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Welfare Books
The college now has a selection of books on Welfare topics available to borrow from the college library. Please contact the Library if you are interesting in borrowing any of these titles.
Some books are also available as e-books through the University library. Click on the links to access the e-book through your University SSO account.
How to Pass Exams Without Anxiety, David Acres
This is a fully updated exam handbook. The book is aimed at those taking exams at all levels and offers advice on how to approach coursework, planning revision and techniques for improving memory and relaxation.
The Gifts of Imperfection, Brené Brown
In The Gifts of Imperfection, Brené Brown, Ph.D., a leading expert on shame, authenticity and belonging, shares what she's learned from a decade of research on the power of Wholehearted Living a way of engaging with the world from a place of worthiness. In her ten guideposts, Brown engages our minds, hearts, and spirits as she explores how we can cultivate the courage, compassion, and connection to wake up in the morning and think 'No matter what gets done and how much is left undone, I am enough', and to go to bed at night thinking, 'Yes, I am sometimes afraid, but I am also brave'.
Every time we are faced with change, no matter how great or small, we also face risk. We feel uncertain and exposed. We feel vulnerable. Most of us try to fight those feelings - or feel guilt for feeling them in the first place. Daring Greatly is the culmination of 12 years of groundbreaking social research, across every area of our lives including home, relationships, work, and parenting. It is an invitation to be courageous; to show up and let ourselves be seen, even when there are no guarantees. Available as an e-book (Bodleian Library reading room PCs only).
I thought it was just Me (It isn’t), Brené Brown
The quest for perfection is exhausting and unrelenting. There is a constant barrage of social expectations that teach us that being imperfect is synonymous with being inadequate. Everywhere we turn, there are messages that tell us who, what and how we're supposed to be. So, we learn to hide our struggles and protect ourselves from shame, judgment, criticism and blame by seeking safety in pretending and perfection. Based on seven years of her ground-breaking research and hundreds of interviews, I Thought It Was Just Me shines a long-overdue light on an important truth: Our imperfections are what connect us to each other and to our humanity. Our vulnerabilities are not weaknesses; they are powerful reminders to keep our hearts and minds open to the reality that we're all in this together.
Managing your mind : the mental fitness guide, Gillian Butler and Tony Hope
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Managing Your Mind is a book for building resilience, overcoming emotional difficulties and enabling self-development. It is for any of us who wish to understand ourselves better, to be more effective in day-to-day life, to overcome current problems; or who want to support others in these tasks. The authors have between them almost 100 years of experience helping people respond skillfully to life's challenges. Drawing on this experience as well as on cutting-edge scientific research, Managing Your Mind distills effective techniques and ideas, enabling readers to select those that suit their preferences and needs.
Body Positive Power, Megan Jayne Crabbe
Request this book - Also available as an e-book (Bodleian Library reading room PCs only).
We've been convinced that happiness is something that only comes once we hit that goal weight, get those washboard abs, shrink ourselves down and change every part of ourselves. We believe that our bodies are the problem, but this is not true. It’s how we’ve been taught to see our bodies that’s the problem...It's time for us all to stop believing the lies we've been fed about what it means to be beautiful, and take our power back.
The Power of Habit - Why We Do What We Do and How to Change, Charles Duhigg
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We can always change. The Power of Habit, award-winning New York Times business reporter Charles Duhigg translates cutting-edge behavioural science into practical self-improvement action, distilling advanced neuroscience into fascinating narratives of transformation. Why can some people and companies change overnight, and some stay stuck in their old ruts? The answer lies deep in the human brain, and The Power of Habit reveals the secret pressure points that can change a life. From Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps to Martin Luther King Jr., from the CEO of Starbucks to the locker rooms of the NFL, Duhigg explores the incredible results of keystone habits, and how they can make all the difference between billions and millions, failure and success – or even life and death.
Overcoming Perfectionism, Sarah Egan, Roz Shafran and Tracey Wade
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How to break the vicious circle of 'never good enough'. Perfectionism can be healthy but when it becomes unhealthy and turns into 'clinical perfectionism' it can cause serious problems. It is associated with different mental health problems, including depression, anxiety, eating disorders and chronic fatigue syndrome. Those suffering from clinical perfectionism tend to judge themselves predominantly in terms of the pursuit and attainment of personally demanding standards and often feel unable to be flexible and change their goals, despite the significant negative impact that the pursuit of perfectionism may have on their quality of life.
Overcoming Low Self-Esteem a Self Help guide using CBT, Melanie Fennell
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Low self-esteem can make life difficult in all sorts of ways. It can make you anxious and unhappy, tormented by doubts and self-critical thoughts. It can get in the way of feeling at ease with other people and stop you from leading the life you want to lead. It makes it hard to value and appreciate yourself in the same way you would another person you care about. Melanie Fennell's acclaimed and bestselling self-help guide will help you to understand your low self-esteem and break out of the vicious circle of distress, unhelpful behaviour and self-destructive thinking. Using practical techniques from Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), this book will help you learn the art of self-acceptance and so transform your sense of yourself for the better.
The Mindfulness & Acceptance Workbook for Anxiety, John P Forsyth & Georg H Eifert
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Do you try to control your worry, fear, and panic, only to fail and end up feeling frustrated and powerless? Unfortunately, you cannot simply "turn off" anxious thoughts and feelings like a light switch. But there are ways you can take back your life and stop avoiding the things that cause you anxiety. This book has one purpose: to help you live better, more fully, and more richly. Your life is calling on you to make that choice, and the skills in this workbook can help you make it happen.
The Compassionate Mind: a new approach to life’s challenges, Paul Gilbert
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Throughout history people have sought to cope with a life that is often stressful and hard. We have actually known for some time that developing compassion for oneself and others can help us face up to and win through the hardship and find a sense of inner peace. However in modern societies we rarely focus on this key process that underpins successful coping and happiness and can be quick to dismiss the impact of modern living on our minds and well-being. Instead we concentrate on 'doing, achieving' and having'. Now, bestselling author and leading authority on depression, Professor Paul Gilbert explains how new research shows how we can all learn to develop compassion for ourselves and others and derive the benefits of this age-old wisdom.
Overcoming Depression: a Self Help guide using CBT, Paul Gilbert
If you suffer from depression you are far from alone. Depression is very common, affecting over 300 million people around the world. Written by Professor Paul Gilbert, internationally recognised for his work on depression, this highly acclaimed self-help book has been of benefit to thousands of people including sufferers, their friends and families, and those working I the medical profession. This fully revised third edition has been extensively updated and rewritten to reflect over ten years of new research on understanding and treating depression, particularly the importance of developing compassionate ways of thinking, behaving and feeling. It contains helpful case studies and new, easy-to-follow, step-by-step suggestions and exercises to help you understand your depression and lift your mood.
Reasons to Stay Alive, Matt Haig
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Aged 24, Matt Haig's world caved in. He could see no way to go on living. This is the true story of how he came through crisis, triumphed over an illness that almost destroyed him and learned to live again. A moving, funny and joyous exploration of how to live better, love better and feel more alive, Reasons to Stay Alive is more than a memoir. It is a book about making the most of your time on earth.
The Happiness Trap, Russ Harris
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Do you ever feel worried, miserable or unfulfilled - yet put on a happy face and pretend everything's fine? You are not alone. Stress, anxiety, depression and low self-esteem are all around. Research suggests that many of us get caught in a psychological trap, a vicious circle in which the more we strive for happiness, the more it eludes us. Fortunately, there is a way to escape from the 'Happiness Trap', a ground-breaking new approach based on mindfulness skills.
Reality Slap: How to Find Fulfilment when Life Hurts, Russ Harris
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The 'reality slap' takes many different forms. Sometimes it is so violent it's more like a punch: the death of a loved one. Sometimes it's a little gentler: rejection. But whatever form it takes, one thing's for sure: it hurts! Using the proven principles of ACT you will learn how to cope effectively when life hurts: not just survive, but thrive.
Writing Under Pressure, Sanford Kaye
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Presents a system called the Quick Writing Process that focuses on real-world writing tasks and demonstrates how to produce clear, honest, powerful work possible under the constraints of time and space. A writing instructor with twenty-five years teaching experience.
Thrive, Richard Layard & David M. Clarke
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Britain has become a world leader in providing psychological therapies thanks to the work of Richard Layard and David Clark. But, even so, in Britain and worldwide the majority of people who need help still don't get treatment. This is both unjust and a false economy. This book argues for change. It shows that mental ill-health causes more of the suffering in our society than physical illness, poverty or unemployment. Thrive explores the new effective solutions to the misery and injustice caused by mental illness. It describes how successful psychological treatments have been developed and explains what works best for whom. It also urges us to do all we can to prevent these problems in the first place, through better schools and a better society. And, most importantly, it offers real hope.
Isn’t it about time? How to stop putting things off… and get on with your life, Andrea Perry
A new and useful diagnostic tool to help identify where and how you have become stuck, and offers a wealth of strategies to overcome entrenched patterns of procrastination. The book introduces the Action Spiral model used in the Procrastination workshop offered by the Counselling Service.
Strong Women Stay Young, Miriam Nelson
Strong Women Stay Young shows women how to get the same remarkable benefits at home or in the office, working out just twice a week. Individualized instructions get couch potatoes started - and help exercise buffs break through plateaus. Significant improvements are seen after just four weeks.
Request this book - Available as an e-book (Bodleian Library reading room PCs only).
It's no surprise that our fast-paced, overly self-analytical culture is pushing many people - especially women - to spend countless hours thinking about negative ideas, feelings, and experiences. Renowned psychologist Dr Susan Nolen-Hoeksema calls this overthinking, and her groundbreaking research shows that an increasing number of women - more than half of those in her extensive study - are doing it too much and too often, leading to sadness, anxiety, and depression. Women Who Think Too Much shows us what causes so many women to be overthinkers and provides concrete strategies that can be used to escape these negative thoughts, move to higher ground, and live more productively.
Mindfulness - A Practical Guide to Finding Peace in a Frantic World, Mark Williams & D Penman
Mindfulness: A Practical Guide to Finding Peace in a Frantic World it reveals a set of simple yet powerful practices that you can incorporate into daily life to break the cycle of anxiety, stress unhappiness and exhaustion. It promotes the kind of happiness that gets into your bones and allows you to meet the worst that life throws at you with new courage. Mindfulness is based on mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT). Co-developed by Professor Mark Williams of Oxford University, MBCT is recommended by the UK's National Institute for Health and Care Excellence and is as effective as drugs for preventing depression. But, equally, it works for those who aren't depressed but who are struggling to keep up with the relentless demands of the modern world.