10 Books

Well-being is a journey and there are a lot of help out there! Here are 10 of my favourites currently

The Four Pillar Plan Dr Ranjan Chatterjee
- This is a good base to start. It breaks well-being into four pillars (spoiler alert 🤣): sleep; exercise; diet (I prefer to use the term nutrition) and mental wellness. I use this for taking a patient well-being history but also daily for checking in where I am at.
Atomic habits James Clear
- Small changes (hence the term atomic) can have big impacts. This is a book you can read and re-read with loads of practical tips.
The Yamas and Niyamas Deborah Adele
- There are 8 limbs to the yoga path of enlightenment and the Yamas (what not to do) and Niyamas (what to do) are the first two. This book is small and beautifully written and accessible for the modern world. You do not need to be into yoga to find solace in this read.
Living the Sutras Kelly DiNardo Amy Pearce Hayden
- This is another small book with a big impact. It takes a modern view of the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali and is a guide to all for mental peace and wellbeing. There is a practical element to this book and ideal for people who like to journal.
The Diet Myth Tim Spectre
- Since I graduated in 1997, diet advice has changed much. This book is a sort of recent historical overview and helps the reader see the direction of travel and where we are currently at. This is a book I have prescribed to patients.
The Courage to be Disliked Ichiro Kishimi and Fumitake Koga
- Wow this is some book! In truth I have tried to read this many times but failed. It was not until I recently had difficulty with an interpersonal relationship that I picked the book up again and this time completed. Although I had to sit with some discomfort whilst reading it, upon completion, I have a sense of calm and contentment. I have a clear sense of how I fit into my community and what “tasks” I am responsible for and what I am not. This is a good read for someone who lives their life constantly looking for approval and wanting to change this.
Mindfulness Finding Peace in a Frantic World Mark Williams and Danny Penman
- I read this book many years ago and it’s probably my most prescribed book. I found the opening chapters before the meditation most helpful. I feel this book has taught me an approach which I would call mindful living. It teaches you to understand what your mind is doing when you are thinking and simply put, it is just that – just thinking. Now that I do meditate, I am learning to quieten the mind.
How to have a good day Caroline Webb
- If you are somebody who multitasks and spins many plates, this book will help you. It pulls together many great authors work in a way that gives a fresh perspective by tying them all together. This book has changed the way that I work and brought about change in my place of work that has helped all. I have recommended this book to colleagues and run workshops using it as reference.
Why We Sleep Matthew Walker
- I am blessed to sleep well, but I see many patients who do not. This book gives an overall understanding of sleep and its value and purpose. It describes sleep a different stages of life and is therefore very good for a parents of teenage children. It also examines the impact of lifestyle choices and medication on sleep.
Quit Like a Woman The radical choice to not drink in a culture obsessed with alcohol Holly Whitaker
- In October 2023, I took part in the Sober for October challenge to raise money for charity. I was also aware that even small amounts of alcohol and the perimenopause do not mix well. During the challenge, I listened to the audiobook called The Alcohol Experiment by Annie Grace and she mentioned this book. This book really brought home the vulnerabilities that many of my patients but particularly women have when they’re dealing with a problem drinking. It also shines the light on how difficult it can be to stop drinking before you reach a “problem” and how society views this. At the time of writing this I have not had an alcoholic drink for six months.