Mental Health Books
Below is a compilation of various mental health resources.
Do share with fellow readers in the comment box below other information and resources that you’ve found to be useful.
Anxiety, Depression & Bipolar
An Unquiet Mind is a seminal classic by Dr Kay Redfield Jamison, one of the foremost authorities on manic-depressive (bipolar) illness who also has experienced it firsthand. The book is written with enormous candor, vividness, and wisdom — transformative and life-saving.
We stumbled upon Dr. Alice Boyes’s blog and we are instantly struck by the compassion in her voice, even as she dispenses no-nonsense very practical anxiety-management tips and tools. Anxiety Toolkit compiles all of those useful information and suggestions in one convenient book.
Lost Connections is a radical and controversial book on depression and anxiety. We do not take such an extreme position as author Johann Hari — we believe building social connections is supplemental and complementary to traditional therapy and medication, in overcoming mental health struggles.
Psychology
Thrilled to have more books that talk about cultural competency and specificity in mental health Permission to Come Home: Reclaiming Mental Health as Asian Americans.
Don’t let the over-the-top title — How to Stubbornly Refuse to Make Yourself Miserable About Anything—Yes, Anything! — detracts you from reading this book. It offers many great insights. We found the sections on interrogating and refuting our own flawed beliefs to be super helpful.
We recommend Brené Brown’s The Power of Vulnerability to most anyone because it is so fundamental — understanding the basic of shame, vulnerability, and trust can lead us to the connections, joy, and love we crave and deserve. Other excellent books by Brown: The Gifts of Imperfections, Rising Strong, Braving the Wilderness, and Daring Greatly.
Mindfulness and Spirituality
Wherever You Go, There You Are — this classic by Jon Kabat-Zinn is a great entry to understanding mindfulness and starting a meditation practice.
Power of Now explains the value and practice of being present. In this hyper-connected, super fast-paced world we live in, Eckhart Toole’s book is especially relevant now, more than ever.
While some of the concepts from The Seat of the Soul may seem a little dated now (it was published almost 3 decades ago!), the book is a wonderful reminder for us to set and focus on our Intention.
Don’t let the heavy-on-Christian-terminologies deters you from reading Tears to Triumph — it’s ultimately a book on forgiveness and true healing, if we can learn to face our pain and wrestle with what it has to teach us.
Personal Development
Spark Joy has gotten some good and bad reps lately. But we stand by this book: Physical de-cluttering can lead to mental and emotional clarity.
The Soul of Money may sound woo-woo at first but the concepts in the book can be so illuminating. One fundamental concept that has transformed our relationships and attitudes towards was from this book: the opposite of Scarcity is not abundance, but Sufficiency.
Getting Things Done — many of us with mental health struggles are often-times overwhelmed, avoidant, and procrastinating. Implementing just one or two suggestions from this book can greatly improve our day-to-day lives.
We believe that the practice of creative play can improve our overall mental health. Because of that, we whole-heartedly recommend The Artist’s Way.
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