Shake It Off!: Build Emotional Strength for Daily Happiness

by Rafael Santandreu

"Psychotherapist Santandreu takes a practical look at finding happiness ... His tough love approach will help readers looking to stop negative self-talk and transform their inner dialogue." - PUBLISHERS WEEKLY

Bestselling author Rafael Santandreu knows how to ensure our happiness in life. One of the most prestigious psychologists in Spain, he has established his own renowned center of psychotherapy and has laid the foundations of a new era in the treatment of emotional disorders.

Teaching a philosophy of rational acceptance and emotional resilience, Santandreu allows us to use our capacity for logic to good effect in everyday life. We do not need to be buffeted by our emotions or to catastrophize our lives. Building on the work of the imminent psychologist Albert Ellis, Santandreu adds his own take on how to build our capacity for dealing with life's problems.

Shake It Off! offers ways
• Build self-esteem
• Improve personal relationships
• Alleviate feelings of depression and anxiety
• Unravel irrational beliefs and unhealthy thought-patterns

With case studies and suggestions throughout, you will learn how to stop obsessive, unhelpful thoughts and create a life which is free from fears and open to adventure.

WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING ABOUT SHAKE IT OFF!

"With so much uncertainty in the world today, you need a robust psychological approach to avoid feeling overwhelmed. This book is a worldwide bestseller, and you can completely understand why when you apply its ideas to daily life." - Kindred Spirit Magazine

"This philosophy of life is brilliant. It really helps you to become a better professional and person" - David Ferrer, top 10 tennis player

"Without doubt, this is the best method to acquire emotional strength" - Dr Luis Miguel Martin, psychiatrist.

"With this book you will initiate a marvelous trip to inner peace and fulfillment" - Manolo García, world-famous musician.

"Please read this book. It's the best tool to obtain the best mental health for the average man or woman" - Santiago Dexeus MD, professional and award-winning

Genres: Psychology, Self Help

288 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 2021

About the author

Rafael Santandreu Lorite

Allá por los años 90 estudié en la facultad de psicología de la Universidad de Barcelona y, al acabar, me inscribí en el Colegio Oficial de Psicólogos de Cataluña, con número 8711.

A partir de ahí, inicié un periodo de formación intenso en diferentes formas de psicoterapia. Estuve en Inglaterra, en la Universidad de Reading y en Arezzo, Italia, en el Centro di Terapia Strategica, trabajando con el célebre psicólogo Giorgio Nardone, al que me une una gran amistad.

En la década de 2000 trabajé como profesor en la Universidad Ramon Llull, traduje muchos libros de psicología para profesionales y fui redactor-jefe de la revista de psicología Mente Sana, junto a Jorge Bucay.

Después de muchos años de ejercicio de la psicoterapia, me decidí a publicar mi primer libro Escuela de felicidad, que se encuentra descatalogado en estos momentos. A éste le siguió El arte de No amargarse la vida, que se ha convertido en un éxito en muchos países. Y, finalmente, he publicado Las gafas de la felicidad, mi obra más completa hasta el momento.

En la actualidad, reparto mi trabajo entre la psicoterapia con pacientes –mi gran pasión-, la divulgación a través de libros y programas de tv como Para todos la 2, de TVE y la formación de médicos y psicólogos.

Reviews

[Maxine (Booklover Catlady) · Rating 1 out of 5]

Boy, this book made me SO angry and I think others battling severe real mental health challenges could feel the same, if you read my somewhat long review I share why.

I had a lot of issues with this audiobook and it’s message. Firstly, the author narrates it personally and it just doesn’t work. Some are just not meant to be audiobook narrators. His voice at times sounded like the automated voices found on YouTube videos and I didn’t enjoy listening but persevered anyway.

I have very real diagnosed mental health challenges. I have Complex PTSD from a number of serious traumas including facing death twice in horrific circumstances. This PTSD is debilitating. I also have severe chronic depression, the type where getting out of bed is a massive effort and talking takes up too much energy. Let’s add anxiety, a lot of it with my PTSD as trusted people (like Doctors) did things so wrong that I cannot now trust anyone in a “white coat” and can have a full meltdown if a hospital test needs to be done. I also am Autistic and depression and anxiety go hand in hand with Autism in both men and women, up to 90% report this. Only 4% are in employment in the UK.

Rafael’s book in a nutshell breaks all depression, fears, worries and anxiety down to being neurotic (a belittling word used throughout). Telling us we just need to think positive and reframe how we view things and voila! No depression, no anxiety. Are you kidding me? Let’s share an example used of a real client of his who comes to him overwhelmingly anxious with low self-esteem and confidence as she is short. Just on 5 feet tall. His treatment is to tell her she is indeed of short stature but that’s ok.

Then we are told she wears high heels all the time, okay that makes sense until he says she’s NEVER had her boyfriend see her without heels on. Ever. That she leaves the heels by the bed to slip in and out of so he never sees. Excuse me? Like he can’t tell her height lying next to her? Did she shower in them too? Her cure by Rafael resulted in her throwing out every pair of heels in exchange for a pair of trainers and flat casual shoes. Mental health cure at its best. I honestly am surprised if that really was a real case.

Everything is broken down to such basic ways to “cure” depression and anxiety. It’s like self-talk is the magic. Changing how you think. Don’t think the worst. Don’t think everything will be catastrophic. Take the bad thoughts and think positive! Okay so let’s try that with 100 war veterans with severe PTSD, maybe with no limbs, maybe with no family as the PTSD changed them so much. Trust me this method won’t work. I tried over and over personally.

His book is based on CBT methods, reframing thoughts. However that method is very resistant to the things many deal with. Autistic people for example due to how they are neurologically wired since birth. You cannot think your way out of feeling so suicidal after 4 months stuck in bed with crippling loneliness, chronic pain and more. How do I know? I tried it, tried it for 10 years, over and over. I know others that are the same, medication can help, sadly the Author plays down often the very real need to be on medication to reset brain wiring before therapy can even start to be effective.

I found the stories told to be as basic as what a school counsellor may deal with and frankly the book made me angry. This silly simple methodology is ineffective for so many. Yet those people try and try again to just change the way they see the world. Until after years they feel more useless, more depressed as they can’t do it. Trust me. I see this a lot. The best therapy for trauma and PTSD is EMDR and surprisingly Equine (horse) therapy that I highly recommend.

I fear many suffering various diagnosis will be just as disheartened by this book as I am. Maybe as angry as I am. I don’t see “psychology” here I see “positive self-help” and again client examples used are not only hard to believe but also people dealing with fairly minor issues. In a nutshell I disliked it.

Just to show I am not negative about any books teaching ways to manage mental health issues I am listening to another right now that IS offering realistic messages and not sugar coating the really hard stuff. You cannot tell anyone who is in the grip of a real mental health crisis to just think their way out of it.

Thanks to NetGalley and the audiobook publisher for my review copy. All options are my own.

Thanks so much for reading my review, I look forward to reading any comments. Feel free to browse my books read for your next great read.
Happy book loving!

[Literary Redhead · Rating 5 out of 5]

Written by one of Spain’s best-known psychologists, SHAKE IT OFF! is a powerhouse self-help book. The author explains how to be stronger, happier and more resilient through the use of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). The strategy retrains the brain to counter self-defeating beliefs and behavior.

I love his warm conversational style and the use of case studies to show CBT’s lasting impact. Brief bullet points end each chapter, making it easy to recall key ideas. Highly recommended for readers who are open to changing their lives by changing their minds.

5 of 5 Stars

Pub Date 10 Jul 2020

Thanks to Arcturus Publishing and NetGalley for the review copy. Opinions are mine.

#Shakeitoff #NetGalley

[Kate Henderson · Rating 1 out of 5]

**Listened to the audiobook**

The title and subtitle for this book sound great - I can see why people would want to pick up this book, or listen. Probably the same reasons as me!

Unfortunately the title sets up false promises. It did not give me ideas to build strength. It was full of personal anecdotes. I took nothing from this book, and feel pretty annoyed that I wasted my time.

[Amanda Abbud Alfano · Rating 4 out of 5]

my dad mailed me this book, so I think he was trying to tell me not so subtly that I need to learn how to shake things off. really good points and also a few debatable ones. I can see how individuals could love or hate it, but I got some great practical takeaways.

[Sophie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was kindly gifted this book in exchange for a review.

Shake It Off! teaches us how to use cognitive, rational methods to improve our lives and achieve mental wellbeing. I had already come across a lot of the concepts in this book before. However, I learned some new things and got some useful ideas from this book. As I would expect with any ‘self-help’ book, certain chapters were more relevant and engaging to me than others.

This book is very easy to read. It is written for a mainstream audience and is meant to be easy to understand. Therefore for ease of reading, it leaves out scientific jargon and references to studies, but the author assures us that it is based on scientific studies and research.

This book is jam-packed with stories and anecdotes, including Santandreu’s personal experiences, accounts of his patients in therapy, ancient fables and fictional stories. I really like this because it demonstrates the author’s points in a relatable way, making the book example-based rather than just theory. The stories are also fun and engaging to read – in fact, Santandreu incorporates quite a lot of humour into this book.

The book is divided into short chapters with additional subheadings within them. I like that each chapter ends with a summary of the main points learned in that chapter. This helps to reinforce the ideas and it is great if you are just skimming through the book to remind yourself of the key points.

I would recommend Shake It Off! to anyone who needs a boost in their mental wellbeing. It would be especially useful for anyone struggling with mental health issues including anxiety or depression. However, I think that anyone could benefit from reading this book.

[Mariam · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is amazing for anybody who is hesitant towards therapy however is on a mission towards self imprivement. The book focuses on many aspects of life; ones personal inner-dialouge, their familial and romantic relationships, and their work-life balance. This in depth analysis and application of changing ones inner-dialogue and outlook helps people become more positive and accepting of whatever comes their way. The biggest takeaway from this book was to be open; be open to change, to negative feelings if they arise, to your flaws, to the flaws of others, to the possibility that perfection is unreachable, and to be open towards any obstacles that may come your way, taking them with grace as obstacles are a natural part of life and obsessing over them only creates more negativity. While a lot of these ideas push the reader to let go of specific ideologies they hold close to them, the writer has one line which stands out well to adress this: "would you rather be right, or get better". Sometimes the ideas and memories we hold so closely to us are the things which cause us emotional distress, and the point of this book is to rid the reader of the emotional distress (not the negative emotions themselves) that they experience. All in all it was a wonderful read and I will defintley be reading it again.

[Isha · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have a bone to pick with this author.

Generally, there are things written here that I agree with, but there are loads that I find abhorrent.

Reading about his conversations with his patients, I was left aghast. I am a nurse by profession, and I thought his communication skills were nowhere near therapeutic. If I were his patient, I would walk out on him. It is essential to present the reality, yet there must always be empathy in both words and actions.

The author also wrote about imagining oneself as a homeless person. He states that we only need food and clothing to be happy as these are our basic human needs. He must have forgotten that shelter is another basic need. I hope authors just stop romanticizing homelessness. I get the idea, but his example just doesn't hit the bull's eye.

The most absurd part is where he wrote "If I had a Ferrari and someone stole it, I wouldn't shed a single tear." DUDE, I WOULD! IT IS A FERRARI, YOU KNOW?!

Again, I get the idea, but the example reeks of hypocrisy.

The best song for this book is 7 Rings by Ariana Grande

Whoever said money can't solve your problems
Must not have had enough money to solve 'em

[Alejandro Padilla · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was gifted this book by my aunt and I was a bit skeptical about it, but after reading it, I learned some stuff. This book was written by a psychologist from Spain and he teaches different ways of building emotional strength through stories between him and some of his patients. His approach was more of a tough love approach and I think that approach helped me the most. An example of this is when he wrote that most problems are mental. Most issues people have are problems such as having low self-esteems, anxiety, and depression which often come from having low emotional strength. And this book is divided into different sections, and each section goes into depth about what causes this problem, how to help yourself get out of it, and an example of a patient that used this solution and how it worked. I think overall its a great book, and I recommend it to anyone who is having any mental issues or anybody who just wants to help build up their emotional strength.

[Olivia's Bookish World · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is the first self help type book I've ever read and I really enjoyed it. It's not the type of book that you sit down and read in a couple of hours though. I've taken my time with it and thought about each chapter as I've finished. It provided a few light bulb moments for me. I love the stories he's included and it made the material and ideas easy to understand and relatable. I also loved the bullet points at the end of the chapters. It helped to sum up the chapter in ways that help you remember what you read. I would recommend this book to others and will probably have my kids read it as they get older.

[joyce w. laudon · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have read a number of psychology titles that have been written by those in the U.S.  This title is by a leading Spanish psychologist.  It is a helpful book for those who are working on issues in life...aren't we all?  The approach is that of CBT, or cognitive behavioral therapy, which is currently a very popular treatment option.  The author intersperses stories about people and patients in the very readable text which also includes techniques and explanations.  Recommended for those who seek some help as well as their helpers, including their therapists.


Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this title in exchange for an honest review.

[Thordur · Rating 5 out of 5]

Þessi bók er eftir spænska sálfræðinginn Rafael Santandreu, sem er nota bene búsettur á Spáni og hefur verið duglegur við að skrifa metsölubækur þar. Þessi bók er góð aflestur og hugsunarhátturinn í henni er rökréttur. Það er talsvert af góðum heilræðum þarna og það miðast t.d. að því að sleppa tökum á öllu mögulegu, vera alveg nóg og taka sig ekki of alvarlega.

[Alicia Robben · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was great to remind someone how to have emotional strength and to SHAKE IT OFF. The books gives some practical tips to have emotional strength and deal with daily issues.

Thanks to Artucus Publishing & NetGalley for a copy in exchange for an honest review!

[Gauri Kshirsagar · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very inspiring book.

It is a very simplified version of CBT, which I was looking for. The book is easy on the mind with lots of every day examples and case based discussions in the author's practice. It is one of the best self help books I have read and I highly recommend it.

[Kirsty · Rating 1 out of 5]

Fairly patronising

[Elena]

Amazing book , like all his books ..

[Ely HB · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very practical guide to improve your life with little changes in the way you think. The author is a well known psychologist in Spain (The advice is based on the cognitive behavioural therapy, CBT)

[Pierre · Rating 3 out of 5]

Excellent information on cognitive psychology for the layman