Shining a Light on the Dark Night: Depression
This list has been updated to include books on being present with strong emotions, building resilience, deepening understanding for oneself and for others, and children's books. Many children's books address anxiety, anger, and grief in ways that allow parents and children to talk about difficult emotions and to acknowledge them kindly without trying to eradicate them. Many of the books for adults are written by persons who examine depression or bipolar disorder from a personal perspective: religious, scientific, and/or literary and philosophical. All materials and authors illumine in their unique fashion.
Farrington gives a brief and poetic exploration of depression within the context of spirituality.
From a personal and psychiatric perspective, Jamison offers insights and anecdotes that help us understand how bipolar disorder challenges individuals.
MacDonald writes an eloquent account of how her father's death plunged her into depression and how she tried to heal herself through a relationship with a hawk. Her writing prowess combined with her literary acumen and societal observations make the book memorable and deep.
Solomon gives an exhaustive and helpful view into depression based on research, anecdotes, and personal experience. If you know anyone who struggles with depression, this book can give you some compassion for their struggle and a glimpse into therapies that might be of assistance.
This book is concise and offers simple and practical assistance as well as resources for people to tap if they wish to do more.
Hanson writes from the experience of needing to manage his own difficult mind states and the effective strategies he practices to gain and maintain equanimity.
Brach provides insight into the need to get beyond destructive self-criticism in order not only to enjoy life, but also to connect and contribute to others.
A companion piece to "Radical Acceptance," "Radical Compassion" provides exercises for the reader to cultivate compassionate thought and action. It is a healing book.
Price, a therapist who is on the spectrum, provides a readable and well-researched book that links depression in individuals on the spectrum to the stress they experience in masking their autism. Price provides suggestions not only for individuals on the spectrum but those who are not in helping us all achieve a healthier community.
Marchiano taps the power of storytelling, often through fairy tales we all know, to guide women to open to their wisdom and power. While clearly possessing academic knowledge, Marchiano's book is leagues away from dull academic prose.
Advancements in the exploration of ADHD help us understand how to manage a way of being that can have great benefits, not just perceived drawbacks.
This lovely book allows children and their adults to explore the difficult emotion and process of grief in a manageable and loving way. Helping us talk about hard emotions early on in a way that is neither frightening nor dismissive creates habits that lead to emotional resiliency.
What, you may ask, is a book about listening doing in a book list about depression? Feeling misunderstood is a key part of depression--either the perception that others do not understand us, or that we, ourselves, cannot hear ourselves. Learning how to listen to others creates connection, and connection heals depression. This very interesting book not only provides insights into how to listen, but also references organizations that are working to create more understanding amongst ourselves.
"The Worry Balloon"--how I wish I had read this book when my kids were young. This book helps parents and kids talk about their worries and ways to shrink their power. The techniques in the story give people ways to talk about and soften the grip anxiety can have. Knowing these techniques as a child will help them manage their emotions in a healthy way.
This book shows in a few pages what many books cannot deliver: how sensory challenges can wear a person down, lead to a meltdown, and impact mental health for various reasons. Academic and how-to books cannot help us develop empathy for persons on the spectrum, and often neither can they help persons on the spectrum understand how important it is for them to care for themselves and to feel confident in their choices. "Sensory: Life on the Spectrum" can provide a window into a way many humans experience life and help persons who are not on the spectrum understand the challenges and perhaps how to give proper space and kindness. It also gives persons on the spectrum permission to meet their needs.
Kevin Henkes endearing drawings bring lightness to the painful anxiety many children experience. The story shows how Wemberly's mind turns to anxiety and then sweetly ends with her and a friend sharing how they are learning to manage their anxiety.