Hi Saab, great reviews    I wonder if you could possibly add a rating from 1-10 as well, as I think this will help people see how helpfull the book was as well as what it is about.

I will post some book reviews tommorow.

Anyone else read some really helpfull books, let us know.

Stu  

Thanks Saab,

Right the books I have purchased as promised;

Self Help for Your Nerves by Claire Weekes: (8 out of 10) Found this very usefull, but I did find the language a bit dated, if someone was to bring this up to date it would be superb.  Even so the best self help book i have read and fully recommended by all that have come accross it.  Helps you get a handle on the fact you have anxiety and what it is.

Peace from Nervous Suffering by Claire Weekes: (5 put of 10) Didn't really add much to the above book, buy that one instead.

Feel The fear And Do It Anyway by Susan Jeffers: (7 out of 10) Not really a help regards panic and anxiety.  The book in my opinion is more towards confidence building, but it had some good ideas and thoughts in there.  More a read to bolster your positive thinking rather than coping with anxiety.


If anyone has any to add, keep them flowing, I for one would find it usefull to know peoples libraries and if they are any good.

Stu

Hi there
Here's a starter selection of books on anxiety and panic I have bought and read with my notes about them...
bead


The Anxiety and Phobia Workbook - Edmund Bourne 10/10
This is a hefty book and well worth the money. Very comprehensive with every area you want covered in depth. It is the first book I have read that acknowledges that anxiety is not cured overnight even with medication and that it can take a couple of years to get over. I can't rate this highly enough. It is a really thorough look at the whole person too, and alternative methods are also examined as well as nutrition, exercise and  why it happens. Loads of charts and tables and questionnaires. This book got me interested in mindfulness as a technique. (see later)

Beyond and anxiety and Phobia - Edmund Bourne 8/10
Well I'm definitely not beyond anxiety but I have this on my shelf for the day when I might be. Packed with ideas and help for keeping well.

Understanding Panic Attacks by Roger Baker 10/10
this is the best little book about panic attacks if you get them. Really good on symptoms and thinking through the feelings you get.

Calming your anxious mind - Jeffrey Brantley - 10/10
I loved this book. This is a practical book which explains anxiety and what is going on, and gives great exercises in how to calm your mind and stop the racing that goes on and leads to more and more anxiety and stress and more symptoms. This book is all about 'mindfulness'. It's a kind of meditation practised by buddhists but you don't have to be buddhist to do it, it is completely for anyone. This is one of the best books I have read for a method of relaxation that involves the mind and not just body relaxation.

Buddhism for mothers - Sarah Napthali - 10/10
Why is this in here you may ask? (well, I'm not a buddhist although this could convert me.) This book is the best book I have read on motherhood and the anxieties that entails which I know affects a fair few of us on here. It's subtitle is 'a calm approach to caring for yourself and your children'. I have never known a book on parenting that struck such a chord with me - a really lovely book - and if your problems have stemmed from the time you have been bringing up children, worrying about them, getting cross with them, having no time for yourself any more then this book will give a new and gentle perspective.


How to master anxiety by Joe Griffin - 7/10
This is a different approach to the usual. It's a gentle book and based on Human Givens theory. A newish psychological approach that believes we all have emotional needs to be met and when certain needs aren't met, it leads to disorders such as anxiety and we all know where that leads us, don't we? Loads of symptoms and tips for reassessing your life and how you see it and what you do with it.

Overcoming Anxiety for dummies - 7/10
don't be put off by the title. this is comprehensive and has lots of practical exercises. Pretty good chapter on relaxation.

Overcoming anxiety by Helen Kennerley 7/10
Basic but good stuff. good explanations and practical stuff to try.

10 Simple Solutions to Panic by Martin Anthony 7/10
Well, not quite as simple as the title might suggest, but a thorough guide to ways you might tackle getting over panic attacks

Change your thinking by Sarah Edelman 7/10
If you want to know more about CBT this book is really new and has many exercises. I think it's for people who have already done a bit of CBT and would like to explore more about themselves, but it is pretty packed with stuff and it is aimed at stress and anxiety rather than depression.

It's not all in your head  by Gordon Asmundson - 6/10
This is okay and it is about health anxiety - but the price is a bit much. I think because it's an American import. It does have lots of exercises. But if you can apply the general CBT books to health anxiety then they are better value. But this is the better health anxiety book of the two listed here.

The Claire weekes range of books 4/10
I know a lot of people like these an swear by them but they were not for me. She talks about religion too much and getting into God being a way out of anxiety, and confession. I really objected to that. And some of it is way out of date - electro convulsive therapy for people who have severe anxiety which I know I have had and still have some days. Reluctantly I will admit she has some good passages on the symptoms of anxiety but I don't like her ideas - they hark back to the seventies. And the different books out there are rehashes of exactly the same material so don't get caught out there either.

Treating health anxiety - Stephen Taylor 3/10
really expensive and aimed at health professionals. Don't bother buying it unless you can get it second-hand on amazon. There are better books out here aimed at anxiety generally for half the price. this is not worth £25

Was just wondering then Bead, lol.  
They do still do this therapy and as far as i am aware it does help at first.  It makes you forget what you were scared of in the first place, which of course is a plus.  The down sides of course are that you forget other things as well and also that most people have to keep going back to have it done again.  It is by no means a one off treatment.
The surgery where i work is right next door to a mental health unit.  They go for day care there and they can stay there too.  I see some of the clients as they are our clients too and they come in for ECG's before the treatment so that the doctors can make sure there is nothing wrong with their heart before the shock treatment, nice eh?  Also to check the hearts with the medications that they are on.  Like i say, it helps at first, but you have to go back.  Besides which i wouldn't like being forced into having a fit thankyou very much, conscious or unconscious, lol.  But i know that it has helped a lot of people.  Each to their own hey.
Thanks for clearing up the point of us thinking that you might just pop in 'somedays' for treatment though. .xx

You are indeed a brave person!!
I am the original wax virgin, lol.  I'll stick to my razor thanks.xx