Hilarious, honest and helpful. Dr Alex George, Sunday Times bestselling author of The Mind ManualAn informative, funny and absorbing look behind the scenes of the therapy room. I've recommended this to everyone. Rachel Barr, Neuroscientist and author of How to Make Your Brain Your Best FriendHave you ever wondered what goes on behind the closed door of the therapist's office? What's revealed there may surprise you.Psychotherapist Josh Fletcher takes us on a candid and human journey into the individual sessions of four patients - Levi, Zahra, Noah and Daphne - sharing their self-discovery and recovery as they engage in therapy for the first time. And he lets us into the inner thoughts of a therapist, from shock and sympathy while in session, to how it feels to run into a former client on a messy night out. Interspersed with straight-talking advice on common issues such as anxiety, OCD and panic attacks, as well as a therapist's guide to how to find the right therapist, And How Does That Make You Feel? is darkly funny, illuminating and full of promise that a better future is always possible.It's everything you wanted to know about therapy (and quite a few things you probably didn't). Read more

'A wonderful book' Richard Osman'So clear and true ... Helpful for all relationships in life' Nigella Lawson'A fascinating read on the emotional baggage we all carry' Elizabeth Day______________________________________________________________________________________How can we have better relationships?In this Sunday Times bestseller, leading psychotherapist Philippa Perry reveals the vital do's and don'ts of relationships. This is a book for us all. Whether you are interested in understanding how your upbringing has shaped you, looking to handle your child's feelings or wishing to support your partner, you will find indispensable information and realistic tips in these pages. Philippa Perry's sane, sage and judgement-free advice is an essential resource on how to have the best possible relationships with the people who matter to you most.Featuring exclusive new chapter on sibling relationships._____________________________________________________________________________________'It gave me hope as a new parent' Babita Sharma'This has genuinely had such a positive impact on my life and my relationship with my daughter' Josh Widdicombe'She writes with an inquisitive elegance rarely found in parenting guides ... it is forgiving and persuasive' Hadley Freeman, the Guardian 'Philippa Perry is one of the wisest, most sane and secure people I've ever met' Decca Aitkenhead, Sunday Times MagazineThe Book You Wish Your Parents Had Read has sold over 1.3 million copies worldwide since publication, BBVA March 2024Philippa Perry, Sunday Times bestseller, October 2023 Read more

OVER TWO MILLION COPIES SOLDAn insightful look at the science behind love, Attached offers readers a road map for building stronger, more fulfilling connections.‘Over a decade after its publication, one book on dating has people firmly in its grip.’ New York TimesIs there a science to love? In this groundbreaking book, psychiatrist and neuroscientist Amir Levine and psychologist Rachel S. F. Heller reveal how an understanding of attachment theory – the most advanced relationship science in existence today – can help us find and sustain love.Pioneered by psychologist John Bowlby in the 1950s, the field of attachment explains that each of us behaves in relationships in one of three distinct ways:Anxious people are often preoccupied with their relationships and tend to worry about their partner’s ability to love them back.Avoidant people equate intimacy with a loss of independence and constantly try to minimize closeness.Secure people feel comfortable with intimacy and are usually warm and loving.With fascinating psychological insight, quizzes and case studies, Dr Amir Levine and Rachel Heller help you understand the three attachment styles, identify your own and recognize the styles of others so that you can find compatible partners or improve your existing relationship. Read more

A New York Times bestseller and enduring classic, All About Love is the acclaimed first volume in feminist icon bell hooks' "Love Song to the Nation" trilogy.  All About Love reveals what causes a polarized society, and how to heal the divisions that cause suffering. Here is the truth about love, and inspiration to help us instill caring, compassion, and strength in our homes, schools, and workplaces.“The word ‘love’ is most often defined as a noun, yet we would all love better if we used it as a verb,” writes bell hooks as she comes out fighting and on fire in All About Love. Here, at her most provocative and intensely personal, renowned scholar, cultural critic and feminist bell hooks offers a proactive new ethic for a society bereft with lovelessness--not the lack of romance, but the lack of care, compassion, and unity. People are divided, she declares, by society’s failure to provide a model for learning to love. As bell hooks uses her incisive mind to explore the question “What is love?” her answers strike at both the mind and heart. Razing the cultural paradigm that the ideal love is infused with sex and desire, she provides a new path to love that is sacred, redemptive, and healing for individuals and for a nation. The Utne Reader declared bell hooks one of the “100 Visionaries Who Can Change Your Life.” All About Love is a powerful, timely affirmation of just how profoundly her revelations can change hearts and minds for the better.  Read more

Every cell in my body is filled with the code of generations of trauma, of death, of birth, ofmigration, of history that I cannot understand. . . . I want to have words for what my bonesknow. By the age of thirty, Stephanie Foo was successful on paper: she had her dream job as an award-winning radio producer at This American Life and a loving boyfriend. But behind her office door, she was having panic attacks and sobbing at her desk every morning. After years of questioning what was wrong with herself, she was diagnosed with complex PTSD - a condition that occurs when trauma happens continuously, over the course of years. Both of Foo's parents abandoned her when she was a teenager, after years of physical and verbal abuse and neglect. She thought she'd moved on, but her new diagnosis illuminated the way her past continued to threaten her health, relationships, and career. She found limited resources to help her, so Foo set out to heal herself, and to map her experiences onto the scarce literature about C-PTSD. In this deeply personal and thoroughly researched account, Foo interviews scientists and psychologists and tries a variety of innovative therapies. She returns to her hometown in California to investigate the effects of immigrant trauma on the community, and she uncovers family secrets in the country of her birth, Malaysia, to learn how trauma can be inherited through generations. Ultimately, she discovers that you don't move on from trauma - but you can learn to move with it. Powerful, enlightening and hopeful, What My Bones Know is a brave narrative that reckons with the hold of the past over the present, the mind over the body - and examines one woman's ability to reclaim agency from her trauma. Read more

How do you know when it's time to leave a relationship? When do fixable issues become unavoidable barriers? And how to you put your self-worth first?Brilliantly incisive, witty and extremely informative, Too Good to Leave, Too Bad to Stay is the essential companion to every person needs when navigating love and relationships.________'This book empowers you to make changes in your life for the better' 5***** Reader Review'This book put all my relationship doubts into perspective. I really believe it has saved my marriage!' 5***** Reader Review'Absolutely brilliant book for anyone struggling to make sense of their relationship' 5***** Reader Review'This isn't just a book, it's a whole series of top-expert counselling sessions' 5***** Reader Review________Every relationship has its ups and downs. But when problems do arise, so often we can't find the way forward - or worse, we accept those issues as part of daily life.In this insightful and thought-provoking guide, internationally renowned therapist Mira Kirshenbaum dissects common (and not so common) relationship issues in a clear and simple way.Above all, she will empower you to make the crucial decision:Are these problems worth working on together, and if so - how?Or are they a sign that you should put yourself first and leave?Empowering and eye-opening, Too Good to Leave, Too Bad to Stay is not just about deciding to leave relationships - it's about helping you to realise what is worth fighting for. Read more

A New York Times bestseller—with more than one million copies sold!If you grew up with an emotionally immature, unavailable, or selfish parent, you may have lingering feelings of anger, loneliness, betrayal, or abandonment. You may recall your childhood as a time when your emotional needs were not met, when your feelings were dismissed, or when you took on adult levels of responsibility in an effort to compensate for your parent’s behavior. These wounds can be healed, and you can move forward in your life. In this breakthrough book, clinical psychologist Lindsay Gibson exposes the destructive nature of parents who are emotionally immature or unavailable. You will see how these parents create a sense of neglect, and discover ways to heal from the pain and confusion caused by your childhood. By freeing yourself from your parents’ emotional immaturity, you can recover your true nature, control how you react to them, and avoid disappointment. Finally, you’ll learn how to create positive, new relationships so you can build a better life. Discover the four types of difficult parents: The emotional parent instills feelings of instability and anxiety The driven parent stays busy trying to perfect everything and everyone The passive parent avoids dealing with anything upsetting The rejecting parent is withdrawn, dismissive, and derogatory   Read more

Smart, short techniques throughout the day can form a healthier perspective‘Truly empowering – a book for everyone. It will help you figure out life.’ Fearne CottonAll the benefits of therapy – 10 minutes at a timeLet Owen O’Kane, psychotherapist, former NHS Clinical Lead and Sunday Times bestselling author of TEN TO ZEN, show you how anyone can use simple, understandable techniques to unlock better mental health.Modern life is a minefield for stress. Whether it’s juggling work, relationships or money, we often struggle to make time for ourselves and can find ourselves stuck in a rut with bad habits or worries.In HOW TO BE YOUR OWN THERAPIST, Owen O’Kane reveals how smart, short techniques throughout the day can form healthier perspectives and let you ditch harmful thought patterns.Using the latest evidence-based tools and techniques from across a range of therapies including CBT, mindfulness and interpersonal therapy, Owen provides empowering solutions to managing what keeps you stuck so you can move forward.Teaching you the key fundamentals of therapy and how to apply these to your own life, alongside targeted tasks that take just 10 minutes a day, this is the practical therapy book for anyone who wants to get the best from their life and to manage better in tough times.‘Owen is bringing much needed therapy to all of us. He brings down the stigma attached to being vulnerable and is making talking about mental health approachable for everyone. His book is brilliant and I highly recommend.’ Dr Rupy Aujla, MBBS, BSc, MRCGP The Doctor’s Kitchen‘Anyone looking to understand how therapy can help them help themselves, should look no further than Owen’s humorous and empowering book.’ Benedict CumberbatchTO BE SOLD IN 13 DIFFERENT LANGUAGES! Read more

From Nicole Arzt, licensed marriage and family therapist and founder of Psychotherapy Memes- a global community of more than 160,000 followers- comes a dynamic approach to understanding the modern therapist career.Sometimes therapy is awkward. And sometimes it's also painful, messy, and downright confusing. In its much-anticipated release, this guide chronicles the strange nuances of working in mental health in the modern world.Sometimes Therapy Is Awkward provides refreshingly candid insight into what it takes to feel more confident and prepared to help others.This guide offers stories, jokes, and action-based solutions for:coping with excruciating insecuritiesimproving clinical skillsnavigating the workplacesetting healthy and effective boundariesmanaging burnout and compassion fatigueunderstanding mental health treatment in the modern worldUsing introspection and humor, Arzt offers a practical roadmap for aspiring therapists, new therapists, and any therapist who identifies with feeling afraid or uncomfortable in their work. Read more

Based on the wildly acclaimed New York Times bestseller Maybe You Should Talk To Someone comes the official groundbreaking companion guide to discovering your most authentic life story.“Part of getting to know yourself is to unknow yourself – to let go of the limiting stories you’ve told yourself about who you are so that you can live your life, and not the stories you’ve been telling yourself about your life.”Lori Gottlieb, New York Times bestselling author of Maybe You Should Talk to SomeoneWhen Maybe You Should Talk to Someone was released into the world, it became an instant New York Times bestseller and international phenomenon, with readers across the globe finding their truth in the powerful stories Lori Gottlieb shared from inside her therapy room. As millions highlighted and underlined page after page, a movement took shape and they asked for more: Can you take these lessons and create for us a guide as transformative as the book itself?Lori decided to do just that. In this empowering, one-of-a kind workbook, Lori offers a step-by-step process for becoming the author of your own life by giving it a thorough edit. Using eye-opening concepts, thought-provoking exercises, compelling writing prompts, and real examples from the beloved patients in the original book, Lori has created an easy-to-follow guide through the journey of becoming our own editors, examining aspects of our narratives that hold us back, and discovering the ways in which changing our stories can change our lives.An experience, a meditation, and a practical toolkit combined into one, Maybe You Should Talk to Someone: The Workbook is the companion readers have been asking for: a revolutionary method for understanding which stories to keep and which to revise so that we can create our own personal masterpieces. By the end of this “unknowing,” you will be surprised, inspired, and most of all, liberated. Read more

Offering a concrete framework and practical methods for working from an existential perspective, the bestselling Existential Counselling and Psychotherapy is now in its third edition.Central to the book is the belief that many of our problems arise out of the essential paradoxes of human existence, rather than from personal pathology. From this perspective, the purpose of counselling and therapy is not viewed as problem-solving, but as a mean of enabling people to come to terms with living life as it is, with all its inherent contradictions.Emmy van Deurzen, a leading existential philosopher and therapist, presents a practical method of working, using systematic observation, clarification and reflection to help clients rediscover their inner strengths. She shows how personal assumptions, values and talents, once acknowledged, can be turned to constructive use. Using wide-ranging case examples, the author also demonstrates the effectiveness of the existential appoach in many different situations - from crisis work to dealing with chronic unhappiness.The existential approach is a well-respected form of psychotherapy, but most writing on the subject tends to be heavily theoretical. This book offers a practical and accessible alternative, which will be invaluable to those in training as well as to more experienced practitioners. Read more

THE #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLERTHE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER'My favourite Instagram account in the world.' Dr Rangan Chatterjee'If LePera's Instagram feed is full of aha moments illuminating the inner workings of your psyche, the revelations in the book are more like a full firework display.' Red magazine'This book is a must-read for anyone on a path of personal growth.' GABBY BERNSTEIN, author of number one New York Times bestsellers Super Attractor and The Universe Has Your Back'The book I wish I had read in my twenties.' ELIZABETH DAY, author of How to Fail'How to Do the Work will transform how you see yourself and your ability to change. I believe this book could change lives, if not the world.' HOLLY BOURNE, bestselling author of How Do You Like Me Now?'Want more from life? Looking for answers? How to Do the Work will teach you how to find them within yourself. A masterpiece of empowerment - this book changed my life and, trust me, it'll change yours too.' MEL ROBBINS, author of The 5 Second RuleAs a clinical psychologist, Dr Nicole LePera found herself frustrated by the limitations of traditional psychotherapy. Wanting more for her patients - and for herself - she began a journey to develop a united philosophy of mental, physical and spiritual health that equips people with the tools necessary to heal themselves. After experiencing the life-changing results herself, she began to share what she'd learned with others - and The Holistic Psychologist was born.Now Dr LePera is ready to share her much-requested protocol with the world. In How to Do the Work, she offers both a manifesto for self-healing and an essential guide to creating a more vibrant, authentic, and joyful life. Drawing on the latest research from both scientific research and healing modalities, Dr LePera helps us recognise how adverse experiences and trauma in childhood live with us, keeping us stuck engaging in patterns of codependency, emotional immaturity, and trauma bonds. Unless addressed, these self-sabotaging behaviours can quickly become cyclical, leaving people feeling unhappy, unfulfilled, and unwell.In How to Do the Work, Dr LePera offers readers the support and tools that will allow them to break free from destructive behaviours to reclaim and recreate their lives. Nothing short of a paradigm shift, this is a celebration of empowerment that will forever change the way we approach mental wellness and self-care. Read more

Are your students looking to use counselling skills to enhance their existing helping role? Are they taking the first steps towards becoming a professional counsellor? This practical guide will provide readers with the ideal ‘way-in’, showing them what helping and counselling is all about.  Part 1: Counselling Skills will introduce readers to the underpinning knowledge and practical tools needed to develop a range of helping skills for use in a variety of helping roles, showing what it means to work safely and ethically.  Part 2: Counselling Studies will help them take their understanding further by considering in detail important theories and professional issues, preparing them to work as a professional counsellor.Part 3: Counselling Study Skills will offer practical advice and hints and tips to help them make the best start on their counselling portfolio, including journal and essay writing skills, research skills and how to get inspired and overcome blocks to  learning.  The new edition now includes a more detailed discussion of key theories, has a new chapter on self care, and is fully up to date with the occupational and professional standards and ethical frameworks.Packed full of practical activities and written in a supportive conversational style, this book is essential reading for anyone wanting to learn counselling skills or embarking on their first stage of training to be a counsellor. Read more

International Bestseller • "An extraordinarily important book." —Marcia Angell, Harvard Medical SchoolA deeply fascinating and urgently important critique of the widespread medicalization of normality, by "one of the world's most prominent psychiatrists" (The Atlantic)Anyone living a full, rich life experiences ups and downs, stresses, disappointments, sorrows, and setbacks. Today, however, millions of people who are really no more than "worried well" are being diagnosed as having a mental disorder and receiving unnecessary treatment. In Saving Normal, Allen Frances, one of the world's most influential psychiatrists, explains why stigmatizing a healthy person as mentally ill leads to unnecessary, harmful medications, the narrowing of horizons, the misallocation of medical resources, and the draining of the budgets of families and the nation. We also shift responsibility for our mental well-being away from our own naturally resilient brains and into the hands of "Big Pharma," who are reaping multi-billion-dollar profits. Frances cautions that the newest edition of the "bible of psychiatry," the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-5 (DSM-5), is turning our current diagnostic inflation into hyperinflation by converting millions of "normal" people into "mental patients." Saving Normal is a call to all of us to reclaim the full measure of our humanity. Read more

In Only Families in the Bible, characters from Abram to Ruth come alive, providing fresh insights for today's challenges. Barbara Laymon's imaginative approach involves behind-the-scenes therapists who counsel biblical figures and journal about their conversations. Informed by Laymon's background as a counselor, the therapists tell the stories of Scripture while describing the complexities of counseling. A creative group discussion guide invites readers to think alongside the therapists as they analyze family patterns. Only Families in the Bible offers a thoughtful view of families, then and now, and provides new perspectives on familiar Scriptures. Read more

Ex-boarders can be among the most challenging clients for therapists, with many clinicians struggling to address their unique needs. This book presents a groundbreaking collection of chapters sharing insights and reflections on clinical work with ex-boarders in different settings and circumstances with the aim of expanding the body of knowledge for therapeutic work with such clients.The contributors reveal that the fall-out from boarding is much wider than previously thought and also report on innovative treatment methods that may help therapists address these consequences with ex-boarders in treatment. Featuring the experience and insights of some 16 different clinicians, many of whom are ex-boarders themselves, this new collection offers contributions from a wide range of theoretical backgrounds, including psychodynamic, Jungian, transactional analysis and ‘energy psychology’. It tells how the understanding of the ‘boarding school syndrome’ has been enlarged by recent advances in attachment therapy, trauma studies, neuroscience, including pastoral, and safeguarding awareness within education. Topics covered include the effects of boarding on girls, on both intimate and sibling relationships, on military family boarders and on ex-boarder therapists, as well as how both careful, patient attention and dynamic EMDR may be used to alleviate boarding school trauma. The reader will gain a wider understanding about how individuals and society are impacted by this way of raising children and what evidence-based pathways to recovery are being evolved.This book is written in an accessible jargon-free style and will appeal to psychotherapists, psychologists, psychoanalysts and counsellors, as well as ex-boarders and parents interested in the impact of boarding schools from a professional or personal perspective. Read more

What If Your Body Has Been Holding the Answers All Along? Learn to Release Years of Stored Stress and The Symptoms You’re Still Feeling Today—Without Reliving the Trauma.Do you ever feel like your body’s still in survival mode—even though your to-do list is done, the house is quiet, and there’s “no reason” to feel this tense?Are you physically and emotionally exhausted from keeping it all together, smiling through the day—yet have no idea how to finally let go without falling apart?Do you ever look in the mirror and think, I don’t even recognize myself anymore—and wonder if that calm, grounded version of you still exists?If any of that sounds familiar, you’re not alone—and you’re not stuck.The truth is, healing doesn’t have to be overwhelming.With the right tools, just a few minutes a day can shift how you feel in your body and your mind—from chaos to calm, from tension to ease, from disconnection to safety.Inside Somatic Therapy Workbook for Trauma and Stress, you’ll explore:The #1 reason your body still reacts like it’s under attack—even when nothing is “technically” wrong.What your tight shoulders, shallow breath, or clenched jaw are really trying to tell you—and how to finally respond.The truth about why you freeze, overreact, or dissociate—and why it’s not your fault.The missing link between talk therapy and true transformation—and why your body may be the key.55+ illustrated somatic exercises designed to calm your nervous system and bring your body back to safety.100+ reflective check-ins, workbook questions and bite-sized exercises to track your transformation.A 28-day healing plan that helps you create lasting change—10 minutes a day is all it takes.The science-backed tapping technique making waves in trauma healing —and how to try it for yourself.Breathwork, grounding, and other body-based techniques to help you feel calm, clear, and more in control—within minutes.What resourcing really means—and how it works alongside pendulation and titration to help you approach heavy emotions slowly, safely, and without shutting down.The role of neuroplasticity, Polyvagal Theory, and your window of tolerance shape nervous system healing over time.…and more!Think you’ve tried everything and still feel stuck?You’re not alone. This book isn’t more mindset work—it’s a body-based approach that reaches the part of you nothing else has.No fluff, no hours of daily practice—just 10-minute tools designed for real life.Even if you feel numb, overwhelmed, or scared to open something you’re not sure you can handle, this workbook meets you where you are.This isn’t a deep dive into painful memories but instead a slow, safe, and supported process of learning how to feel—without getting overwhelmed.You stay in control. You choose the pace. And you’re supported every step of the way.If you want to feel calmer in your body, safer in your mind, and more in control of your healing—with simple, body-based tools to get you there—scroll up and click the "Add to Cart" button now! Read more

‘Highly eloquent, fascinating and deeply compassionate’ Henry Marsh, author of Do No Harm We cannot know how to fix a problem until we understand its causes. But even for some of the most common mental health problems, specialists argue over whether the answers lie in the person’s biology, their psychology or their circumstances. As a cognitive neuropsychiatrist, Anthony David brings together many fields of enquiry, from social and cognitive psychology to neurology. The key for each patient might be anything from a traumatic memory to a chemical imbalance, an unhealthy way of thinking or a hidden tumour. Patrick believes he is dead. Jennifer's schizophrenia medication helped with her voices but did it cause Parkinson’s? Emma is in a coma – or is she just refusing to respond? Drawing from Professor David’s career as a clinician and academic, these fascinating case studies reveal the unique complexity of the human mind, stretching the limits of our understanding. Read more

Discover the healing power of art therapyThe purposeful act of making art can be more than a creative outlet. It can also help individuals gain self-awareness, process difficult thoughts, and even ease the effects of past traumas. Essential Art Therapy Exercises, a cognitive behavioral therapy workbook, offers a range of creative activities to help you better understand yourself, develop control over your emotions, and aid the healing process.This well-reviewed art therapy workbook includes:Exercises for healing and self-discovery—75 strategic art therapy activities offer new opportunities for self-expression and tools for coping with mood and personality disorders.Supportive prompts and interactions—Each exercise includes an explanation of its purpose and potential outcomes along with a series of insightful post-activity questions.Judgment-free guidance—Learn the basics of different artistic techniques and mediums, like drawing, painting, and sculpting—no previous art experience necessary.Helpful supply lists and tips—Includes a complete list of the art supplies you'll need for each art therapy project and advice on creating your own healing space.Find new peace and positivity with Essential Art Therapy Exercises. Read more

This is the third edition of the very popular Next Steps in Counselling Practice, revised, updated and expanded to accompany today's counselling students on their journey towards qualification.Next Steps in Counselling and Psychotherapy Practice is aimed at the more advanced trainee and continues from where the PCCS Books classic First Steps in Counselling leaves off. Like First Steps in Counselling, it is intended as a companion guide, addressed directly to the student counsellor. It is not a theory textbook - there are plenty of those already on the market. Rather, it seeks to answer the many questions that may come up for the individual student counsellor while in training, drawing on the authors' accumulated experience as trainers and practitioners, and as one-time trainees themselves.This book is designed to be of use to and facilitate the learning of all counselling and psychotherapy students, irrespective of the theories that underpin their training programmes and their own approaches to practice. It is not about one model of therapy but about what informs best practice across all therapies.The first part of the book sets the scene, exploring 'human helping' in situations of distress and difficulty, and the place of counselling within that. The second part looks at the nature of the therapeutic relationship and human problems. Next comes the heart of the book - the section on the relationship in action, covering contracting, assessment, diagnosis and case formulation, counselling in difficult situations and the process of referring on. The fourth section looks more broadly at counselling in different contexts and settings and is written by contributors with specific expertise in these areas. These contributions cover anti-racist practice, using counselling skills in other professional contexts, working creatively, working online, and trauma-informed practice. The final, fifth section addresses continuing professional development as the student moves into practice, and deals with the issues of ethics, support and supervision, personal and professional development and reflection, reflexivity and research.In addition to acquiring particular knowledge and skills, becoming an effective therapist requires developing aspects of the self. This book will enable the student counsellor to learn about themself as well as discover new ideas and understand more deeply the skills required to be an effective practitioner. Read more