Anxiety Happens: 52 Ways to Find Peace of Mind

by John P. Forsyth PhD, Georg H. Eifert PhD

Overview

Break free from anxiety—once and for all! From the authors of The Mindfulness and Acceptance Workbook for Anxiety, this powerful yet portable guide offers fifty-two in-the-moment mindfulness strategies you can use anytime, anywhere to cultivate calm and radically transform your life.

We live in an age of anxiety, and studies show that it’s only getting worse. Anxiety forces itself into our awareness and can deplete our energy, resources, and resolve. It screams “pay attention to me—or else.” We may confront it the moment we wake up in the morning, and it can even keep us from getting to sleep at night. In short, it can run our lives. But it doesn’t have to be this way.

Building on the success of The Mindfulness and Acceptance Workbook for Anxiety, this quick reference guide offers fifty-two simple tools and strategies—one for each week of the year—based in proven-effective acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) to help you break free from worry, fear, and panic. In addition to “in-the-moment” tools for staying calm, you’ll learn about the underlying causes of your anxiety, why avoidance just doesn’t work, how to move past your negative inner voice, and how focusing on your values can help you move past anxiety and live a rich, meaningful life.

If—like many people—you’re fed up with anxiety getting in the way of living your life, the powerful little exercises in this guide will show you how to break the cycle of anxiety for good.

This book has been selected as an Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies Self-Help Book Recommendation—an honor bestowed on outstanding self-help books that are consistent with cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) principles and that incorporate scientifically tested strategies for overcoming mental health difficulties. Used alone or in conjunction with therapy, our books offer powerful tools readers can use to jump-start changes in their lives.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781684031108
Publisher:	New Harbinger Publications
Publication date:	04/01/2018
Pages:	208
Sales rank:	446,359
Product dimensions:	4.90(w) x 6.80(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

John P. Forsyth, PhD, is professor of psychology and director of the anxiety disorders research program at the University at Albany, SUNY. Forsyth is a highly sought-after speaker, acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) workshop leader, and member of the teaching faculty at the Omega Institute for Holistic Studies, the Esalen Institute, and 1440 Multiversity. His teachings and writing focus on how to use ACT and mindfulness practices to alleviate suffering, awaken the human spirit, and cultivate well-being. He is coauthor of The Mindfulness and Acceptance Workbook for Anxiety.

Georg H. Eifert, PhD, is professor emeritus of psychology and former associate dean of the School of Health and Life Sciences at Chapman University in Orange, CA. Eifert is an internationally recognized author, scientist, speaker, and trainer in the use of ACT. He is coauthor of The Mindfulness and Acceptance Workbook for Anxiety and The Anorexia Workbook.

Forsyth and Eifert are also coauthors of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for Anxiety Disorders and, with Matthew McKay, ACT on Life Not on Anger and Your Life on Purpose.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments ix

Introduction 1

1 Live Your Life 7

2 Find Connection 12

3 Creating Space 15

4 Live with Intention 18

5 Release the Fear 22

6 Exploring the Costs 25

7 The Struggle Trap 29

8 Letting Go 32

9 Flip the Switch 36

10 Do the Opposite 39

11 Taking a Leap 42

12 Voices of Anxiety 45

13 On Autopilot 48

14 Whole, Complete, Enough 51

15 Kindness and Self-Care 55

16 Cultivating Allowing 58

17 Popping the Illusion 63

18 Not Buying It 66

19 Getting Unstuck 69

20 Humanizing the Mind 73

21 Words, Letters, and Ink 76

22 Be Patient 80

23 Disarming Anxiety 84

24 Who Am I, Realty 87

25 The Expansive Self 90

26 Let It Be 93

27 Drop the Stories 97

28 Behavior Matters! 102

29 Discover Your Passions 105

30 Finding Your North Star 109

31 Opening the Right Doors 112

32 Making Wise Choices 115

33 Do, No Trying 118

34 Exercise Kindness 121

35 Don't Feed It 124

36 Body Surfing Emotions 128

37 Refocus, Reconnect, and Redirect 132

38 Moving with Barriers 136

39 Lay Off the But(t)s 141

40 Unhooking from the Past 144

41 Grounding in the Now 148

42 Releasing Attachments 151

43 Drifting Along 155

44 Take Good Care 158

45 Reclaim Your Power 161

46 The Gift of Gratitude 165

47 Paying It Forward 169

48 Taking the Reins 172

49 Inhabiting Your Body 175

50 Growing Through Adversity 179

51 One Step at a Time 182

52 The Journey Ahead 187

Interviews

Forsyth resides in Schenectady, NY; Eifert resides in Port Angeles, WA.

Editorial Reviews

“John and Georg have done it again: this is now their third superb book for radically transforming the way we respond to anxiety. In fifty-two bite-sized chapters, they’ll show you a wide variety of simple yet powerful ways to powerfully change your relationship with fear, anxiety, and insecurity in all their different forms. You’ll learn not just how to disarm anxiety, but how to actively utilize it to build a rich and meaningful life. If you want to get past your blocks and barriers, develop a deep sense of inner security, and do those important things that really scare you—this is the book for you!”
—Russ Harris, author of The Happiness Trap

Russ Harris

“Anxiety Happens is a gem of a book. It reads like a gentle journey with a wise and caring guide. The highly expert authors guide you every step of the way, as you develop the willingness, self-compassion, and wisdom needed to embrace the fullness of a life well lived. It’s just excellent.”
—Dennis Tirch, PhD, author of The Compassionate-Mind Guide to Overcoming Anxiety

Dennis Tirch

“Forsyth and Eifert have written a rare book, which combines solid scholarship, enormously practical tools, and an overflowing heart. Anxiety is pervasive, perhaps these days more than ever. To find a deep sense of confidence and inner peace, I highly recommend this book.”
—Rick Hanson, PhD, New York Times bestselling author of Resilient

Rick Hanson

“There are fifty-two weeks in the year, and fifty-two nuggets of gold glinting in this short book. You don’t have to climb to the top of a mountain to find your guru: John Forsyth and Georg Eifert are sitting, figuratively speaking, right in this book. They guide you through well-tested, poignant exercises and mind changers for stopping anxiety from interfering with the life you want to live. And they talk to you the way they suggest you talk to yourself: with compassion, openness, acceptance, and wisdom.”
—Ian M. Evans, FRSNZ, professor emeritus of psychology at Massey University, New Zealand; and author of How and Why People Change

Ian M. Evans