Released August the 10th click here for where you can buy your copy…
Have you ever wondered why you react the way you do to stressful situations? Or why some people seem to fall apart while others become controlling?
We are all shaped by our childhood and our life experiences— good or bad. We can’t control the sh*t life throws at us, but we can learn to control how we respond to it.
Even if you feel things have gone well for you, there’s still grief, breakups, and accidents — not to mention global pandemics — to navigate. The limited nature of life, and the fact we all stare down death — at one time or another — means no one finds this being alive business a walk in the park.
In Sh*t Happens highly regarded psychotherapist Kyle MacDonald explains the concepts he uses in his practice that will help you understand the behaviour patterns you (or your loved ones) fall into — especially under stressful circumstances.
“This isn’t really a “self-help” book,” Kyle explains. “From the point of view of therapy ‘self-help’ is an anathema. We only get so far on our own before we need someone else. In life ‘shit’ unavoidably happens. It is then up to us what we make of it. All of us have habits, built up over many years, of what we do with the ‘shit’.”
Kyle hopes readers will instead think of the book as a map.
“It contains a smorgasbord of helpful things I’ve learnt along the way. Hopefully, this map that I unfurl in front of you will show you some things that people learn in therapy, and then help you be more selective in the ways you approach your emotional world.
Regardless of the responses you may have developed to this point, you are not locked into these behaviours – your past doesn’t have to dictate your future. Drawing on over twenty years of clinical experience, Kyle outlines the key concepts, and how you can use the theories of psychotherapy to change your life for the better.
Each chapter discusses problems that people experience as they traverse life’s ups and downs: from childhood to relationships to parenting. It also touches on some of the more recent phenomena, including our responses to the pandemic and the increasing political polarisation, particularly in the online space.
And Kyle does it in a readable, accessible and at times humorous way.
Here is an overview of the topics covered in the book:
Chapter 1: Are we all a bit mad?
Chapter 2: Surviving childhood and parenting
Chapter 3: Trauma in childhood: Bad things do happen Chapter 4: Depression and low mood
Chapter 5: Mindfulness and the benefits of quieting the mind Chapter 6: How to calm our emotions
Chapter 7: How to care (but still look after yourself)
Chapter 8: Exploring love — and hate
Chapter 9: How to find yourself — and know where to look Chapter 10: Are we getting angrier?
Chapter 11: If life has a meaning — what is it?
Chapter 12: Bringing it all together
Chapter 13: What next? How to put it into practice
To arrange an interview or request an extract or review copy, please contact:
Gemma Finlay, Notable PR
Phone: 027 628 9695 Email: gemma@notablepr.co.nz
