6 of my favourite self-help books

Four years ago, when I was in the midst of the darkest period of my life, when life was hard, and I could see no way out, I started reading anything and everything that could possibly give me even the tiniest glimmer of hope. Those self-help books were my life line. they reminded me that I wasn’t alone in feeling the way I did. That even in my darkest hour, there was a way up for me, that I just had to hang on, work through the pain and believe that things would get better.

These are six of my favourite self-help books. Ones that are littered with my notes, underlined, dog eared and loved.

Carry On, Warrior by Glennon Doyle

Truly relatable. One to pick up and put down, read in one go, or read twenty times. She’ll have you laughing one minute, and crying the next. Glennon is a beautiful soul, and this book is life changing. She shows us that we are all broken but there is hope.

Reasons to Stay Alive by Matt Haig

The book to read if you suffer from anxiety and depression. This book is unconventional, but it has helped so many people. It reminds you that you are not alone, that there will be a time when you will feel better than you do now, it reminds you that there is a future for you.

“Be brave. Be Strong. Breathe, and keep going. You will thank yourself later.’’

May Cause Mircacles by Gabrielle Bernstein

This is an absolute game changer of a book. It’s a 6 week course that will enrich your spirit with love and make you aware of your ego, fear based patterns. I thought I knew about all these spiritual teachings, and I guess to an extent I do. However this course has enabled me to practice these teachings rather than ‘know’ them. I cannot rate this book highly enough.

Radical Self Love by Gala Daling

I love Gala Daling. So much. This is a super positive book. It is filled to the brim with tips on how to cheer up your life, do more fun things and how to learn to love yourself. It has assignments for you to undertake, and is full of  tips and ideas that are useful and easy to implement in your life.

GIRL, WASH YOUR FACE by Rachel Hollis

A life-changing book. It might not tell you anything you haven’t heard before BUT it breaks down all the lies that we have grown up with, giving you the truth instead and hacks to work aroudn them. It’s a warm, authentic, funny and motivating book. I really enjoyed it – it made me realise I am not alone in how I feel.

Girl, get ahold of your life. Stop medicating, stop hiding out, stop being afraid, stop giving away pieces of your life, stop saying you can’t do it. Stop the negative self-talk, stop abusing your body, stop putting it off for tomorrow or Monday or next year. Stop crying about what happened and take control of what happens next. Get up, right now. Rise up from where you’ve been, scrub away the tears and the pain of yesterday, and start again… 

Present over Perfect

This is one of the best books I read around this time. I’ve talked before about busyness and letting go of perfect, and this book really gave me the kick I needed to put my thoughts into action. It’s a great reminder to slow down, to savour each and every moment and to stop trying to compete with myself to be perfect all of the time. One to fill the margins with notes, and read over and over again.

What are your favourite self-help books?