Resources
Therapy-Recommended Books for Self-Empowerment and Personal Growth
As a dedicated reader and therapist, I’m passionate about sharing empowering resources that support mental wellness, self-compassion, and personal growth.
Below, you’ll find a curated collection of recommended books on a variety of therapeutic topics to help you navigate specific challenges and deepen your journey toward self-empowerment.
Mental wellness starts at home
Mental wellness starts at home
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Eating/Image Related
Intuitive Eating: A Revolutionary Program That Works by Evelyn Tribole
Body Kindness: Transform Your Health from the Inside Out - and Never Say Diet Again by Rebecca Scritchfield
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General
Tiny Beautiful Things: Advice on Love and Life from Dear Sugar by Cheryl Strayed
Maybe You Should Talk to Someone: A Therapist, Her Therapist, and Our Lives Revealed by Lori Gottlieb
The Upside of Being Down: How Mental Health Struggles Led to My Greatest Successes in Work and Life by Jen Gotch
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Trauma
The Body Keeps The Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma by Bessel van der Kolk
The Deepest Well: Healing the Long-Term Effects of Childhood Adversity by Nadine Burke Harris
Getting Past Your Past: Take Control of Your Life with Self-Help Techniques from EMDR Therapy by Francine Shapiro
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Change/Habit Building
Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones by James Clear
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Boundary Setting
Set Boundaries, Find Peace: A Guild to Reclaiming Yourself by Nedra Glover Tawwab
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Personality Typing
The Road Back to You: An Enneagram Journey to Self-Discovery by Ian Morgan Cron
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Relationships
Attached: The Science of Adult Attachment and How It Can Help You Find and Keep Love by Amir Levine
Dance of Anger: A Women’s Guide to Changing the Patterns of Intimate Relationships by Harriet Lerner
Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus by John Gray
Silent Agreements: How to Free Your Relationships of Unspoken Expectations by Linda D. Anderson
Marry Him: The Case for Settling for Mr. Good Enough by Lori Gottlieb
Love Warrior by Glennon Doyle
Why Marriages Succeed or Fail: And How You Can Make Yours Last by John M. Gottman
Insecure in Love: How Anxious Attachment Can Make You Feel Jealous, Needy, and Worried and What You Can Do About It by Leslie Becker-Phelps
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Anxiety
First, We Make The Beast Beautiful: A New Story About Anxiety by Sarah Wilson
My Friend Fear: Finding Magic in the Unknown by Meera Lee Patel
Burnout: The Secret to Unlocking the Stress Cycle by Emily Nagoski
The Places That Scare You: A Guide to Fearlessness in Difficult Times by Pema Chodron
The Dance of Fear: Rising Above Anxiety, Fear, and Shame to Be Your Best and Bravest Self by Hariet Lerner
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Parenting
Under Pressure: Confront the Epidemic of Stress and Anxiety in Girls by Lisa Damour
I’d Listen to My Parents If They’d Just Shut Up: What to Say and Not Say When Parenting Teens by Anthony E. Wolf
Untangled: Guiding Teenage Girls Through Seven Transitions Into Adulthood by Lisa Damour
How to Raise an Adult: Break Free of the Overparenting Trap and Prepare Your Kid for Success by Julie Lythcott-Haims
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Self-Compassion
Self-Compassion: The Proven Power of Being Kind to Yourself by Kristen Neff
Fierce Self-Compassion: How Women Can Harness Kindness to Speak Up, Claim Their Power, and Thrive by Kristen Neff
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Increasing Insights Into Emotions
Atlas of the Heart by Brene Brown
Permission to Feel: Unlocking the Power of Emotions to Help Our Kids, Ourselves, and Our Society Thrive by Marc Brackett
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Grief and Loss
It’s OK That You’re Not OK: Meeting Grief and Loss in a Culture That Doesn’t Understand by Megan Devine
No Happy Endings by Nora McInerny Purmort
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Leadership
Daring Greatly: How the Courage to Be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent and Lead by Brene Brown
Dare to Lead by Brene Brown
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Substance Use
Quit Like a Woman: The Radical Choice to Not Drink in a Culture Obsessed with Alcohol by Holly Whitaker
Clean: Overcoming Addiction and Ending America’s Greatest Tragedy by David Sheff
Buzzed: The Straight Facts about the Most Used & Abused Drugs from Alcohol to Ecstasy by Cynthia M. Kuhn
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Meaning Making
Untamed by Glennon Doyle
Braving the Wilderness: The Quest for True Belonging and the Courage to Stand Alone by Brene Brown
Rising Strong: the Reckoning, The Rumble. The Revolution. by Brene Brown
Resilient: How to Grow an Unshakable Core of Calm, Strength, and Happiness by Rick Hanson
The Last Lecture by Randy Pasuch
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Perfectionism
The Gifts of Imperfection by Brene Brown
Drop the Ball: Achieving More by Doing Less by Tiffany Dufu
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Adulting
The Defining Decade: Why Your Twenties Matter - And How to Make the Most of Them Now by Meg Jay
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Sexual Wellness
Come As You Are by Emily Nagoski