THE MILLION-COPY BESTSELLER Do you ever feel worried, miserable or unfulfilled - yet put on a happy face and pretend everything's fine? You are not alone. Stress, anxiety, depression and low self-esteem are all around. Research suggests that many of us get caught in a psychological trap, a vicious circle in which the more we strive for happiness, the more it eludes us. Fortunately, there is a way to escape from the 'Happiness Trap' in this updated and expanded second edition which unlocks the secrets to a truly fulfilling life. This empowering book presents the insights and techniques of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), covering more topics and providing more practical tools than ever before. Learn how to clarify your values, develop self-compassion and find true satisfaction with this bigger and better guide to: * Reducing stress and worry * Handling painful thoughts and feelings more effectively * Breaking self-defeating habits * Overcoming insecurity and self-doubt * Building better relationships * Improving performance and finding fulfilment at work The Happiness Trap is for everyone. Whether you're lacking confidence, facing illness, coping with loss, working in a high-stress job, or suffering from anxiety or depression, this book will show you how to build authentic happiness, from the inside out.

Sometimes, it can feel like life holds endless setbacks and challenges; like reality is continually slapping you in the face and causing pain that you aren't equipped to handle. This 'reality slap' can take many forms, from the death of a loved one to the loss of a job, from loneliness to rejection. And whatever form it takes, it hurts! With constructive methods based on real world research, this guide gives you the tools to rebuild your life and thrive after serious setbacks. Ten years after the success of its first edition, this fully updated and rewritten edition of The Reality Slap contains a new wealth of advanced expertise on coping effectively when life hurts. Dr Russ Harris shows you how to apply the scientifically proven methods of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy in your daily life and reconnect with yourself and others. Written in a kind, supportive voice with lots of examples and exercises, this timely self-help book contains mindfulness wisdom, hands-on advice and case studies. Every aspect of the book is designed to be accessible and simple to implement so that you can comprehensively tackle emotions arising from setbacks. If you are facing difficulty and don't know where to turn, The Reality Slap is the essential guide to finding happiness and fulfilment. Learn how to heal from your pain and come out stronger than before with this powerful book that might just change your life.

Kids today are experiencing alarming rates of mental health challenges such as anxiety, depression, stress, and trauma. The good news is there are skills they can learn now to gain psychological flexibility, regulate emotions, and cultivate the resilience needed to navigate life's many storms. This timely and much-needed workbook can help. In The ACT Workbook for Kids, Tamar D. Black offers fun activities grounded in evidence-based acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) to help kids deal with worry, sadness, and anger. The exercises in this workbook are based on the processes of the ACT Kidflex-a simplified version of the ACT Hexaflex-and help kids work through the difficult thoughts and feelings that can arise from anxiety, depression, and stress. The workbook also includes tons of kid-friendly worksheets, crossword and word search puzzles, body-based practices, and arts and crafts that kids can do by themselves or with a parent, counsellor, or clinician. Most importantly, the skills in this workbook will help kids balance their emotions at home, at school, and in other social situations-such as going to parties, being with friends, and extracurricular activities. No matter what the situation, children can use these quick and simple strategies whenever they feel worried, sad, angry, stressed, or are struggling with self-esteem. In these increasingly challenging times, kids and teens need mental health resources more than ever. With more than 1.6 million copies sold worldwide, Instant Help Books are easy to use, proven-effective, and recommended by therapists.

Trauma-Focused ACT (TFACT) provides a flexible, comprehensive model for treating the entire spectrum of trauma-related issues, including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), addiction, depression, anxiety disorders, moral injury, chronic pain, shame, suicidality, insomnia, complicated grief, attachment issues, sexual problems, and more. Written by internationally acclaimed ACT trainer, Russ Harris, this textbook is for practitioners at all levels of experience, and offers exclusive access to free downloadable resources-including scripts, videos, MP3s, handouts, and worksheets. Discover cutting-edge strategies for healing the past, living in the present, and building a new future. With this compassion-based, exposure-centered approach, you'll learn how to help your clients: * Find safety and security in their bodies * Overcome hyperarousal and hypoarousal * Break free from dissociation * Shift from self-hatred to self-compassion * Rapidly ground themselves and reengage in life * Unhook from difficult cognitions and emotions * Develop an integrated sense of self * Resolve traumatic memories through flexible exposure * Connect with and live by their values * Experience post-traumatic growth

Practical skills grounded in acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) to help you bounce back when life knocks you down. Whether it's the loss of a loved one or a job, the end of a relationship, a pandemic, or a natural disaster-nothing really prepares us for those moments when life hits hard and turns our world upside down. The good news is that you can move forward. There are tools you can use to find your way back from despair and live a fulfilling life. In this candid self-help guide, psychotherapist Russ Harris offers powerful and doable skills grounded in evidence-based ACT to help you recover from grief, loss, and crisis; transcend your pain and suffering; and build a rich and meaningful life-even in the face of adversity. You'll also find tools to help you deal with painful memories, create your own healing "grief rituals," and transform difficult emotions into unexpected allies. Finally, you'll learn how mindfulness and self-compassion can help keep you grounded, even when it seems like your world is in free fall. If you're ready to start building the resilience needed to heal from loss or thrive in the face adversity, this guide will show you how to get there, one step at a time.

Let's face it: Picture-perfect storybook romances don't exist in real life. Couples fight. Feelings of love wax and wane through the years. And the stress and tedium of everyday life and work can often drive a wedge between even the most devoted couples. So, how can you reignite passion and intimacy in your relationship, cultivate greater understanding and compassion between yourself and your partner, and bring the joy back to your love life? In this fully revised and updated edition of ACT with Love, therapist and world-renowned ACT expert Russ Harris shows how developing psychological flexibility-the ability to be in the present moment with openness, awareness, and focus, and to take effective action in line with one's values-can help you and your partner strengthen and deepen your relationship. Also included is new information on attachment theory, powerful mindfulness and self-compassion techniques, and assertiveness and boundary-setting skills. ACT with Love will show you how to: ·Let go of conflict, open up, and live fully in the present ·Use mindfulness to increase intimacy, connection, and understanding ·Resolve painful conflicts and reconcile long-standing differences ·Act on your values to build a rich and meaningful relationship If you're looking to increase feelings of intimacy, love, and connection with your partner, this book has everything you need to get started-together.

Help your clients gain access to the transformative grace of God through Christ! All too often, psychology and spirituality are kept in separate boxes, lessening the power of each to work effective changes. Christ-Centered Therapy: Empowering the Self brings together Christian faith with the Internal Family System (IFS) model. This widely accepted paradigm facilitates psychological healing by showing how the self can become the change agent for the dysfunctional internal system. Christ-centered IFS (CCIFS) combines the power of internal system therapy with the healing power of God for lasting change. Therapists with Christian clients, faith-based clients, or clients who need foundational grounding will benefit from the psychological and spiritual dimensions of Christ-Centered Therapy: Empowering the Self. This powerful therapeutic model posits a self surrounded by subpersonalities who carry anger, fear, distrust, and other negative responses. When the client's self takes the leadership role, the self becomes the channel for Christ's grace for all the subpersonalities. One by one they become empowered, center around self and God, and contribute their resources to the functioning of the whole personality. Christ-Centered Therapy: Empowering the Self provides exercises and visual aids to help both client and counselor, including: four tools to teach the self to lead effectively worksheets to serve as a structural and visual guide to understanding, developing, and using each tool a parts map for client and counselor to use collaboratively cartoons, structural diagrams, and dialogues to illustrate new concepts and procedures Each chapter of Christ-Centered Therapy: Empowering the Self provides specific help for the counselor, including: case studies showing step-by-step clinical interventions a content summary a clinical outline listing the interventions in sequence an exercise to help counselors discover their own inner and spiritual dynamics Christ-Centered Therapy: Empowering the Self brings together the diagnostic and restorative power of IFS with the transforming power of Christian spirituality. It is essential for Christian counselors and for non-Christian counselors who are seeking more effective ways to treat Christian clients.

More than ever, clinicians need customizable approaches for treating children with mental health conditions such as anxiety and depression. Written by an experienced educational psychologist, ACT for Treating Children offers clear, practical, brief, and developmentally appropriate strategies grounded in acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) to help children ages 5 to 12 learn effective coping skills, manage emotions, and bounce back from life's difficulties. A brief 6-10 session protocol. Clear, practical, and developmentally appropriate strategies to help children ages 5 to 12 learn effective coping skills, manage emotions, and bounce back from life's difficulties.If you treat children struggling with mental health conditions such as depression or anxiety, you know that approaches designed for adults do not work with younger clients. ACT for Treating Children presents skills grounded in evidence-based acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) to help children regulate emotions and cope with the inevitable ups and downs of life, and is suitable for clinicians with no prior knowledge of or training in ACT, as well as seasoned ACT clinicians. Written by an experienced educational and developmental psychologist, this practical clinician's guide outlines a simplified version of the ACT Hexaflex-a key component of this treatment model-called the Kidflex, to help young clients build resilience and psychological flexibility. You'll also find detailed case studies, transcripts, activities, experiential exercises, worksheets, and session plans to help you develop the skillset you need to help children overcome disorders such as stress, anxiety and depression. Finally, you'll find strategies for involving parents in treatment when appropriate, and enlisting them as 'ACT coaches' in the child's therapy.It can be difficult to know where to start when using ACT for individual therapy with children. That's why the skills in this go-to guide are practical and easy-to-implement, can be done with children in both face-to-face therapy and online sessions, and are simple enough for children to put into practice in any setting-whether it's at home, in school, or out in the world.

Acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) is a powerful, evidence-based treatment for clients struggling with depression, anxiety, addiction, eating disorders, and a host of other mental health conditions. It is based in the belief that the road to lasting happiness and well-being begins with accepting our thoughts, rather than trying to change them. However, ACT can present certain roadblocks during treatment. As a mental health professional, you may adopt basic principles of ACT easily, but it generally takes at least two or three years of hard work and ongoing study to become truly fluid in the model. During that time, you will probably find yourself "stuck" at some point, and so will your clients. In Getting Unstuck in ACT, psychotherapist and bestselling author of ACT Made Simple, Russ Harris, provides solutions for overcoming the most common roadblocks in ACT. In the book, you will learn how to deal with reluctant or unmotivated clients, as well as how to get past certain theoretical aspects of ACT that some clients may find confusing. This book will help clients deal with sticky dilemmas and unsolvable problems, and will help simplify key ACT concepts to help you break down psychological barriers. Other common problems with ACT that the book addresses are inconsistencies and sending mixed messages, talking and explaining ACT instead of doing it, being too eager to treat a client, being a "Mr. Nice Guy or Ms. Nice Girl," or putting too much focus on one process while neglecting others. The chapters of the book are based in real life scenarios that take place between therapist and client, and the author provides feedback by analyzing mistakes in what was said and where improvements could be made. As more and more mental health professionals incorporate ACT into their practice, it is increasingly necessary to have a guide that offers them effective solutions to common ACT roadblocks. For that reason, this book is a must-have for any ACT therapist.

Help your clients gain access to the transformative grace of God through Christ! All too often, psychology and spirituality are kept in separate boxes, lessening the power of each to work effective changes. Christ-Centered Therapy: Empowering the Self brings together Christian faith with the Internal Family System (IFS) model. This widely accepted paradigm facilitates psychological healing by showing how the self can become the change agent for the dysfunctional internal system. Christ-centered IFS (CCIFS) combines the power of internal system therapy with the healing power of God for lasting change. Therapists with Christian clients, faith-based clients, or clients who need foundational grounding will benefit from the psychological and spiritual dimensions of Christ-Centered Therapy: Empowering the Self. This powerful therapeutic model posits a self surrounded by subpersonalities who carry anger, fear, distrust, and other negative responses. When the client's self takes the leadership role, the self becomes the channel for Christ's grace for all the subpersonalities. One by one they become empowered, center around self and God, and contribute their resources to the functioning of the whole personality. Christ-Centered Therapy: Empowering the Self provides exercises and visual aids to help both client and counselor, including: four tools to teach the self to lead effectively worksheets to serve as a structural and visual guide to understanding, developing, and using each tool a parts map for client and counselor to use collaboratively cartoons, structural diagrams, and dialogues to illustrate new concepts and procedures Each chapter of Christ-Centered Therapy: Empowering the Self provides specific help for the counselor, including: case studies showing step-by-step clinical interventions a content summary a clinical outline listing the interventions in sequence an exercise to help counselors discover their own inner and spiritual dynamics Christ-Centered Therapy: Empowering the Self brings together the diagnostic and restorative power of IFS with the transforming power of Christian spirituality. It is essential for Christian counselors and for non-Christian counselors who are seeking more effective ways to treat Christian clients.

Control your weight without fad dieting, using the method from the best-selling "Happiness Trap--"Acceptance and Commitment Therapy
Today's the day to start making real changes. Diet fads and fitness trends may offer the promise of losing weight, but they rarely work out long term." The""Weight Escape" is different. Focusing on the mental barriers that keep us from setting and achieving our goals, this program promotes a holistic approach to well-being and weight loss--one that goes beyond meal plans and calorie-counting to give a deeper meaning and mindfulness to how you live and what you eat.
The methods of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) have helped thousands conquer depression, anxiety, and insecurity, and find new energy for living through mindfulness. Here those same simple ACT techniques are used to enable you to establish a healthy relationship with food and to manage your weight without the stress of fad dieting.

Renowned ACT expert Russ Harris presents easy-to-read Q&A sessions to uncover the most common ways clients and practitioners get stuck when using ACT, how to get unstuck, and how to transform that "stuckness" into powerful personal growth. Acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) is a highly effective, evidence-based treatment for a number of mental health issues - from depression to addiction - that focuses on mindfulness, client values, and a commitment to change. It also provides innovative tools, techniques, and strategies for promoting psychological flexibility and profound behavioral change. However, there are several challenges and frustrations that can arise when delivering ACT in-session. In the tradition of the hugely popular professional guide ACT Made Simple, ACT Questions and Answersoffers practical tools for overcoming common sticking points in-session. You'll find effective tips and strategies for moving past misconceptions about mindfulness and acceptance, how to deal with reluctant or unmotivated clients, and how to break down communication barriers that can stand in the way of progress. You'll also find links to free downloadable resources. If you are new to ACT - or just want to improve your delivery - this easy-to-read reference guide will help you troubleshoot common in-session challenges and help your clients achieve lasting change.

Now fully-revised and updated, this second edition of ACT Made Simple includes new information and chapters on self-compassion, flexible perspective taking, working with trauma, and more. Why is it so hard to be happy? Why is life so difficult? Why do humans suffer so much? And what can we realistically do about it? No matter how rewarding your job, as a mental health professional, you may sometimes feel helpless in the face of these questions. You are also well aware of the challenges and frustrations that can present during therapy. If you're looking for ways to optimize your client sessions, consider joining the many thousands of therapists and life coaches worldwide who are learning acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT). With a focus on mindfulness, client values and a commitment to change, ACT is proven-effective in treating depression, anxiety, stress, addictions, eating disorders, schizophrenia, borderline personality disorder (BPD) and myriad other psychological issues. It's also a revolutionary new way to view the human condition - packed full of exciting new tools, techniques and strategies for promoting profound behavioural change. A practical primer, ideal for ACT newcomers and experienced ACT professionals alike, ACT Made Simple offers clear explanations of the six ACT processes and a set of real-world tips and solutions for rapidly and effectively implementing them in your practice. This book gives you everything you need to start using ACT with your clients for impressive results. Inside, you'll find: scripts, exercises, metaphors and worksheets to use with your clients; a session-by-session guide to implementing ACT; transcripts from therapy sessions; guidance for creating your own therapeutic techniques and exercises; and practical tips to overcome "therapy roadblocks." This book aims to take the complex theory and practice of ACT and make it accessible and enjoyable for therapists and clients.

Today's the day to start making real changes. Diet fads and fitness trends may offer the prospect of losing weight, but they rarely work out long-term. The Weight Escape is different. Using the psychological science of ACT - Acceptance and Commitment Therapy - Dr Russ Harris, medical doctor and author of The Happiness Trap, psychological practitioner Ann Bailey and scientist Joseph Ciarrochi will help you make the lasting changes you want. Focusing on the mental barriers that can stop us setting and achieving our goals, it promotes a holistic approach to wellbeing and weight loss - one that goes beyond meal plans and calorie counting to give a deeper meaning and mindfulness to how you live and what you eat. Through practical exercises, quizzes and personal stories, it shows you how to: * Set goals and give direction to your life * Overcome destructive habits and exercise self-control * Deal with cravings and stressful situations * Develop self-acceptance. Get the weight-loss results you want - and so much more.

The life-changing practice of applied mindfulness called ACT is made even more accessible in this fun and easy-to-understand volume that illustrates all the principles with entertaining cartoons.
There's this idea going around that we're always supposed to be happy--and it's making us miserable. The good news is, if you can learn to let go of that impossible expectation, your life will be a whole lot happier. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) is a simple, self-administered therapy that uses mindfulness to enable you to do just that. This fun, illustrated guide to the method that's made life better for millions is the easiest way yet to learn how to escape the happiness trap and start living a life that's far richer, fuller, and more meaningful.
With ACT you'll learn to:
Reduce stress and worry - Handle painful feelings and thoughts more
effectively - Break self-defeating habits - Overcome insecurity and
self-doubt - Recognize and treasure the whole range of emotions that make
up a satisfying life

A unique collaboration between cartoonist/author Bev Aisbett and Dr Russ Harris, this is an illustrated, simplified pocketbook version of Russ's original, international bestseller 'The Happiness Trap'. It's an easy-to-read introduction to all those powerful life-changing ideas or a great refresher course for those already familiar with the approach. Commonplace ideas about happiness are often misleading, inaccurate and likely to make you miserable in the long term. For example, positive thinking often does not work - and research shows it actually makes some people feel worse! So open 'The Happiness Trap Pocketbook' and learn how a new scientifically proven, mindfulness-based approach called Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (better known as ACT) can help you find genuine wellbeing and fulfilment. Whether you're lacking confidence, facing illness, stressed at work, struggling with low self-esteem, trying to lose weight or quit smoking, or just wanting to be happier, healthier, and more fulfilled - in this book you will learn effective techniques to: * reduce stress and worry * rise above fear, doubt and insecurity * handle painful thoughts and feelings more effectively * break self-defeating habits * develop self-acceptance and self-compassion * let go of inaccurate and misleading (but very popular) ideas about happiness, and * create a rich, full and meaningful life.

Popular myths about happiness are directly contributing to our epidemic of stress, anxiety and depression - and popular psychological remedies are making it even worse!In this easy-to-read, practical and empowering self-help book, Dr Russ Harris, M.D., reveals how millions of people are unwittingly caught in The Happiness Trap! He then provides an effective means to escape, through a revolutionary new paradigm in Western psychology.Mindfulness is a transformative mental state of awareness, openness and focus. Although mindfulness is worlds apart' from the methods of popular psychology, it is easy to learn, and will rapidly and effectively help you to reduce stress, handle painful feelings, let go of self-limiting beliefs, overcome fear, and generally increase life satisfaction.The concept of mindfulness has been around in the East for thousands of years but until recently, we in the West could only develop this ability if we embarked on a lifelong relationship with traditional Eastern practices, such as meditation, yoga, Tai-Chi, Zen, or the martial arts. However, thanks to a radical new approach that combines the best of Western and Eastern practice, coined Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, or ACT, we can now learn these powerful life-changing techniques in a matter of minutes. ACT has been scientifically proven to treat everything from depression and stress to drug addiction and schizophrenia.

Too many of us miss out on opportunities in life because we lack self-confidence. Whether it involves public speaking, taking on a leadership role, or starting a relationship, we often don't feel equipped to handle new challenges.
Most confidence-building strategies --such as affirmations and positive self-talk --help us only in the short term, if at all. Russ Harris offers a surprising and revolutionary solution to low self-confidence, shyness, and insecurity. Rather than trying to vanquish our fears, the secret is actually to form a new and wiser relationship with them. Paradoxically, it's only when we stop struggling against our fearfulness that we begin to find lasting freedom from it. ""
"The Confidence Gap" draws on proven mindfulness-based techniques and on the principles of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) to provide a long-term solution. (ACT is a form of cognitive-behavioral therapy that has been shown to be effective in treating a range of mental health problems.) Harris combines key insights, anecdotes, and exercises, along with humor and playfulness, to show readers how to overcome self-defeating patterns and get more out of life.