There's nothing like turning to a good book in times of trouble. It can take your mind off of work, health worries, family troubles and everyday frustrations, and temporarily transport you to a different world.
So it's no surprise that books can help us through some of the toughest times in our lives, for guidance, support, advice, or sometimes even just the knowledge that we're not alone in what we're going through.
Read on to discover which self help books for women may well help you if you're going through a difficult time...
To help you through...trauma
Rise: Surviving and Thriving After Trauma, Sian Williams
The news presenter has penned her own guide to surviving trauma, after her experiences presenting some of the most hard-hitting stories of the last decade, and having gone through breast cancer in 2015. Sian herself is a trained trauma assessor, having helped many of her BBC colleagues through the stresses of the reality of their jobs, and has since put strategies in place to help herself cope with her change in health. A book to help you through difficult experiences, from someone who knows.
To help you through...everyday anxieties
Don't Sweat The Small Stuff, Richard Carlson
Carlson's book details small, simple strategies for coping with life, and living more peacefully. So whether you find yourself fuming at the irritating man with loud music on the tube, or furious that the dinner you've spent an hour cooking has now burnt, Don't Sweat The Small Stuff will help you to put things into perspective. By making small daily changes and asking yourself whether or not it will still bother you in a year, Carlson aims to help make every day a little bit less stressful.
BUY NOW from Amazon from £6.99
To help you through...divorce
Wild: A Journey from Lost to Found, Cheryl Strayed
Cheryl's book tells her own story, about how she took off on a journey around the west coast of America after a marriage breakdown and her mum's sudden death. Often touted as a memoir to inspire the independent woman, Cheryl's book will make you see that there is a life after divorce - and that it can be spectacular.
BUY NOW from Amazon from £6.29
To help you through...day to day problems
The Power Of Now, Eckhart Tolle
A spiritual teacher and author admired by Oprah Winfrey, Tolle suggests that we shouldn't even believe in problems. He says, "Problems are mind made. Ultimately, it's about realising there are no problems. Only situations - to be dealt with now, or left alone and accepted as part of the present moment until they change or can be dealt with. Ask yourself what "problem" you have right now, not next year, tomorrow, or five minutes from now. You might be carrying in your mind the insane burden of 100 things you will or may have to do in the future, instead of focusing your attention on the one thing you can do now. Make the decision to create no more problems.
To help you through...bereavement
The Grief Book, Debbie Moore and Carolyn Cowperthwaite
Hailed as a no-nonsense way of tackling grief, Cowperthwaite and Moore's book understands that grief is unique, and no one person's operates in the same way. The authors provide strategies to coping with your bereavement at every stage of the process. Plus, Carolyn is a clinical nurse specialist and qualified counsellor who has worked with terminally ill people for 20 years - so you can rest assured that the advice is sound and from a place of in-depth experience.
To help you through...money woes
Your Money or Your Life: Transforming Your Relationship With Money and Regaining Financial Independence, Joe Dominguez and Vicki Robin
This one will gently help to guide you into re-thinking how you interact with the money you earn. Dominguez and Robin's book will help you to re-evaluate what you priortise in life, and floats around ideas such as the one that you pay for those 'little luxuries' in hours of your life. A must-read for anyone in debt or going through money troubles.
BUY NOW from Amazon from £12.82 for paperback
To help you through...depression
Hyperbole and a Half, Allie Brosh
Her blog has already garnered millions of visitors, and now, Allie Brosh has put her musings into book form with Hyperbole and a Half. Allie has suffered from depression herself, so with her hilarious new book, knows exactly how to help. Filled with funny little stories about her everyday mishaps, and an honest account of her own experience with depression, Allie's book is a great way to start helping yourself through a tough time.
Amy Hunt is Life Channel Editor at womanandhome.com, having been with the brand since 2015. She began as the magazine's features assistant before moving over to digital as a News and Features Writer, before becoming Senior Writer, and now a Channel Editor. She has worked on either women's lifestyle websites previously too—including Woman's Weekly, Goodto.com, Woman, and Woman's Own. In 2019, Amy won the Digital Journalist of the Year award at the AOP Awards, for her work on womanandhome.com. She is passionate about everything from books, to homes, to food and the latest news on the royal family. When she isn't editing or updating articles on cleaning, homewares, the newest home gadgets, or the latest books releases for the website, she's busy burying her nose in a gripping thriller, practising yoga, or buying new homeware of her own.
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