Whenever a new year rolls around, people tend to focus on their physical health, like eating better, losing weight and/or exercising. It’s not often that you hear of people talking about wanting to improve their emotional health.
What exactly is your “emotional health.” When you are emotionally happy, you are in control of your thoughts, feelings and behaviors. You are better able to deal with the challenges that life tends to toss our way. An emotionally health person does feel negatives feelings, such as anger, sadness and stress, but they are better able to manage those feelings and emotions so as not to let them get the better of you.
I think I would consider myself an emotionally healthy person. I do let stress get the better of me sometimes, but it’s not like it “cripples” me and interferes with my day to day life. Usually when I am stressed I have a hard time sleeping, but aside from that, I function normally. Most people don’t even realize I’m stressed out because it doesn’t show. The only way my husband knows if I am stressing about something is when he wakes up in the middle of the night and finds me up and wide awake.
I’m not one to hit up the “self help” section of the book store. When I was younger I did, but it was more so out of curiosity than having an actual need. I’ve always been fascinated by how the mind works and I would often borrow books from the library on mental health and psychological issues. In fact, I was going to college to become a Forensic Psychologist. The human mind fascinates me. I would love to be able to figure out why people say and do the things that they do. What takes a seemingly “normal” person and turns them into a cold-blooded killer? What makes the most organized person at the office, live like a hoarder at home with bugs everywhere and rat feces piling up on the counters (I tend to watch a lot of Hoarders and Hoarding: Buried Alive).
I will admit that I do struggle with confidence and self esteem issues. Partially from being obese all my life (people can be VERY cruel to overweight individuals), and also because my biological “mother” (she was no mother – she was more of an “egg donor”) abandoned me when I was a toddler, so in the back of my mind I always think that I am never good enough (“If my own parent didn’t want me, then there must be something “wrong” with me…“).
I was sent to review two different products that can help people who are struggling with emotional wellness (in general, not from a clinical standpoint), self esteem issues and stress.
Self-Help Book
Embrace Your Greatness: 50 Ways to Build Unshakeable Self-Esteem (New Harbinger Publishers) offers practical tips to improve self-esteem. Readers are shown why what we have long believed to be the keys to self-esteem don’t really work, and help readers replace those old notions by introducing new ones that do. Consider this a new twist on old problems.
I don’t really see this as a “self help” book, per say, because I think anyone – even people who don’t have any self esteem issues – can benefit from some of the tips and techniques found in this book.
Let’s face it, no one’s life is “perfect.” We all deal with set backs and disappointments throughout our lives. It can be a break-up, being passed over by a promotion, or a back-stabbing friend or co-worker. No matter what it is, there is valuable information, tips and techniques in this book that can help you deal with those situations head on and walk away with a sense of self worth, and not let the negative situations in life take control over you.
The book is divided up into 10 different sections. Each section has a different set of sub-sections. Each sub-section is brief (only a few pages). I appreciate how the book is written in “small chunks” to that you can read and implement the suggestions quickly and easily. It shouldn’t take more than 5-10 minutes to reach each little section (if that). We all have 5-10 minutes we can dedicate to ourselves.
The activities and suggestions are easy to do. There is nothing elaborate or too involved. They are all simple things that anyone can do.
Self-Help Card Deck
The Stress and Anxiety Solution Deck: 55 CBT and Mindfulness Tips and Tools (PESI Publishing) offers fun, easy, yet meaningful solutions to make stress and anxiety motivate rather than debilitate. In essence, 55 quick ways to stress for success.
These cards are divided up into four areas, known as the “4 C’s”;
- Challenge Your Thoughts
- Challenge Your Behaviors
- Clarify You Feelings
- Create Calmness
To use these cards, select one or more cards a day to focus on, or you can pick them randomly to help you mange stress and anxiety.
Each card features a quick tip followed by a tool (a short activity) that puts that tip into practice.
These cards can be used by therapists, groups, and of course, individuals.
I found all of the tips to be very helpful, and the activities are super easy to do. None of them require any special equipment except a pen and paper to jot things down.
Here are some of the card examples.
The cards come in a box for easy storage.
Overall I think both the book and the cards are very helpful. I have learned some great tips that I plan on implementing in my life to help me de-stress and to boost my self esteem.
Even if you don’t suffer with stress, anxiety, low self esteem or other “issues,” there are still some great tips and advice that can be applied to other situations.
Both the book and the cards are linked above, in case you were interested in making a purchase or needed more information. Both products are found on Amazon, and so far, both have five star reviews.
Kimberly
*I received free product samples to review. There was no compensation. The opinions expressed are my own and not influenced in any way.
Judy Belmont says
Thank you Kimberly for taking the time out to look over these two self-help resources, and writing such infomrative and positive reviews. You got the essence of what I was trying to get across in writing them!
Ej says
Definately worth a try