Depressed and Anxious: The Dialectical Behavior Therapy Workbook for Overcoming Depression & Anxiety [Paperback]

Thomas Marra (Author)

Book Description

Series: New Harbinger Self-Help Workbook | Publication Date: May 1, 2004

As if coping with feelings of depression or anxiety by themselves weren’t difficult enough, clinical research suggests that as many as 60 percent of depression sufferers concurrently experience some kind of anxiety disorder. If you are in this group, it is quite common to simultaneously experience profound loss of energy and initiative along with substantial stress and anxiety. Caught between the push and pull of these two conditions, you might find that neither is easy even to recognize, much less cope with. But, by adapting for the first time the powerful techniques of dialectical behavior therapy, or DBT, to the special needs of people troubled by co-occurring depression and anxiety, this book offers powerful tools for overcoming this condition. DBT is designed for people who have lost hope and meaningfulness in life, who question their own ability to be influential in their world, who find their emotions intolerable, and who find that they try to escape and avoid important aspects of their lives. DBT may be just the tool you’ve been looking for to move beyond depression and anxiety.

The step-by-step exercises, techniques, and worksheets in this book work to identify painful inner conflicts that might underlie depression and anxiety symptoms. Then, by negotiating a series of compromises, the techniques help acknowledge these issues while limiting their ability to interfere with your life—effectively reducing the extent to which your emotions govern who you are or what you are capable of. This book explains mindfulness techniques that encourage participation in the world and allow easier adaptation to change. It treats the difference between “threat cues” and “safety cues” and how recognizing and reacting to them constructively can reduce the effects of anxiety and depression. By teaching you how to monitor and limit negative self-evaluations and how to best tolerate negative experience, this book gives you a powerful set of tools for the control of co-occurring depression and anxiety.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Marra's book penetrates the jargon of dialectics, making this fundamental DBT concept accessible to his readers. His stylistic and prosaic voice makes this an eminently readable self-help manual even as he draws upon psychological research, clinical practice, and classic literature."
− Scott E. Spradlin, MA, author of Don’t Let Your Emotions Run Your Life: How Dialectical Behavior Therapy Can Put You in Control

From the Publisher

An expert in dialectical behavior therapy, or DBT, shows readers who struggle with both anxiety and depression how to use ideas from this powerful therapy to relieve their symptoms and regain control of their lives. Readers use mindfulness techniques and cognitive behavioral strategies to tolerate distress, silence negative self-talk, and resolve inner dialectical conflict.

· Statisticians report that more than 50 million Americans suffer from depression and anxiety
· This is the first book to address co-occurring depression and anxiety
· From a leading expert in dialectical behavior therapy, or DBT—the newest, breakthrough model in psychology today

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 254 pages
• Publisher: New Harbinger Publications; 1 edition (May 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1572243635
• ISBN-13: 978-1572243637
• Product Dimensions: 11.1 x 8.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (25 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #50,186 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #75 in Books > Health, Fitness & Dieting > Mental Health > Anxiety Disorders
  • #78 in Books > Health, Fitness & Dieting > Aging > Depression

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

87 of 99 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars more questions than answers, did not work for me, March 16, 2005

By 

Self Helper "Self-helper" (Fort Lauderdale) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Depressed and Anxious: The Dialectical Behavior Therapy Workbook for Overcoming Depression & Anxiety (Paperback)

Dialectical behavior therapy (a form of Cognitive Therapy), this book is based upon, is derived, in part, from a process in which seemingly contradictory facts or ideas are weighed against each other to come up with a resolution or balance. For instance, you might learn about accepting who you are, faults and all, while at the same time making changes in your thoughts and behaviors. Sounds great, doesn't it?

The first 10 pages were extremely interesting and hopeful. But then, suddenly, the book becomes cryptic and hard to follow.

I consider myself to be someone of at least average intelligence with a BA in psychology. I've read and used many of self-help books with a degree of success.

As much as I wanted to like this book, I failed to understand its philosophical foreign concepts. Even simple ideas, felt more complex than needed to be, given some esoteric definitions. I wish I could have given you an example, but unfortunately, I was so lost in this book.

I am not sure who is at fault: the author for not explaining it, myself for failing to understand, or DBT being so complex, but after about 2/3 of this book, I finally mindfully accepted that I needed to give up.

I my opinion,there are two problems with this book.

1. The author is just unable to explain new concepts to a newbie, especially when they are so "new-age". Marra is more suited to be a researcher, rather than write a self-help book for a patient who is confused and reduced by his/her problems in the first place and has no prior background in psychology or philosophy. (It can be done, just read Mind over Mood by Greenberg and you'll see what a clear and well organized self-help book has to look like).

2. Quite possibly, DBT is not well suited to be self-taught from a book.

At some point, I will give this book another go, and if I feel any different, I will amend my review accordingly. By no means, I would give up on DBT since study after study confirms its superior effectiveness in treating Borderline Personality Disorder as well as more common intense emotions.

34 of 38 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars A Pithy work, March 19, 2006

By 

G. Freeman - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Depressed and Anxious: The Dialectical Behavior Therapy Workbook for Overcoming Depression & Anxiety (Paperback)

In purchasing T. Marra's work on Dialectical Behavior Therapy, I was believing I purchased a workbook suitable for use in session that would assist my struggling client's work through the complicated issues of low stress tolerance and other areas of dysregultaion. Alas, I was greeted with another author utilizing advanced terminology and contradicting the endorsement that this manual would "penetrate the jargon of dialectics." It is a useless manual for my clientele. Marra's work is yet another writing that requires too much effort at untangling his psycho language. The client's read the material and are lost at how to use the skills in a manner that will increase their quality of life. This is also my complaint with Marsha Linahan's works. Her material is appropriate for graduate work but not in the trenches of the clinical office. If an agency can afford her tapes, the material is then broken down but most non-profit agenices are not so fortunate. With Marra's manual, I discovered more of the same on my search to find materials helpful for breaking down the complicated techniques so they may be easily applied with the individual in session and in groups. GFL LCSW

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars DBT can do miracles, June 9, 2007

By 

Hearts2k "Hearts2k" (New Hampshire) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Depressed and Anxious: The Dialectical Behavior Therapy Workbook for Overcoming Depression & Anxiety (Paperback)

Can a book save your life? This book saved mine. The book along with therapy.
This book was rather dry reading but the end of the book contains lots of worksheets that can make all the difference. I wish this author would do a book of JUST worksheets. It is a book that was written more for the professional therapists or people studying this type of therapy but I have used it in group therapies and it is powerful and helpful.
When I first started, I tried to read the book but didn't understand it so I ripped out the last 1/2 of the book (Pages 105 - 180)..those were the worksheets and they made all the difference. After that I was ready for pages 59 - 105.
I eventually made it from page 1 and on but it is slow reading.
I know I only gave this book a 3, but it saved my life. It is just that it took three readings before I could really understand it.