Overview

The Art of Riding Stress Waves: Self-help psychology for an anxious age How are we to live happy, healthy and satisfying lives? On top of life's usual challenges, we now face cascading social, political and environmental crises the likes of which humanity has never seen before. And the stress waves keep rolling in. Like ocean swells, as one stress wave crashes over us, the next forms. Psychologists can no longer provide enough personalised support to meet the need for mental health services. In response to this challenge, clinical psychologist Dr Wayne Somerville draws on his 40 years of experience as a therapist and trauma specialist to give you the essential knowledge and skills you need to ride stress waves with style and joy. The Art of Riding Stress Waves: Self-help psychology for an anxious age is an empowering, down-to-earth guide for dealing with all the challenges and threats - from the everyday to the lethally dangerous - that come our way. Practising the art of riding stress waves is not about just managing stress; the goal is to use stress to improve our lives. Dr Somerville guides readers to new, more effective ways to think, act and live. You'll discover what stress and anxiety are good for and how our 'executive' and 'deep' minds work in sync to protect us. You'll learn how to harness your key mental processes to update old, problem-causing stress reactions. The Art of Riding Stress Waves has three parts. Part 1 sets out what you need to know in order to practise the art of riding stress waves. In a unique formulation, Dr Somerville explains the role that anxiety plays in ancient, evolved strategies that the human psyche draws upon to deal with stress. Anxiety is not a symptom; it's a protective emotion that alerts us to danger. When we know how to use them, the emotions of fear, anxiety, anger, guilt and depression help us ride stress waves. Dr Somerville argues against the medicalisation of mental health problems, and he explains why many stress responses, including posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), are not a sign that there's anything wrong with an affected person's mind. In reality, many so-called 'mental disorders' are natural and healthy - though less than optimal - responses to stress. In Part 2, Dr Somerville offers readers tools, tips and techniques for tapping into the creative power of our key mental processes of perception, attention, belief, thought, reason, imagination, memory, language, emotion, intuition and dreaming. He also reviews popular, evidence-based therapies for anxiety and trauma. The case studies in Part 3 demonstrate the art of riding stress waves in action. Dr Somerville argues that we have solid grounds for hope and we can be optimistic about the future. He encourages us to engage with the great challenges of our time. He shows us how we can prepare for the coming stress tsunamis. The Art of Riding Stress Waves is for everyone who wants to make their life and the world better. It's especially relevant for folk who suffer from anxiety, stress or trauma.

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Reviews

I love this book! Such a pleasure to read ... and it speaks so clearly to me. So beautifully readable that I found it hard to set aside to get on with my chores. Dr Wayne Somerville has really nailed it. Arming us with the tools, tips and techniques we need, he takes us on a pathway, a journey to finding our peace and our joy ... bringing us home. As I neared the end of the final chapter, I felt so emotional, such a wave of gratitude for this book. What an extraordinary achievement! What a difference it will make in so many lives. A gift to mankind certainly but in these troubled times, so much more than that ...A gift to the Earth and all that dwell on her. Meg K Nielsen Dr Somerville uses the metaphor of surfing to perfectly highlight the up-and-down nature of life and mental health; he helps the reader navigate the threats and challenges that come their way in life. The art of riding stress waves involves facing fears and getting past 'breakers'; enjoying the momentary, bobbing calm; being occasionally thrown around, but knowing how to use the current to right oneself; being prepared and practiced in your own skills and in reading the environmental context. Dr Somerville outlines stress and the mind before diving into our choices: avoid or engage with the stress. Avoidance is easier (in the short term), but Dr Somerville provides the tools and techniques a reader needs to think long term, address the underlying issue, manage emotions, acknowledge biases in our interpretations, tap into our intuition and craft our desired future as the big waves of stress crash over us as individuals, as community members and as a planet. Drawing on nearly-40 years of professional experience as a clinical psychologist, Dr Somerville has developed his own approach to building a more sustainable, regenerative, holistic approach to life in a fast-paced and wholly-unstable world. He offers solid, practical and individualised strategies that can be implemented with a bit of practice and preparation. The choice is ours: avoid the stress waves or learn how to ride them. If you want to grab a board and dive into an ocean of possibilities, here's your board. Happy surfing! Dr Rebecca Hendershott I found The Art of Riding Stress Waves to be very reader friendly - clear and easy to understand even when discussing complex ideas. I now have a new appreciation of anxiety and what purpose it has in our lives. I have always been prone to anxiety about the small stuff. After reading this book, I can look at those stresses in a new way and get a better perspective on what's important, what I really need to pay attention to, and how I can go about dealing with my challenges. I especially enjoyed Dr Somerville's explanation of how our attitudes and beliefs shape how we see the world and ourselves. I learned about the value of trying things and making mistakes. I learned that it is much better to take on a stress straight away and deal with it. Avoiding unpleasant things can make a mess further down the track. Better to deal with them up front, as difficult as that can be. I liked the way Dr Somerville talks about language and how our use of certain words really does colour our perception of what's going on in our lives. I was amazed at how much our memory and imagination create our reality, but that we have the ability to change how we see the world. I liked Dr Somerville's message of hope about the future. Things look very dire right now, but we can live life artfully as we contribute to the solutions the world needs. Sandra White Reduce your stress for a happier life! Great self-help book! Interesting and fun to read. Really helped me reduce my stress level. Dr Shon S. Schooler

Author Information

Dr Wayne Somerville is a 72-year-old, registered clinical psychologist and trauma specialist who has worked for 40 years in private practice. Wayne holds the degrees of B.A. (Honours, 1st Class), Master of Clinical Psychology and Doctor of Psychology. Wayne has also taught and supervised university students enrolled in post-graduate clinical psychology programs. Wayne has published research on the treatment of phobia and run professional psychologist training workshops on gentle therapies for anxiety and trauma. With his wife, Susan, Wayne has also developed a treatment for, and presented workshops on, native forest dieback. Wayne campaigned against the gas field industrialisation of rural Australia.

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