Category: Books

Exciting news – Understanding and Managing Stress now out!

PsychologyItBetter is all about making the insights of psychology clear to people in useful, accessible ways. Part of of how I try to do this is the range of ‘PocketBooks’ – concise, informative volumes which help translate research into practice. I’ve some news on this front- The latest PsychologyItBetter.com PocketBook – ‘Understanding and Managing Stress‘ is out now.

What inspired ‘Understanding and Managing Stress’?

The last couple of years have, for me, been marked by a lot of stress. I’ve had some great life events (welcoming my second child into the world being a highlight) and some challenging ones (competing professional pressures being a big feature). Through all the ups and downs I have experienced high levels of stress that were, personally, unprecedented. I didn’t always react well. In fact, I sometimes reacted in ways that left me disappointed with myself, and worried about how to carry on juggling my life.

I managed change my bleak outlook on the world. But I didn’t (couldn’t) do it alone. I was lucky to have an incredibly supportive partner. My work colleagues also helped, and I formed a number of new social relationships which were (and are) a source of invaluable support. I also realised that, as a researching and teaching psychologist, I had access to another amazing resource – the body of scientific evidence which attempts to understand how stress functions and how we can best manage it. I threw myself into this literature. The strategies and ideas you will find in this book represent some of the areas I found insightful and of the most use. ‘Understanding and Managing Stress’ is my attempt to crystallise these key findings. Importantly, it also tries to translate the (sometimes abstract) ideas into real, actionable suggestions. It provides information you can use to help understand the reasons why we become stressed and also actions you can take to manage it. There is no such thing as a quick fix for stress, and I don’t think many of us will ever be 100% stress free. But a good grounding in the theory and practice of stress management has helped me enormously, and I am confident it will help you to.

What’s in the book?

Whilst we may not be able to remove the sources of stress in our lives, we all have the potential to better manage how we respond to them. However, to do so effectively, we must also understand how stress operates. Drawing on a combination of decades of scientific evidence and his own personal experience, I have attempted to explains the processes which underpin our responses to stressful situations. The book also also outlines clear, effective ways to translate theory to practice – methods you can use starting today.
This book comprises 10 sections, each of which concisely and clearly describes a psychological concept which is relevant to understanding and managing stress. Each ends with a ‘how do I use this?’ segment which presents one or two realistic ways your new insight will help you. How our biology and psychology interact when we are stressed, the role of time perception, and the effects of mindfulness and self-affirmation are just some of the topics discussed. We all want to reduce the amount of stress we experience in our lives – and this book will be an invaluable aid in doing so.

Where can I get it?

I have found writing this PocketBook enormously beneficial – I hope you find reading it a helps you better understand and manage the stress in your life too.You can find the Amazon UK edition here, and the US/World editions here. Check it out today! It is also available via KOBO, Apple, Barnes and Nobel (NOOK) and many other retailers – just search ‘Daniel Frings’.

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