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Stop Anxiety from Stopping You: The Breakthrough Program For Conquering Panic and Social Anxiety
“This book offers practical, evidence-based exercises to assist anxiety sufferers in freeing themselves from the devastating symptoms of untreated anxiety." ― Debra Kissen , Ph.D., M.H.S.A., Clinical Director, Light on Anxiety Treatment Center; Author of The Panic Workbook for Teens
#1 Best Seller in Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), Mood Disorders, and Self-Esteem & Self-Reliance
Dr. Helen Odessky, Psy. D. is an anxiety expert, author, and speaker who also runs a private practice in Chicago focused on anxiety, OCD, and panic treatment.
A breakthrough program for depression and anxiety relief. Our pace of life has increased exponentially in the last few decades. We are often too busy or preoccupied to tend to our emotions until they hit with the strength of a tornado. When signs of anxiety and panic appear, they ravage our lives, our dreams, and our spirit. In Stop Anxiety from Stopping You , Dr. Odessky offers proven tools to increase mental health awareness, overcome anxiety, and stop panic attacks.
Overcome everything from OCD to social anxiety. In When Panic Attacks , David Burns walks readers through every kind of anxiety. In a similar step-by-step approach, Dr. Odessky’s refreshing anxiety book draws on years of clinical experience to guide readers through the anxiety process and toward total relief.
Learn how to apply a six-step process
If you have benefitted from psychology books, anxiety books, or mental health books―or read Dare , Unf**k Your Brain , or The Anxiety and Worry Workbook , you will want to read Stop Anxiety from Stopping You .
#1 Best Seller in Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), Mood Disorders, and Self-Esteem & Self-Reliance
Dr. Helen Odessky, Psy. D. is an anxiety expert, author, and speaker who also runs a private practice in Chicago focused on anxiety, OCD, and panic treatment.
A breakthrough program for depression and anxiety relief. Our pace of life has increased exponentially in the last few decades. We are often too busy or preoccupied to tend to our emotions until they hit with the strength of a tornado. When signs of anxiety and panic appear, they ravage our lives, our dreams, and our spirit. In Stop Anxiety from Stopping You , Dr. Odessky offers proven tools to increase mental health awareness, overcome anxiety, and stop panic attacks.
Overcome everything from OCD to social anxiety. In When Panic Attacks , David Burns walks readers through every kind of anxiety. In a similar step-by-step approach, Dr. Odessky’s refreshing anxiety book draws on years of clinical experience to guide readers through the anxiety process and toward total relief.
Learn how to apply a six-step process
If you have benefitted from psychology books, anxiety books, or mental health books―or read Dare , Unf**k Your Brain , or The Anxiety and Worry Workbook , you will want to read Stop Anxiety from Stopping You .
236 pages, Paperback
Published April 18, 2017
164 people are currently reading
648 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
June 20, 2017
Disclosure: I received a free copy of this book in return for an honest review.
I do worry, sometimes quite a bit – when life gets overwhelming it can feel like I have a diluted version of anxiety, although nothing debilitating or preventing me from living my daily life. I mention that only because despite not being the target audience for Stop Anxiety From Stopping You, I was still able to glean helpful tips for those times when life gets rough.
Dr. Odessky’s book is clear, concise, and authoritative while still maintaining a warm, inviting tone. In describing anxiety and its various forms, Dr. Odessky makes clear and less-frightening the definition of anxiety – what it is, and perhaps more importantly, what it is not. She makes very clear from the outset the physical, psychological, and cognitive elements of a panic and social anxiety, then lays out quite clearly some immediate and then long-term steps to take to learn to live with anxiety. Some of her statements are bold and even she admits her advice sometimes flies in the face of conventional wisdom (e.g., Dr. Odessky does not recommend “staying busy” as a strategy to deal with anxiety, especially if it is just used as a distraction). She also is quite up front about anxiety being a part of someone’s life (albeit sporadically for some) that must be lived alongside, rather than something that should be considered a thing to be evicted permanently.
Dr. Odessky’s strategies and explanations combine solid research with an understanding, approachable, conversational style. It reads as though a good friend who happens to have done years of research on this topic is guiding the reader to a stronger, happier place. She encourages self-reflection and positive self-talk, as well as physical and emotionally healthy choices working in concert to manage anxiety. Some of the strategies might make a reader have to face some uncomfortable truths about themselves or their anxieties, but Dr. Odessky promises that the unease is worth it.
Practical and positive, Stop Anxiety from Stopping You is a quick helpful read good for everyone.
I do worry, sometimes quite a bit – when life gets overwhelming it can feel like I have a diluted version of anxiety, although nothing debilitating or preventing me from living my daily life. I mention that only because despite not being the target audience for Stop Anxiety From Stopping You, I was still able to glean helpful tips for those times when life gets rough.
Dr. Odessky’s book is clear, concise, and authoritative while still maintaining a warm, inviting tone. In describing anxiety and its various forms, Dr. Odessky makes clear and less-frightening the definition of anxiety – what it is, and perhaps more importantly, what it is not. She makes very clear from the outset the physical, psychological, and cognitive elements of a panic and social anxiety, then lays out quite clearly some immediate and then long-term steps to take to learn to live with anxiety. Some of her statements are bold and even she admits her advice sometimes flies in the face of conventional wisdom (e.g., Dr. Odessky does not recommend “staying busy” as a strategy to deal with anxiety, especially if it is just used as a distraction). She also is quite up front about anxiety being a part of someone’s life (albeit sporadically for some) that must be lived alongside, rather than something that should be considered a thing to be evicted permanently.
Dr. Odessky’s strategies and explanations combine solid research with an understanding, approachable, conversational style. It reads as though a good friend who happens to have done years of research on this topic is guiding the reader to a stronger, happier place. She encourages self-reflection and positive self-talk, as well as physical and emotionally healthy choices working in concert to manage anxiety. Some of the strategies might make a reader have to face some uncomfortable truths about themselves or their anxieties, but Dr. Odessky promises that the unease is worth it.
Practical and positive, Stop Anxiety from Stopping You is a quick helpful read good for everyone.
March 29, 2022
Conceptually had some good ideas for someone looking for tools to break out of habits. A bit short-sided for anyone clinically diagnosed with anxiety. I’ve often practiced doing things outside of my comfort zone which is definitely a good tool expressed in this book. Some of the other practices aren’t conducive to the current social state of the world. The internet is forever and socials put a new meaning to social anxiety.
December 5, 2023
Very informative! I will read again with the purpose of writing ✍️ down some notes to use with my patients. If you have the Anxiety superpower 🦸 , and want to get some tools to keep your Anxiety under control, then this is a book for you.
June 14, 2017
This book is a must read! Dr. Helen Odessky starts her book off strong and connects with her reader immediately by using her personal experiences to help those struggling to overcome anxiety. Stop Anxiety from Stopping you is a continuous page turner and Dr. Odessky’s U.N.L.O.C.K. method is extremely realistic for both those who do or don’t struggle with anxiety to commit to. Her book addresses several situations and allows all people to find the U.N.L.O.C.K. system helpful in order to manage a healthy and lifelong personal journey. Unlike most anxiety books, Stop Anxiety from Stopping You isn’t just a quick fix. This book truly teaches you how to Stop Anxiety from Stopping You! I highly recommend Dr. Helen Odessky’s work!! Fantastic and a must read!!
April 3, 2022
A useful handbook designed to remove the negative effects of anxiety from your life. Written with relatable examples, this book has a number of really helpful short and long term techniques that look really helpful.
December 2, 2023
Some good strategies and practices here but a bit thin on content.
Some of the strategies were repeated, and the text was of larger font and double spaced. Along with blank pages and some standalone title pages, this book of around 200 pages could have easily been around100 pages.
Some of the strategies were repeated, and the text was of larger font and double spaced. Along with blank pages and some standalone title pages, this book of around 200 pages could have easily been around100 pages.
January 8, 2024
The types of anxiety don’t exactly apply to me, but I still got a lot of good strategies from the book! Fast read, practical tips, with space for writing within the pages.
December 4, 2020
I have mixed feelings about this book. Like all anxiety related books I've read, this one was very good at defining what anxiety is.
The beginning was centered a lot on what the book was about... 'you'll learn...' to do this, or do that. I prefer that they just get to the point as opposed to telling you the outcome, then getting to the point. The point is the outcome as far as I'm concerned so skip the warmup. However, I am finding this to be a 'style' of writing, probably driven by focus groups that determined it's the best way to get through to people. In any case, the author can write the book any way they choose.
I found a lot of the tips to be on the line of 'If A'... 'tell yourself B'. That doesn't work for me. If I could recognize A immediately and tell myself B, then I wouldn't have a need to read a book about anxiety. This would serve me better if I took more time with it. I may try it again.
The beginning was centered a lot on what the book was about... 'you'll learn...' to do this, or do that. I prefer that they just get to the point as opposed to telling you the outcome, then getting to the point. The point is the outcome as far as I'm concerned so skip the warmup. However, I am finding this to be a 'style' of writing, probably driven by focus groups that determined it's the best way to get through to people. In any case, the author can write the book any way they choose.
I found a lot of the tips to be on the line of 'If A'... 'tell yourself B'. That doesn't work for me. If I could recognize A immediately and tell myself B, then I wouldn't have a need to read a book about anxiety. This would serve me better if I took more time with it. I may try it again.
April 30, 2020
I'll start with the title - it way over hypes the book, as there is absolutely nothing about it that is "breakthrough." Also, I'm surprised that the authors, both of whom have doctorates in psychology, would consider what is pretty generic and common-sense advice to be "breakthrough." Of course, like all "breakthrough" approaches, they have a snappy acronym - UNLOCK - which stands for Understand, Negate Anxiety, Leverage Fears, Openness, (Self-)Compassion, Kindle Small Changes. So, overall, I didn't find this book to be that helpful, and again, for being written by two psychologists, I didn't find it to be very insightful either. So overall, I wouldn't recommend this book, because if you're interested in reading a book like this, then you probably know most of the stuff that's presented in the book already.
June 14, 2017
This book is a must read! Dr. Helen Odessky starts her book off strong and connects with her reader immediately by using her personal experiences to help those struggling to overcome anxiety. Stop Anxiety from Stopping you is a continuous page turner and Dr. Odessky’s U.N.L.O.C.K. method is extremely realistic for both those who do or don’t struggle with anxiety to commit to. Her book addresses several situations and allows all people to find the U.N.L.O.C.K. system helpful in order to manage a healthy and lifelong personal journey. Unlike most anxiety books, Stop Anxiety from Stopping You isn’t just a quick fix. This book truly teaches you how to Stop Anxiety from Stopping You! I highly recommend Dr. Helen Odessky’s work!! Fantastic and a must read!!
March 14, 2024
I am not the target audience for this book, but occasionally I do feel discomfort of doing certain things and I hoped to find some good tips how to tackle them in real life. However, I feel quite disappointed, as from looking objectively I found some of the tips I found either silly or unrealistic to do (sticking a toilet paper to your clothes and walk around the town to check if someone notice? Erm, no thank you. Or practising public speaking to your boss for half an hour? I would love to find a boss who would have time on a busy working day). For all those reasons I didn’t find this book helpful and I wouldn’t recommend this book to any of my close friends.
August 1, 2018
This was a very interesting book that was helpfully divided into small chapters for easy and daily reading. It was very relatable and well-done. The one major flaw I had with this book was that the advice about doing things that utterly scare you to overcome anxiety seems extreme and not practical for those suffering with deep-rooted anxiety.
June 28, 2021
I have read a ton of books on Anxiety (compulsively reading these books is one of the things we anxiety sufferers do), and frankly, this is just another one on the pile. Despite promising a 'breakthrough' program, it is just more of the same, with some CBT and exposure therapy mixed in. That said, it is as good a place to start as any.
October 16, 2017
Great book that people should read!
February 25, 2019
Salright.
March 2, 2020
This is a good book with worthy interventions for those suffering with anxiety.
January 27, 2021
This is truly a great read especially if one suffers from anxiety. I have never been diagnosed but I know that I suffer some anxiety. There are great exercises that one can do.
April 29, 2023
Some interesting information about dealing with anxiety.
November 22, 2024
3.5
Good info
Helpful
Not ground breaking
Good info
Helpful
Not ground breaking
December 2, 2022
Very interesting and learnt a lot how to cope with anxiety.
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews