Overcoming Stress: Advice for People Who Give Too Much

by Tim Cantopher

Stress can lead to extensive psychological and physical suffering, but there are choices you can make that will reduce your stress and improve your ability to cope. This book offers not just the facts but a message of hope. Overcoming Stress looks not only at the causes of stress but also at the manifestations and psychological conditions, such as physical illness, anxiety, panic disorder, OCD, phobic states, and depression. It offers information on both acute treatments and longer term management in avoiding stress and its ill effects. “Stress will always be with us, and we will continue to sufferâ€"unless we choose to change,â€� says Dr. Cantopher. “The good news is that this is possibleâ€"stress-related illness is avoidable, and if you change, you will attain happiness.â€�

Genres: Nonfiction, Self Help

129 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 24, 2015

About the author

Dr. Tim Cantopher studied at University College, London, and University College Hospital. He trained as a psychiatrist at St James' Hospital, Portsmouth, and St George's, University of London. He has been a member of the Royal College of Psychiatrists since 1983 and was elected fellow of the college in 1999. He worked as a consultant psychiatrist with the Priory Group of Hospitals from 1993 until his retirement from clinical practice in 2015. Depressive Illness: The Curse of the Strong was Dr. Cantopher's first, and remains his bestselling, book.

Reviews

[Slade Hogan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I learned how to manage things, cut myself some slack, and live a healthier life. The book was short, easy to read, and had a lot of useful information.

[Amanda · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sadly this book was archived before I could download to read it. It has been added to my TBR and I’ll keep an eye out for it again in the future or at my local library.

[Maria Elmvang · Rating 2 out of 5]

I received an ARC of this book from Netgalley. I requested it because I've suffered from stress myself, and as it is an affliction some people never recover from 100%, I wanted to see if Tim Cantopher offered any useful hints on how to prevent it.

Unfortunately I found the book lacking. He made some good points along the way, but as a whole, I didn't really find anything I could use, and his main premise (stress doesn't make you ill, you make yourself ill) - while true - could be damaging to some people suffering from stress. Stress is already a "mind over matter" issue to many people, and this is just another voice telling them that they're doing this to themselves so (reading between the lines) they should be able to get over it. I understand the very valid point Tim is getting at (lazy people seldom get stressed, as they care less about expectations), but thought the wording in that section problematic as this wasn't made sufficiently clear.

His admonition to STOP is spot on though - there's no way to get better while still being on the treadmill. Slowing down might be sufficient for some, but the vast majority need to get off completely.

So take a flip through it, there may be aspects of it you can use. But I'd take everything with a huge grain of salt, and as many people suffering from stress have no salt left to take things with, I might suggest giving this one a miss.

[Tanya Marlow · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was looking forward to this book, because I’d enjoyed his other one, Overcoming Depression. But I found myself with lots of question marks over this book. If he had just been talking about run-of-the-mill stress, then I would have been on board with his self-help, no-nonsense approach of how to avoid stressful situations and people, but towards the end of the book he mixed it in with more serious mental health issues, which is when I found it a bit reductionistic. It also contains the now-outdated theory that stress causes stomach ulcers, whereas recent research has shown that in fact bacteria is the cause.

It’s good if read with a large pinch of salt, remembering that this is just one man’s opinion, and that others, both medics and counsellors, would not agree with all his assertions.

*Disclosure; I was given an advance copy for review purposes; this is my honest review.*

[Jason Panella · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm an anxious person, and stress has slowly been eroding my health over the past few years. So, why not read something helpful. And this was helpful—it's practical, thoughtful, and surprisingly dense for such a short book.

Maybe it's a little too short, though? Dr. Cantopher often says, "you can read more about _____ in my book ______." Helpful for him, but not so much for the person who doesn't have said books.