Popular Danish book now available in English We cannot get better by ruminating and worrying. Nevertheless, these are the strategies for many who suffer from anxiety and depression. But a wound does not heal by continuing to scratch at it. It just becomes bigger and bigger. If we spend several hours each day wondering about our gloomy thoughts, we become even more depressed and anxious, and do not thrive well psychologically.
By using cases as examples, Metacognitive Therapy – Free Yourself from Imprisoning Thoughts shows us how metacognitive therapy can help us manage our thought processes. At the same time, this book is also a critical voice and warning about the evaluation culture we have created. A culture where more and more people are developing anxiety and depressive disorders because we are constantly under surveillance and must fit into certain schemas. We need to learn how to think for ourselves and be aware that we can regain control over our thought processes.
The author Linda Burlan Sørensen is a licensed clinical psychologist and specialist in psychotherapy and supervision. She is an expert in metacognitive therapy and owner of the Neokognitivt Institut in Copenhagen, Denmark, which offers therapy, professional courses, education, and supervision.
Over the last few years I have read about 100 books about OCD, trauma, anxiety, depression, neuroscience and the role of various neurotransmitters, cognitive behaviour therapy etc. I have also had 32 sessions of high intensity CBT, 16 sessions of EMDR therapy and counselling. Yet this book has shown me something so simple yet enpowering! All of this internal focus, rumination and self analysis isn't helping me after all as I believed it would. I simply need to do less! I now have a 3pm imaginary office with a waiting room. Unwanted thoughts are set aside do be dealt with when my mental office opens for business and I'm allowed to think about the unwanted thoughts and ruminations. My thought waiting room is becoming quieter. I recommend this book highly due to its simplicity and effectiveness for me personally.
As the first psychology book I’ve ever read, I found this surprisingly engaging. The concepts introduced by Sørensen were thought-provoking, especially the idea that continually analyzing our thoughts only makes things worse. The methods she shares for acknowledging and stepping back from intrusive or repetitive thoughts are useful and easy to grasp, even for a newbies. I appreciated the real-life case scenarios that illustrate how metacognitive therapy works in practice. Overall, this book gave me a new way to think about interval thoughts and dialogue, and some valuable tools to lessen the impact of negative thought patterns. A solid introduction to mental health.
As someone who struggled with depression for years, this book really spoke to me. Metacognitive Theory helped me see how my thoughts were keeping me stuck. It doesn't try to fix every feeling, but shows a better way to handle them. The ideas are clear and easy to follow, even if some parts felt a bit repetitive. I’ve started using some of the techniques, and I already feel a bit lighter. It’s not a miracle cure, but it’s a strong, helpful guide.