Mental Health Must Reads
As promised, hereâs a list of mental health must reads that Iâve  personally read and recommend. I read or listened to all of these books for FREE with my public library card and Libby App but linked to where you can buy these books from the authors.
Abusive / Narcissistic Parents:
Children of the Aging Self Absorbed - Nina Brown - for adult children of narcissistic or abusive parents. Teaches practical yet powerful strategies for navigating the intense negative feelings that these parents can incite, as well as tips to protect yourself.
Children of the Self-Absorbed - Nina Brown - Similar to above.
Complex PTSD - Pete Walker - The author has CPTSD and wrote this book from the perspective of someone who has experienced a great reduction of symptoms over the years.
The Drama of the Gifted Child - Alice Miller - explores the serious if not dangerous consequences parental cruelty can bring to bear on children everywhere. One of the central works by Alice Miller, the celebrated Swiss psychoanalyst.
For Your Own Good - Alice Miller - A challenge to the child-rearing practices of punishment and coercion.
Toxic Parents - Susan Forward - drawn on case histories and the real-life voices of adult children of toxic parents to help you free yourself from the frustrating patterns of your relationship with your parents.
Trapped in the Mirror - Elan Golomb - Adult children of narcissists and their struggle for self.
Addiction (havenât read a lot on this):
In The Realm of Hungry Ghosts - Gabor MatĂŠ - Close encounters with addiction.
Anxiety & Stress:
Burnout - Emily Nagoski - explains why women experience burnout differently than men and provides a simple, science-based plan to help women minimize stress, manage emotions, and live a more joyful life.
When the Body Says No - Gabor MatĂŠ - Understanding the stress-disease connection.
Doing Harm - Maya Dusenbery - How bad medicine and lazy science leave women dismissed, misdiagnosed, and sick.
Rage Becomes Her - Soraya Chemaly - The power of womenâs anger.
The Tao of Fully Feeling - Pete Walker - Harvesting forgiveness out of blame.
The Gift Of Fear - Gavin de Becker - Survival signals that protect us from violence.
Emotional Intelligence - Daniel Goleman - insight into our âtwo mindsââthe rational and the emotional.
Body Image & Disordered Eating:
The Body Is Not an Apology - Sonya Renee-Taylor - the power of radical self love.
Body Positive Power - Megan Crabbe - Memoir - Because Life Is Already Happening and You Donât Need Flat Abs to Live It.
Dietland - Sarai Walker - Fiction
The Fuck It Diet - Caroline Dooner - Eating Should Be Easy
Health at Every Size - Linda Bacon - Fat isnât the problem. Dieting is the problem.
Heavy - Kiese Laymon - Memoir
Hunger - Roxane Gay - âA Memoir Of (My) Bodyâ
Intuitive Eating - Evelyn Tribole - The go-to book on rebuilding a healthy body image and making peace with food.
You Are Why You Eat - Dr. Ramani Durvasula - Change Your Food Attitude, Change Your Life
BPD:
The Bell Jar - Sylvia Plath - Fiction/Memoir
Girl, Interrupted - Susanna Kaysen - Memoir
I Hate You - Donât Leave Me - Jerold Kreisman - Understanding Borderline Personality Disorder
The Survivors - Adam Frankel - A Story of War, Inheritance, and Healing
OCD:
Body Punishment - Maggie Simone - OCD, Addiction, & Finding the Courge to Heal
Brain Lock - Jeffrey Schwartz - Free Yourself from Obsessive-Compulsive Behavior
Overcoming Unwanted Intrusive Thoughts - Sally Winston - A CBT-Based Guide to Getting Over Frightening, Obsessive, or Disturbing Thoughts
Radical Acceptance - Tara Brach - Embracing Your Life With the Heart of a Buddha
Sexual Assault / Abuse / Trauma: Â
Asking for It - Kate Harding - The Alarming Rise of Rape Culture-and What We Can Do about It
The Body Keeps The Score - Bessel van der Kolk - Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma
Come As You Are - Emily Nagoski - An essential exploration of why and how womenâs sexuality works.
The Courage to Heal - Ellen Bass - A Guide for Survivors of Child Sexual Abuse.
Does She Call It Rape? - Lori Girshick - Woman on Woman Sexual Abuse
Know My Name - Chanel Miller - Memoir of an Emily Doe
Not That Bad - Roxane Gay - Essays of Dispatches from Rape Culture
Three Women - Lisa Taddeo - Memoir / Fiction
Why Does He Do That? - Lundy Bancroft - Inside the Minds of Angry and Controlling Men
Workbooks:
The Artistâs Way Workbook - Julia Cameron
The CBT Workbook
The CBT Workbook for Perfectionism
Come As You Are - Workbook
The Courage to Heal Workbook
The DBT Skills Workbook
The Intuitive Eating Workbook
The Self Love Workbook
