This month I am featuring The Happiness Trap, which is a book that I frequently recommend to individual clients. In fact, it is one of my all-time favorite self-help books because it is jam-packed full of useful ideas. The Happiness Trap is based on the principles of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), a modality that I find works well with individual clients. ACT is an evidence-based cousin to cognitive behavioral therapy which helps people learn to tolerate unpleasant feelings rather than get rid of them. It posits that people’s attempts to get rid of uncomfortable feelings (their solution attempts) actually make the problem worse.
ACT uses mindfulness techniques to help you stay in the present moment and accept your thoughts and emotions. You might be wondering, “What are mindfulness techniques anyway? Mindfulness seems kind of like an abstract new-age psychobabble buzzword that people drop all the time to sound sophisticated but nobody knows what it actually means.” If you’ve thought that before, you’re not alone. In fact, even I’ve thought that before and I’m a yoga loving therapist.
This book clarifies what mindfulness techniques are and how to use them to improve your mental health. This does not mean you need to start chanting oms from the lotus position with your eyes closed while listening to a recording of ocean sounds. Instead, the book teaches you new ways of thinking about and reacting to your thoughts.
One reason I love The Happiness Trap is because it is written in an extremely readable, conversational style in which the author concisely explains ideas with excellent analogies and concrete exercises to practice. This equation shared in the book shows how the ACT principles work:
Learning better ways to handle your thoughts (mindfulness) creates space and energy for you to clarify your values and act on them. Psychological flexibility allows you to adapt to life and take the challenges you will face in stride.
I could go on and on about why I love The Happiness Trap and ACT, but you should probably just read the book. I think you’ll like it!
You can read a free preview of the introduction and first two chapters of the book here.
If you would like printable versions of some of the exercises in the book, you can find free worksheets that go along with the book here.
For free videos and other resources related to the book, click here.