Overcoming Depression 3rd Edition: A self-help guide using cognitive behavioural techniques

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This is a really valuable book and I think it would help if everyone read, regardless of whether they think they are depressed or not. It’s based on Cognitive Behavioural approachsd to managing depression. The logic goes like this, thoughts, feelings and behaviour are all connected. Change one, and others will change. Therefore by getting control of your thoughts you feel differently, and by changing behaviour you can get more control of thoughts and as you feel differently so thoughts and behaviour can change. Negative thoughts and feelings supported by unhelpful behaviour create depressive cycles. These can be broken. Best for a natural lifestyle: Depression-Free, Naturally: 7 Weeks to Eliminating Anxiety, Despair, Fatigue, and Anger from Your Life

Although written for the client, the exercises in the workbook are intended to be carried out under the supervision of a mental health professional. The authors suggest that the most effective implementation of these exercises requires an understanding of the principles underlying the different procedures, and that mental health professionals should be familiar with both the Overcoming Depression – A Cognitive Therapy Approach: Therapist Guide as well as this workbook. Best for Buddhist philosophy: The Mindful Way Through Depression: Freeing Yourself from Chronic Unhappiness Yes, you can read books about depression whether you’ve been diagnosed or not. Doing so may help you better understand your feelings and work through them. It may even inspire you to visit a mental health practitioner, or the reading may be useful for conversations you have with an existing therapist. In the autumn of 2015, I felt numb, worthless, and had thoughts of ending my life. I was 25 years old and I was experiencing my first bout of depression, an illness that has ebbed and flowed ever since. At first, I was hesitant to take medication and opted for a course of cognitive behavioural therapy. I worried that medication would dampen my brain, dull my experience of the world and my ability to describe it. Only later did I find that the right drug is a key tool for my career. When I’m stable I can write. When I’m depressed, I can barely walk or talk. Accept your depression as a brain state that has been triggered in you rather than feel ashamed of it, fight with it, hate it or condemn yourself. Once you accept it then you are freed to work compassionately with it. You can then take the objective view that by working in a certain way you may be able to shift this brain state. It is about healing our minds.I’m far from the first person to find that writing books can be a salve for the suffering mind. In the 17th century, Robert Burton researched and wrote The Anatomy of Melancholy to keep his mind from slipping into the very topic on which he focused his attention. For its breadth and timelessness, his tome is the first of my Top 10. From this historical foundation, I then travel through a diversity of voices and experiences, each representing a milestone in how we understand, treat, and de-stigmatise depression. As one of the loneliest human experiences, and paradoxically one of the most common, the understanding to be found in these books can offer a vital kind of company for the isolated sufferer. Cuijpers, P., Noma, H., Karyotaki, E., Cipriani, A., & Furukawa, T. A. (2019). Effectiveness and acceptability of cognitive behavior therapy delivery formats in adults with depression: a network meta-analysis. JAMA Psychiatry, 76, 700-707. DOI:10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2019.0268. For anyone looking for information on the power of cognitive behavioural therapy, this is one of the most up-to-date accounts of how it works, when it should be used, and how long its effects can last. For the right person, CBT can overturn the negative thoughts that cause and maintain a depressive episode. Specialty: A person may wish to look for the book that best describes their situation — for example, a difficult relationship or a past trauma. Alternatively, they may want one that focuses on the depression-related symptoms they would like to learn more about, such as troubling thoughts. A substantial body of evidence now supports the use of CBT for overcoming depression. It is recommended in clinical practice guidelines for treating depression developed by the American Psychiatric Association (APA) and the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), which produces guidelines for the National Health Service in the United Kingdom (APA, 2019; NICE, 2022). Evidence for this approach is impressive. A recent, comprehensive review of studies identified CBT as an effective treatment for depression (Cuijpers, 2017). Other meta-analyses indicate that CBT for depression is equally effective in individual therapy and guided self-help formats (Cuijpers et al., 2019). Chapters in Overcoming Depression – A Cognitive Therapy Approach: Workbook:

Shame can be one of the main reasons why you may be reluctant to seek help, but remember that depression is one of the most common problems that mental health professionals work with. You are far from alone. A similar case can be made for talking with friends; open up to friends, but choose people who you think will be able to understand you. Depression is the most common mental health population in the general population (Kessler et al., 1994). It is estimated that around 11% of individuals will experience depression at some point in their lifetime (Lim et al., 2018). Symptoms include feelings of worthlessness, hopelessness, or guilt; loss of interest in activities; reduced energy; changes in sleep or appetite; and thoughts of suicide or death. Cuijpers, P. (2017). Four decades of outcome research on psychotherapies for adult depression: An overview of a series of meta-analyses. Canadian Psychology / Psychologie Canadienne, 58, 7–19. https://doi.org/10.1037/cap0000096. Therapists use the Therapist Guides which contain step-by-step instructions for teaching clients’ skills, overcoming common difficulties.

Clients use the Workbooks which contain elements of psychoeducation, skills development, self-assessment quizzes, homework exercises, and record forms. It was definitely repetitive, but for someone who is depressed, this works better than a bunch of new information put together in a short book. Perhaps the writing could have been smoother, but it didn't really bother me that much. I liked the fact that Gilbert was very honest about his struggles with writing. Overcoming Depression is a comprehensive program which assists clinicians in delivering effective CBT for depression. The program includes two books: The book also shows the compassionate heart of the author to the patients in suffering. Reading through the words, one really gets to understand the caring attitudes of the author by its detailed description, kind advice of skipping certain chapters, concluding points at the end of each chapter. He's aware that the book is read probably by people whose mind abilities are largely handicapped by the ongoing depression.

Surprisingly the reader came to conclusion that in varying degrees of conscious thought the reader had previously used several of cognitive behavioural techniques described in this book. This guide could be appreciated by anyone, more by those who are in early stages of depression.

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A common method to treat depression is cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). This type of cognitive and behavioral psychotherapy is one of the most evidence-based psychological treatments for depression. Based on the concept that negative feelings or actions come from current distorted beliefs or thoughts, CBT changes the thought patterns of the patient so that, over time, mood and behavior change, too. Best for breaking bad habits: Undoing Depression: What Therapy Doesn’t Teach You and Medication Can’t Give You Best for scientific explanation: The Upward Spiral: Using Neuroscience to Reverse the Course of Depression, One Small Change at a Time An encyclopedia of depression that is astounding in its breadth and intimacy. It includes harrowing moments when Solomon, struggling with his own depression, tries to contract HIV from a homeless person as he believes he is only worthy of death. The work of Harry Harlow and his separation experiments with monkeys are infamous. The wire-cage mother, the clown-like faces, and the baby monkey clinging to the inanimate chest are symbols of animal cruelty in science. Blum provides a cinematic exploration of Harlow’s life and career, revealing his own struggles with depression and how his work helped reveal the importance of love and attachment in mental health.