Covid-19


Book Description

The book provides persons living under the stress of the COVID-19 pandemic with many resources; help, crisis, and information lines, as well as tips and recommendations about dealing with anxiety and depression, and building resiliency. The medical, social, and financial conditions provide a cascade of stresses on everyone. Opportunities for personal assessment and support are provided.




Taking Care of Your Mental Health During the COVID-19 Pandemic


Book Description

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused a worldwide health crisis as well as a worldwide mental health crisis. Medical professionals have made clear what we need to do to protect ourselves from the health risks of the coronavirus: keep six feet away from others, wash our hands frequently, avoid touching our faces, wear face masks and gloves in public, and so forth. However, what people should do for mental health issues is not really clear. This workbook was written to help you understand the many ways the pandemic can affect your mental health, and it offers practical tools and solutions to deal with problems before they become too serious.The first section of this workbook deals with specific problems you might be experiencing as a result of the way the pandemic has affected you. Some of these are likely issues you grappled with in the past. Psychologists know that acute or prolonged stress can reactivate long-standing problems you may have dealt with during your life, such as using alcohol to deal with upsetting thoughts and feelings, losing your temper with others, or struggling with depression and anxiety. Other issues may feel new and even catch you off guard. The important thing is to not let the current problems you are experiencing spiral out of control and add yet another problem area to your life.In Section Two, you'll find worksheets that will help you develop twenty-two resiliency traits. Resiliency is defined as our capacity to survive and thrive and live a happy and fulfilling life despite extreme stress. Some people are naturally more resilient than others, but every one of us can become more resilient with a little practice. Each worksheet is written in a manner that is practical, user-friendly, and easy to understand. While no single worksheet is effective for everyone, we are confident this workbook will assist you in navigating these difficult times.




The Anxiety Virus: 3 Essential Strategies to Build Immunity to Uncertainty in the COVID Crisis


Book Description

It's not the end of the world. But it's the end of certainty as we know it. There's so much we can't control about our health, our jobs, our social connections- of course we're anxious! But our dis-ease doesn't have to disable us. If we can build immunity to uncertainty, we can start getting some sleep, feeling confident and maybe even discover some joy in our lives again.In The Anxiety Virus, psychotherapist Jennifer Shannon starts at the physiological source of anxiety, our limbic system, which is responsible for the fight-or-flight alarms that make us anxious. She explains that this "monkey mind" needs to adapt to the new level of uncertainty in our lives, and lays out a clear plan to train it.Her three immunity-building strategies-one cognitive, one behavioral and one emotional- are designed to help us expand our tolerance for uncertainty, rather than continue to contract around what we cannot control. They are "essential" because, as Jennifer has discovered in her decades of working with anxiety disorders, we cannot transform ourselves unless we employ our thoughts, feelings and behavior in unison.Jennifer's delivers her message in clear, simple language, complemented with delightful illustrations and step-by-step exercises to practice with. Her mission: Get you through this crisis with skills you'll use the rest of your life. Her promise: When you immunize yourself to uncertainty, your anxiety lessons. The more your anxiety lessons, the more your higher qualities will flow-like flexibility, creativity, and resilience, the very qualities we all need in a crisis!







The Upside of Stress


Book Description

Drawing from groundbreaking research, psychologist and award-winning teacher Kelly McGonigal, PhD, offers a surprising new view of stress—one that reveals the upside of stress, and shows us exactly how to capitalize on its benefits. You hear it all the time: stress causes heart disease; stress causes insomnia; stress is bad for you! But what if changing how you think about stress could make you happier, healthier, and better able to reach your goals? Combining exciting new research on resilience and mindset, Kelly McGonigal, PhD, proves that undergoing stress is not bad for you; it is undergoing stress while believing that stress is bad for you that makes it harmful. In fact, stress has many benefits, from giving us greater focus and energy, to strengthening our personal relationships. McGonigal shows readers how to cultivate a mindset that embraces stress, and activate the brain's natural ability to learn from challenging experiences. Both practical and life-changing, The Upside of Stress is not a guide to getting rid of stress, but a toolkit for getting better at it—by understanding, accepting, and leveraging it to your advantage.




Shrinking the Worry Monster


Book Description

This delightful story contains research-based strategies that kids and their parents can use to overcome worry and fear. Now available in Spanish----Encoger el Monstro de los Miedos!!




The Nature of Fear


Book Description

A leading expert in animal behavior takes us into the wild to better understand and manage our fears. Fear, honed by millions of years of natural selection, kept our ancestors alive. Whether by slithering away, curling up in a ball, or standing still in the presence of a predator, humans and other animals have evolved complex behaviors in order to survive the hazards the world presents. But, despite our evolutionary endurance, we still have much to learn about how to manage our response to danger. For more than thirty years, Daniel Blumstein has been studying animals’ fear responses. His observations lead to a firm conclusion: fear preserves security, but at great cost. A foraging flock of birds expends valuable energy by quickly taking flight when a raptor appears. And though the birds might successfully escape, they leave their food source behind. Giant clams protect their valuable tissue by retracting their mantles and closing their shells when a shadow passes overhead, but then they are unable to photosynthesize, losing the capacity to grow. Among humans, fear is often an understandable and justifiable response to sources of threat, but it can exact a high toll on health and productivity. Delving into the evolutionary origins and ecological contexts of fear across species, The Nature of Fear considers what we can learn from our fellow animals—from successes and failures. By observing how animals leverage alarm to their advantage, we can develop new strategies for facing risks without panic.




The People's Act Of Love


Book Description

1919, Siberia . . . Deep in the unforgiving landscape a town lies under military rule, awaiting the remorseless assault of Bolsheviks along the Trans-Siberian railway. One night a stranger, Samarin, appears from the woods with a tale of escape from an Arctic prison, insisting a cannibal is on his trail. Only Anna, a beautiful young widow, trusts his story. When a local shaman is found dead suspicion and terror engulf the isolated community, which harbours a secret of its own . . .




After Ben


Book Description

A Seattle Stories novel A year after the sudden death of his longtime partner, Ben, Theo Anderson is still grieving. The last thing he's looking for is a new lover. But as Theo soon discovers, sometimes life has other plans. While Theo experiences a powerful physical attraction to fellow gym member Peter, it's his new online friend, Morgan, who provides the intellectual challenge to make him come alive. Morgan is witty, brave, and irreverent, and Theo is ready to take the plunge⦠until he discovers Morgan might be half his age. Theo's late partner was significantly olderâenough to strain Theo's relationship with his familyâand the potential of another relationship being cut short leaves him gunshy. Theo needs to lay Ben's memory to rest, reconcile with his family, and rekindle neglected friendships if he's to start afresh with a new lover. But Theo isn't the only one with a past. His biggest challenge, in living after Ben, might not be his to face.