Top Tips to Reduce Stress Naturally (Fully Illustrated): Your Natural Road to Relaxation & Happiness

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Jan 08, Hayley Waterhouse rated it really liked it. I don't really know how to summarise this book. When I first started reading it I thought I would read the whole thing through, just to see what it is like, without doing the exercises. If I thought it had some merit I would read it a second time doing all the exercises and taking my time with it. As it happens some of the exercises really got stuck in my head and I found myself doing them anyway! This book felt like it was written just for me.

I think I have so much to learn from it and that it I don't really know how to summarise this book. I think I have so much to learn from it and that it could really make a difference in my life. It is probably the most helpful self-help book I have ever read. I look forward to reading this again, putting into practice what I learn and changing the way I view life.

I'm going to buy a paper copy so it's easier to flick through and refer to. This book basically says stop trying to argue your 'negative' thoughts and emotions, stop trying to avoid them, suppress them or change them. Just let them come and go without paying them any attention. A very interesting read. I wanted to give it 5 stars but I will wait six months and see! Aug 01, Ryan Norbauer rated it it was amazing. I read this because it's based on the research I was involved in at university.

Turns out to be an amazingly science-oriented form of practical existentialism. Much more thoughtful than its pop self-help cover and title would suggest. The Happiness Trap is one of the best self help books I've read. Definitely recommend it if you want to learn more about ACT. What if you could find a way to handle the thoughts that derail you and the emotions that overwhelm you?

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Think of it as a workbook for fully experiencing life. The three parts of ACT are: ACT teaches you to take action — regardless of how you think or feel — toward creating a fulfilling life. Applying it helped free me from an addiction that had controlled me since Would key ideas vanish? This version is just as helpful as the original. Aimed at people who are so depressed that reading is hard, it meets their needs. Sep 30, Robin Gillmore rated it it was amazing. I have read a lot of self-help books over the years, but this one is different and has made a significant difference to my quality of life.

Acceptance Commitment Therapy is very different to traditional approaches to anxiety and depression because it teaches tools of acceptance rather than control, using three principal mechanisms: Diffusion - decoupling ourselves from our thoughts 2. Expansion - accepting and making room for uncomfortable thoughts, feelings, urges and sensations 3.

Connection - I have read a lot of self-help books over the years, but this one is different and has made a significant difference to my quality of life. Connection - focussing on actions and behvaiours which align with our deeply held values I cannot recommend this book enough! Sep 04, Rubina rated it really liked it Shelves: ACT is a scientifically based program for creating a meaningful life through accepting our internal experience, staying present, and acting on our values. It teaches that purely trying to replace negative thoughts with positive "ACT Acceptance and Commitment Therapy is not a religious, mystical, or spiritual path, although it may have some parallels.

It teaches that purely trying to replace negative thoughts with positive ones are difficult due to the nature of our protective mind and ego.

As such, we should recognize our thoughts as being just that - "thoughts", and learn to defuse unpleasant thoughts so that they will lose their ability to frighten, disturb, worry, stress or depress us. We should learn to expand, open up and make space for these feelings. Connecting fully with whatever is happening right here and now, instead of dwelling on the past or worrying about the future, we can deeply connect with the present. Through identifying values which are a reflection of what is important to us, our lives will have direction, meaning and purpose, motivating us to take action to make important changes.

This book is a quick read and a fresh perspective on negative thinking.

This book is a very good self-help book for anyone who is having trouble with negative self talk. Very simply written and very amusingly illustrated, this book was easy to read and leaves you with a warm fuzzy feeling. The author points this out using various exercises and illustrations. Not only do the exercises get th This book is a quick read and a fresh perspective on negative thinking.

Not only do the exercises get the reader involved with the story but they ultimately help the reader realize that it is okay to take off the "happy face" mask. The expectation to be happy all of the time can sometimes get to us all. The author comes across fairly quickly as a self-serving "I wrote this book to glorify myself" type. There are several good techniques in there but you find yourself wishing to tell the author to come down from their high position a bit.

Personally I much preferred the style of Charles Linden's guide over this book and would actually recommend the Linden method for those who are trying to break out of anxiety disorder as opposed to general depression. Mar 08, Mahmoud rated it really liked it Shelves: Jul 07, Chase Parsley rated it really liked it.

I started this book with skepticism but by the end was really into it. Harris combats cognitive strategies for being happy with more behaviorist methods, and some of his arguments are quite persuasive. He also does a good job talking about the importance of values in your life. A very good and easy to read book. Feb 17, Simon Eskildsen rated it liked it. The book preaches the methodology "ACT": The 'happiness trap' is that we typically define happiness by the intensity and quantity of positive emotion and only a little negative.

Instead, he advocates we elicit a mindful practice and let our thoughts pass through, label them, and distinguish them from our own. He uses the analogy of quicksand: He describes an The book preaches the methodology "ACT": He describes an urge as a wave: In the second part of the book around 'connecting with values,' Harris describes the paramount difference between goals objectives, checklists and values true forever.

That 'get rich' his example is not a value, but an objective, and we'll be able to get the value sooner rather than later if we figure out the value propelling the goal. Is it simply the desire to relax? Are you working your butt off to get to a dream-state of sandy beaches, instead of reaching a compromise today? Conflicting values, such as "successful career" and "successful parent," can typically be balanced if you work hard enough at finding the compromises, such as calling your family every day on travel. Lastly, Harris centers the book around taking action.

This is the standard advice of breaking down goals into simple milestones to make them more achievable. Don't "learn Spanish," but "order something in Spanish," "have a five sentence exchange," and "make someone laugh in Spanish. However, I found it a little nail-and-hammer with the ACT-model and a little try-hard-spiritual. The number of exercises and checklists seemed a bit over the top, I feel that the number of exercises could've been curated more carefully.

The stories to back it up seem exceedingly anecdotal from his own practice. This doesn't make it any less practical but does leave me with the impression that the author may be a little overly dogmatic. That said, the advice is valuable and practical. Oct 27, Blackdogsworld rated it liked it. Jul 18, Keehan Koorn rated it it was amazing. Clear, concise, with a good sense of humour, this book guides people through the pitfalls and opportunities that come with how we think. It's got great examples and exercises that are easy to understand and challenging to complete!

It's on my therapy shelf and I recommend it often. Oct 27, Fehaylitz rated it liked it Shelves: Det mye nyttig her, spesielt slike setninger som 'Jeg har en tanke om I really liked the strategies that were provided in the book.

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I learnt about accepting thoughts and using strategies to manage these thoughts. Nov 25, K rated it really liked it Shelves: I had been hearing about ACT here and there and was mildly curious, but decided to pick up this inexpensive book at the encouragement of one of my students. I'm happy I did. ACT takes a refreshing approach to negative feelings. Stop struggling against them, says the theory. They're part of life. The more you fight them, the worse it is. After using a lot of CBT with mixed results, I appreciated an alternative to arguing with negative cognitions.

ACT is based on six principles: Defusion, or the imp I had been hearing about ACT here and there and was mildly curious, but decided to pick up this inexpensive book at the encouragement of one of my students. Defusion, or the importance of recognizing that your thoughts are just thoughts and not absolute reality; Expansion, or making room for unpleasant feelings instead of struggling to push them away; Connection, or engaging fully on whatever you're doing right now instead of focusing on the past or future; the Observing self, or getting in touch with the part of your mind that simply observes without judging; Values, or the need to clarify and connect with what's important to you; and Committed Action, or creating a meaningful life through taking action guided by your values.

According to ACT, the combination of mindfulness, values, and action leads to psychological flexibility, or the ability to adapt to a variety of situations in life. I had some mixed feelings about the book's tone. On the one hand, the simplicity makes it very user-friendly. On the other hand, some aspects sometimes seemed gimmicky and cutesy and I could see my more critical clients being pretty turned off.

I would encourage readers who are turned off by the book's tone, though, to persevere and try to separate the tone from the content. Although I haven't yet used this approach with clients I fully intend to start , the theory resonates with me and I'm hoping that it will be as sensible in practice as it sounds in theory. May 22, Katja rated it really liked it. When my supervisor recommended this book to me, I was skeptical. As a rule, I tend to be skeptical of self-help books in general. I expected a vague, watered-down version of psychology that would leave my eyes rolling.

But heck, I really liked it. This book is very practical and accurate in the way it describes how at least in the Western world rationality is the ideal and emotions are downplayed, and how this mindset can create problems for us. Luckily, Russ Harris makes no such claims in his book. Most importantly, he conveys his enthusiasm for the method while taking care to not push it on the reader. Harris takes a precaution that all good self-help books do — he does not advocate the approach as a one-size-fits-all sure-fire solution, but constantly reminds the reader to not take his word for it and try it out themselves.

September '16 Book Club Chat 4 10 Dec 18, The Book Club is coming! Dr Russ Harris is a medically-qualified doctor, stress consultant, executive coach, trainer, author, and a leading authority in the powerful new paradigm of Psychological Flexibility.

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5. The Happiness Trap: How to Stop Struggling and Start Living: A Guide to ACT.

This is a revolutionary new development in human psychology that enhances performance, reduces stress, and improves health and wellbeing. Dr Russ regularly presents workshops on Psychological Flexibility at both na Dr Russ Harris is a medically-qualified doctor, stress consultant, executive coach, trainer, author, and a leading authority in the powerful new paradigm of Psychological Flexibility. Dr Russ regularly presents workshops on Psychological Flexibility at both national and international psychology conferences, and has a thriving business traveling around Australia running training seminars for psychologists, coaches and a variety of health professionals.

Dr Russ's first book, 'The Happiness Trap', was published in Australia in March , and is already well on the way to becoming a bestseller. During these situations you may feel threatened or upset and your body might create a stress response. This can cause a variety of physical symptoms, change the way you behave, and lead you to experience more intense emotions. Stress affects us in a number of ways, both physically and emotionally and in varying intensities.

However, when it is affecting your life, health and wellbeing, it is important to tackle it as soon as possible, and while stress affects everyone differently, there are common signs and symptoms you can look out for: If you are experiencing these symptoms for a prolonged period, and feel they are affecting your everyday life or are making you feel unwell, you should speak to your GP. You can ask for information about the support services and treatments available to you.

Find out more about stress in our A-Z guide. Now, we would like to move on to a more detailed look at the causes and effects of stress. In this section we will focus on the effects prolonged stress has on your body, behaviour and emotions, and look at key causes such as relationships, money, work, alcohol and drug use. Research has shown that stress can sometimes be positive. It can make you more alert and help you perform better in certain situations.

Excessive or prolonged stress can contribute to illness such as heart disease3 and mental health problems such as anxiety and depression. Stress is a natural reaction to many situations in life, such as work, family, relationships and money problems. We mentioned earlier on that a moderate amount of stress can help us perform better in challenging situations, 34 but too much or prolonged stress can lead to physical problems. This can include lower immunity levels, 35 digestive and intestinal difficulties, e.

People react differently to stress. Some common symptoms of stress include sleeping problems, sweating or a change in appetite. Symptoms like these are triggered by a rush of stress hormones in your body which, when released, allow you to deal with pressures or threats. This is known as the 'fight or flight' response. Hormones called adrenaline and noradrenaline raise your blood pressure, increase your heart rate and increase the rate at which you perspire.

This prepares your body for an emergency response. Cortisol, another stress hormone, releases fat and sugar into your system to boost your energy. As a result, you may experience headaches, muscle tension, pain, nausea, indigestion and dizziness. You may also breathe more quickly, have palpitations or suffer from various aches and pains. In the long-term, you may be putting yourself at risk from heart attacks and stroke. Over time, the build-up of these chemicals and the changes they produce can be damaging for your health. When you are stressed you may experience many different feelings, including anxiety, irritability or low self-esteem, which can lead to becoming withdrawn, indecisive and tearful.

You may experience periods of constant worry, racing thoughts, or repeatedly go over the same things in your head. You may experience changes in your behaviour. You may lose your temper more easily, act irrationally or become more verbally or physically aggressive. For example, extreme anxiety can make you feel so unwell, that you then worry you have a serious physical condition. All sorts of situations can cause stress. The most common involve work, money matters and relationships with partners, children or other family members.

Stress may be caused either by major upheavals and life events such as divorce, unemployment, moving house and bereavement, or by a series of minor irritations such as feeling undervalued at work or arguing with a family member.

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During this reaction, stress hormones are released and you experience physical symptoms such as a faster heartbeat, quicker breathing and constricted blood vessels. Deep breathing exercises can help activate your parasympathetic nervous system, which controls the relaxation response. There are several types of deep breathing exercises, including diaphragmatic breathing, abdominal breathing, belly breathing and paced respiration. The goal of deep breathing is to focus your awareness on your breath, making it slower and deeper.

When you breathe in deeply through your nose, your lungs fully expand and your belly rises. This video explains how to practice diaphragmatic breathing. Interacting with pets may help release oxytocin, a brain chemical that promotes a positive mood Having a pet may also help relieve stress by giving you purpose, keeping you active and providing companionship — all qualities that help reduce anxiety.

Although stress and anxiety may arise in your workplace and personal life, there are many simple ways to reduce the pressure you feel. Exercise, mindfulness, music and physical intimacy can all work to relieve anxiety — and they will improve your overall work-life balance as well. Anxiety is a common problem characterized by worry and nervousness. This article lists 6 foods and beverages that can help to reduce it. Constant stress can increase your risk for long-term health issues like heart attack and diabetes. Learn the toll stress can take on the body. If you experience anxiety, find calm through these 10 natural remedies.

Chamomile, exercise, and sleep may help relieve your anxiety. High levels of the stress hormone cortisol can cause various problems. Here are 11 diet and lifestyle tips to lower your cortisol levels naturally. People seek help from professional psychologists for many different challenges. Find out more about these issues, from death to stress to family and…. Social anxiety can creep up at work, on dates, at parties, and more. Here are just a few ways to get it under control in your daily life.

How long you live is largely within your own control. Here are 13 diet and lifestyle habits to adopt in order to live a long life. Meditation is the process of training your mind to focus and redirect thoughts, and it can improve your quality of life. Here are 12 benefits of…. Yoga combines breathing exercises, meditation and poses proven to benefit mental and physical health.

This article lists 13 evidence-based benefits of…. Reduce Your Caffeine Intake. Spend Time With Friends and Family. Learn to Say No. Learn to Avoid Procrastination.