Lifting the Lid on Stress, Anxiety and Depression

By Chris Scott

“In his new book, Chris Scott highlights in a winning and personal way the key elements of our various depressions and anxieties together with some ‘exercises’ that help greatly to unpick the processes and habits that can cause and perpetuate both, whilst developing healthy new ones.

There is lots of up-to-date neuroscience and fascinating new information about mental-with-physical health issues that certainly helped me to appreciate better how I ‘tick’.

So, having lifted the lid, Chris ensures that we are not left feeling like Pandora. We are given every good reason to feel we can address issues and to have hope of recovery.”

Dr Chris Manning MRCGP,
Mental health policy lead for the College of Medicine.

“This delightful book is an extended version of its highly successful predecessor Lifting the Lid on Depression. Expanded to include stress and anxiety, this edition highlights key information needed to understand those conditions, as well as how to move out of depression. Its format makes it easy to understand and a delight to read, even when concentration might be difficult. It is full of good sense and practical advice, given in a friendly, approachable way.

As a therapist I have used the earlier version of this book with very many depressed clients and can attest that the methods outlined work well. People quickly learn new life skills to help them feel better and then maintain those changes in the longer term. Many people enjoy returning to the book from time to time, even once they are in good health. I know this updated version will also be a huge help to many people”.

Anita Dale MA,
Psychotherapy and hypnotherapy practitioner.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Chris Scott
• Release date: Jan 5, 2016
• ISBN: 9781911076186

Chris Scott

Chris Scott is a New York–based chef and the previous owner of Brooklyn Commune and Butterfunk Kitchen, both in Brooklyn, as well as Birdman Juke Joint in Bridgeport, CT, which celebrates Black farmers and agriculture. He is the current owner of Butterfunk Biscuit, which highlights heritage baking at its finest. He was also a finalist on Top Chef, season 15. He lives in New Jersey with his family.

Book preview

Introduction

Depression is one of the fastest growing diseases in the world. Thousands more people are suffering from it than ever before, and sufferers are getting younger and younger; and hardly a conversation will be had without the word stress cropping up somewhere.

There are countless books on the market explaining stress, anxiety and depression. Some suggest methods of overcoming them. One or two are excellent, but mostly they are full of theory and psychobabble, difficult to read and even harder to understand. Some are, not to put too fine a point on it, total rubbish. They take theories stemming from a nineteenth century understanding of psychology, and weave mind-boggling concepts that serve only to build mystery around the subject.

What we have ended up with is cult-like schools of psychotherapy where the expectation is that the unfortunate sufferer will spend years in therapy that will cost them an arm and a leg.

But, thank goodness, a combination of both up-to-the-minute psychological research and brain science has shown what depression really is, and how to deal with it quickly and efficiently.

It needs to be said here that mental health runs along a continuum. Mental ill health is not something that ‘just happens’. It creeps up on us. It could be seen to be a bit like this:

Fine and dandy → acute stress (ok) → chronic stress (not ok) → depression → acute anxiety & panic attacks → breakdown → hallucinations → barking mad

Fine and dandy – A person’s needs are being met in a balanced way by their own set of innate resources and by their environment.

Acute stress – This comes from the pressures of life that happen to us occasionally. Some intermittent pressure can actually help stimulate people into greater action.

Chronic stress – Not so good. This is where the pressures of life keep piling up without resolution, our needs are unmet and/or our resources are either insufficient for the tasks, or not being used enough for life to be satisfying.

Depression – The body/mind balance starts to go askew and our energy supply is drained from us.

Acute anxiety and panic attacks - The body starts acting as though it’s in a war zone because our stress hormones have become all out of kilter.

Breakdown – The