Talk Yourself Better: A Confused Person's Guide to Therapy, Counselling and Self-Help

by Ariane Sherine

'Brilliant - makes a baffling world comprehensible' - Jeremy Vine'It's everything you didn't know about therapy or were afraid to ask, but by no means the daunting read you might imagine. Sherine, an award-winning comedian and writer for TV and radio, has persuaded such people as Stephen Fry, David Baddiel and Dolly Alderton to write warts-and-all pieces for the book about their struggles with mental health' - The TimesSo you've decided you want to try therapy. But which type of therapy is best for you? Do you know your CBT from your DBT, your cognitive analytic therapy from your psychoanalysis? Talk Yourself Better cuts through the confusion when it comes to choosing a therapist. Exploring all the different kinds of therapy available, Ariane Sherine offers an entertaining insight into each type, including interviews with celebrities, writers and therapists themselves to help make taking that first step a whole lot easier.· Funny and clear Q&A sections guide you through the differences between therapies· Real life stories give an honest account of the pros and cons of each form of therapy· Therapist interviews give an insight into why a counsellor would champion their chosen form of practice· Features contributions from household names such as Stephen Fry, Charlie Brooker, Dolly Alderton and David Baddiel.This is an essential overview of the bewildering range of options available to you when you want to solve a psychological or emotional problem. Friendly and accessible, Talk Yourself Better stresses the importance of talk therapy in improving your mental health.

Genres: Self Help, Psychology, Nonfiction, Mental Health

354 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 25, 2018

About the author

Ariane Sherine is a comedy writer and journalist. She started her career in 2002 when she came runner-up in the BBC Talent New Sitcom Writers' Award, and then wrote for BBC shows including My Family, Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps and The Story of Tracy Beaker, as well as Channel 4's Countdown and ITV1's The New Worst Witch.

In 2008, she moved into journalism and has now written more than 75 columns for the Guardian, as well as travel features for The Sunday Times, book reviews for the Observer, columns for The Spectator, album reviews for NME and features for Esquire, the Independent and Independent on Sunday.

In 2009, she published The Atheist's Guide to Christmas (HarperCollins), then had a nervous breakdown and didn't write for 3.5 years. After years of therapy and medication, she felt qualified to write Talk Yourself Better (2018), a book about the different forms of counselling on offer. This was followed in 2020 by How to Live to 100, a co-write with David Conrad, a consultant in public health (Hachette).

Her latest book for Hachette is The How of Happy, another co-write with David Conrad. Her debut novel Shitcom is out now.

Reviews

[Anton · Rating 5 out of 5]

An honest and necessary book! 5*

I have run into "Talk Yourself Better" completely incidentally... It turns out (to my absolute surprise) that the author and I work in the same office! So when the workday is done and I go home to switch off my brain and let the sweet-sweet oblivion of sleep take me to the next day... It turns out Ariane does quite the opposite. When the workday is done she is upping the ante and switches her mind in a turbo-charged mode and works on her book! Amazing!!

This aside, "Talk Yourself Better" is a great but most importantly useful read. As Ariane writes herself, there is still too much stigma about a need for therapy... The book helps to shine the light on all the questions you wanted to have an answer to but weren't sure where even to begin... What is therapy all about? Who needs it? What kind of therapy exists out there? How do they differ? How do I choose the right therapy for myself? And even answers cheeky questions a la "how much does it cost?".

The book is structured as a lighthearted dialogue between the author and her more ignorant alter ego. It provides an in-depth Q&A as well as accounts from the different people in therapy and therapists themselves.

"Talk Yourself Better" also features a very brave and deeply honest account of Ariane's personal experience with seeking help and benefiting from the therapy sessions. She is absolutely incredible! Ariane is such a lovely person in spite of all the 'demons' she had to conquer. I have nothing but respect for her strength and her character! (and she also writes great...and she types CRAZY fast. to clarify: I envy all of the above.)

I hope more people will discover this book to answer the questions they may have and also get inspired by Ariane's personal story.

5*

[Tim · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is not a book I’d normally have picked up, but having heard Ariane speak about it and the experiences that let her to write it, I had to give it a try. For anyone experiencing mental health issues, this book has got to be an invaluable resource, covering all the non-drug treatment options in an easily accessible format. Each description includes accounts from both a practitioner and a client (some of the latter being well known figures). Even if briefly, the benefits of appropriate medication are also discussed. For the casual, disinterested reader with no direct experience of mental health problems, the book may seem to have less relevance. But it is worthwhile to learn of what goes on in the mental health world, the many problems people suffer from and how they can be helped (there really are a vast number of treatment options out there). What comes across strongly is that finding the right treatment depends very much on the patient, the nature of their illness and finding a therapist with who they can form good rapport.

[Kat Sommers · Rating 4 out of 5]

This kind of explanation of all the different types and modalities of therapy is well overdue. Very useful.

[Reno · Rating 4 out of 5]

Useful and relevant to those in the UK but the humour might not be to everyone's taste. Great interviews with therapists and their clients.

[Lily Cariad · Rating 5 out of 5]

It’s so simple and easy to understand- it’s really helped me. Love this author!

[Maria Iskander · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dear Ariane,

Disclaimer: This book review is more like an open letter.

To begin with, your book was very insightful. I was enlightened to learn about client stories as well as therapists' counselling techniques. On a personal note, I was very compassionate about the hate that you received over your bus campaign. Being an Orthodox Christian, I was embarrassed to learn that people threatened you and treated you poorly. I hope you know that Christianity is not like that at all. It is all about love, and without love we are nothing.

Back to topic, the book left me reflecting on how to help others. This is a very important value of mine. At the same time, the book has solidified how I must keep balanced in serving others through counselling. Therefore, I will use the skills from this book when I become a certified counsellor.

Overall, please keep writing practical and funny books. Moreover, if you have the chance, please review my books. I would be honored to have your perspective- regardless of religious differences.

Yours sincerely,
Maria Iskander (Author).

[Sofia K. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I bought this book because I was interested to learn about the different types of therapy before taking the leap. I was indeed informed but it felt quite long for the purpose.
I like the idea of how structured the book was with three parts for each type : intro-therapist-client. It helps to compare but I felt some questions were irrelevant to the subject (asking the therapist what would you do if you were not a therapist).

[GM]

DNF - 5 Aug to 13 Sep.

I found the first 20%, the opening in particular, very interesting. the author was humorous and engaging. but by 40% I was forcing myself to read it because of how textbook-y/ revision style this book was. would be interesting to those who are really interested in learning about the wide variety of therapy methods out there but it's not for me.

Jackie's book.

[Jools · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a good book if you’re considering therapy it gives you some great explanations into lots of different therapies. The narrator gets on your nerves a little with rally silly not witty questions. Take that away and you got it from a therapists and clients perspective.

[Hannah Dee · Rating 3 out of 5]

The interviews with practitioners of various schools of therapy and counseling, and with their clients are great. Gives real insight. The cheesy intro to each type of therapy - a mock interview with a total nobhead - less great. Could have been 5* but those intros man. Ugh.

[Renetta Neal · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the way this book is written and I feel it is just what is needed if you want to know about some of the types of therapy that are out there! Good for professionals and those seeking therapy too! Much needed resource :-)

[Indy · Rating 3 out of 5]

vulgariserend overzicht van soorten therapie

[Maddy Haywood · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found it a helpful read, but maybe a bit longer than I had the attention span for. Very funny and light hearted while also being informative and serious.

[Claire · Rating 4 out of 5]

Possibly the only Bibliotherapy you need. Easy to understand. Great!

[Paul Pryce · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found the explanation of different talking cures really helpful.