work. This fully updated self-help guide offers an examination and explanation of the grieving process and outlines clinically-proven strategies, based on cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), to help you adjust to life without a loved one: · Knowing what to expect when you are grieving · Understanding the physical and psychological reactions to grief · Practical coping strategies to help you deal with your loss
Approaching autistic adulthood : the road less travelled by
From managing autistic burnout to surviving work to dealing with people neurotypical-splaining' autism, this book is packed with informal advice, entertaining anecdotes, and shrewd observations about life as an autistic adult. May it become a valuable guide for autistic people and neurotypical allies alike. Getting through autistic adulthood takes guts. How do you start? From managing autistic burnout to surviving work to dealing with people `neurotypical-splaining' autism, this book is packed with informal advice, entertaining anecdotes, and shrewd observations about life as an autistic adult. May it become a valuable guide for autistic people and neurotypical allies alike!
The reason I jump : one boy's voice from the silence of autism by
The No. 1 Sunday Times and internationally bestselling account of life as a child with autism, now an award-winning documentary film. 'It will stretch your vision of what it is to be human' Andrew Solomon, The TimesWhat is it like to have autism? How can we know what a person - especially a child - with autism is thinking and feeling? This groundbreaking book, written by Naoki Higashida when he was only thirteen, provides some answers. Severely autistic and non-verbal, Naoki learnt to communicate by using a 'cardboard keyboard' - and what he has to say gives a rare insight into an autistically-wired mind. He explains behaviour he's aware can be baffling such as why he likes to jump and why some people with autism dislike being touched; he describes how he perceives and navigates the world, sharing his thoughts and feelings about time, life, beauty and nature; and he offers an unforgettable short story. Proving that people with autism do not lack imagination, humour or empathy, THE REASON I JUMP made a major impact on its publication in English.
Spoon-Fed by
THE #1 SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER FROM THE LEADING GUT-HEALTH EXPERT, FOUNDER OF ZOE AND AUTHOR OR FOOD FOR LIFE * As seen on ITV's LORRAINE and heard on THE DIARY OF A CEO * This ground-breaking exploration debunks food myths, from what we should be eating for breakfast to whether we should really avoid ultra-processed foods. Is breakfast really the most important meal of the day? Is there any point in counting calories? Is there any evidence that coffee is bad for us? Through his pioneering research, Professor Tim Spector busts these and many other myths about food. Spoon-Fed explores the scandalous lack of good science behind many diet plans, official recommendations, miracle cures and ultra-processed foods, and encourages us to rethink our whole relationship with food - not just for our health as individuals, but for the future of the planet. 'Hugely enjoyable' Michael Mosley 'Illuminating and so incredibly timely' Yotam Ottolenghi 'This book should be available on prescription' Felicity Cloake 'Will actually help you decide what to add to your next grocery shop' Bee Wilson, Guardian Go with your gut. Join the food revolution. **Tim Spector's number 1 bestselling Food for Life: Your Guide to the New Science of Eating Well is now available in paperback** **PRE-ORDER THE FOOD FOR LIFE COOKBOOK, COMING OCTOBER 2024, NOW**
The Microstress Effect by
How a million little things are dragging you down, and what to do about it. There's a force we encounter every day that we aren't aware of--and it threatens to derail otherwise promising careers and lives: microstress. This hidden epidemic of small moments of stress has insidiously infiltrated both our work and our personal lives with invisible but devastating effects. Microstress doesn't trigger the normal stress response in our brains to help us deal with it. Instead, it embeds itself in our minds and accumulates daily, one microstress on top of the other. The long-term impact can be debilitating. Unregistered microstress weighs us down, damages our physical and emotional health, and contributes to a decline in our well-being. What's more, microstress is baked into our lives. The source is seldom a classic antagonist, such as a demanding client or a jerk boss. Instead, it comes from the people with whom we are closest: our friends, family, and colleagues. The good news is that once you understand microstress, you can fight back. Drawing on fresh research, Rob Cross and Karen Dillon explain the science behind the phenomenon. They also share the secrets of a small set of people who've endured their share of microstress but have still managed to cultivate relationships that enable them to thrive both at work and in life. Compelling interviews with these high achievers bring to life best practices that show you how to build resilience against microstress and ultimately how to find purpose--purpose that helps you break free from this quietly invasive force that's stealing your life.