Blog Archives
Mental Health Crisis
The Stress is Gone Method helps readers navigate stress, anxiety, and trauma via emotional awareness and exercises centered around self-reflection. Why was this an important book for you to write?
I feel this material is so important right now because effective mental health care is so hard to find. The mental health crisis is compounded by stigmas, waiting until the last minute to ask for help, long wait times before appointments are available, etc. Personally, I have seen thousands of clients quickly improve their mental health by learning how to address problems from the inside, as opposed to searching for solutions on the outside.
How much research did you undertake for this book, and how much time did it take to put it all together?
This book is a culmination of the past 25 years of professional experience in the field. The techniques are time tested; first by myself, and second by my clients and students. I now train a broad range of mental health professionals, school guidance counselors, and suicide prevention specialists in my methods. The reach of these techniques continues to grow.
Why was it important for you to include a workbook for your readers?
Often I’m asked, “Why did you write a workbook?” It’s because the human race has a lot of work to do. Another book to read and not interact with, not engage with, that doesn’t help you explore yourself, would be just another book on the shelf. But something that causes a person to look deep inside themselves, and then guides them through practical steps to reduce their stress and anxiety, I felt would be my best service to humanity.
What is one thing you hope readers take away from the advice you offer in The Stress is Gone Method?
I hope readers take away a few things; (1) they can take control back from stress if they focus on what’s happening inside their body, (2) they can release anxiety and emotional pain, and heal traumatic memories, and (3) they can find all the answers they seek inside themselves in deep meditation.
Author Links: GoodReads | Instagram | Facebook | Website | Amazon
• Traumatic Events
• Caring for Elderly Parents
• Work, Finances, or School
• Caring for a Child with Special Needs
• Out-of-Control Family Situations
• Abusive or Narcissistic Relationships
• Personal or Family Health Crises
• Generational or Ancestral Trauma
• Loss of a Loved One
• Legal System or Medical Trauma
• Exhaustion from Placing Everyone Else’s Needs Before Yours
• Being Raised by Abusive, Addicted, or Neglectful Parents
This book allows stress to enlighten us as triggers become teachers and self-love fills the hole that trauma left in our soul.
The Stress is Gone Method
Brett Cotter’s The Stress is Gone Method is a hands-on guide designed to help readers navigate stress, anxiety, and trauma. It provides a step-by-step process that combines breathwork, emotional awareness, and self-reflection exercises. The workbook is structured with techniques aimed at stopping stress quickly, healing deep-seated trauma, and creating a lower-stress lifestyle. Cotter pulls from years of experience in coaching and trauma recovery to provide readers with practical, easy-to-follow methods for reclaiming peace in their daily lives.
Cotter avoids overcomplicating things, making it easy for anyone, regardless of experience with self-help work, to jump in and start applying the techniques. The Stress Stopper Breathwork method, for instance, is explained so simply that it feels natural to try right away. When he describes touching the tension, breathing deeply, and repeating “I’m okay,” it feels like a small, doable shift, yet it can have a huge impact. I found myself trying it while reading and noticing an immediate sense of calm. The book constantly encourages actionable steps, which sets it apart and a step above many other self-help books
Another aspect I found compelling was how Cotter approaches trauma. Instead of getting lost in clinical explanations, he writes with a tone that feels understanding and personal. The chapter on “Releasing Emotional Pain in Minutes” stood out to me because it acknowledges that some stress isn’t just about the moment, it’s about unresolved pain that needs deeper work. The guided exercises in this section, such as writing freedom statements and identifying core fears, push the reader to confront emotions in a way that’s gentle but effective. It felt refreshing to read a book that doesn’t just tell you to “let it go” but actually shows you how.
Some parts of the book reinforce key concepts multiple times, which can be helpful for deepening understanding. Techniques like breathwork and affirmations are presented in slightly different ways across chapters, making it easier to absorb and apply them in various contexts. This approach is especially beneficial for those using the workbook over time, as it ensures that important ideas are always within reach. Even if you’re looking for quick insights, the repetition means that no matter where you start, you’ll still get a solid foundation in the core principles.
This workbook is a fantastic tool for anyone looking to actively work on stress management and emotional healing. It’s especially useful for those who struggle with anxiety, past trauma, or recurring negative thoughts. If you prefer a hands-on approach to self-improvement rather than just theory, this book is well worth diving into. Cotter’s methods are simple but powerful, and if you commit to using them, you’ll likely see real changes in how you handle stress and emotional pain. Whether you’re new to self-care or already deep into personal development, The Stress is Gone Method provides valuable techniques that you can integrate into daily life with ease.
Pages: 79 | ASIN : B0DST7MPMM
Stoic Solutions. Simple Steps to Tranquility. A Handbook of Stoic Principles to Overcome Mental Distress.
Stoic Solutions, by Ross Taosaka, offers a thoughtful and practical dive into the enduring wisdom of Stoic philosophy. The book explores how timeless teachings from ancient Stoics like Marcus Aurelius, Seneca, and Epictetus can help modern readers tackle stress, anxiety, and uncertainty. Through clear explanations and actionable advice, Taosaka connects the principles of Stoicism to everyday challenges, encouraging readers to build mental resilience, gain clarity, and find peace amid life’s chaos.
What stood out to me most was the way Taosaka distilled complex ideas into bite-sized and relatable lessons. He writes with a conversational tone that feels like talking to a wise friend, and the examples he uses, both historical and modern, help ground these ancient teachings in the real world. The chapters feel like they’re designed to be referenced again and again, each one filled with practical steps to shift your mindset and take control of your emotions.
The integration of history adds depth and credibility to Taosaka’s advice. I found his summaries of Zeno’s stoic founding and Marcus Aurelius’ reflections fascinating and easy to grasp. Often, philosophy books feel bogged down with theory, but Taosaka strikes a perfect balance. His personal anecdotes and real-world strategies, like reframing adversity and focusing on what you can control, make the book relatable and actionable. He even tackles misconceptions about Stoicism, like the idea that it’s all about suppressing emotions, showing instead how it fosters strength, balance, and purpose.
Chapter 7: Temperance – Managing Desires and Emotions really hit home for me, especially the section on living with intention. The idea of starting each day with a clear purpose felt like a breath of fresh air in my often chaotic mornings. The advice to ask, “What virtues do I want to embody today?” or “How can I practice moderation in my actions and thoughts?” was such a simple yet profound shift. I tried it, and it was amazing how setting that mental roadmap calmed my mind and gave me direction. Instead of being pulled in a hundred different directions, I felt grounded and focused. The phrase, “It’s like giving your mind a calming mantra to follow, keeping you grounded and centered,” perfectly captured how this practice helped me let go of stress and approach my day with clarity. It’s such a small change, but it made a huge difference in how I navigate both my emotions and my to-do list.
One of my favorite aspects of the book overall was its structure. The chapters build on one another, creating a sense of progress as you read. And Geoffrey Adams Clark’s illustrations add a creative vibe to the experience.
I highly recommend Stoic Solutions to anyone looking to improve their mental well-being and find a clearer path through life’s challenges. Whether you’re new to Stoicism or already familiar with its teachings, this book has something to offer. It’s perfect for those feeling overwhelmed by modern stress or for anyone curious about philosophy’s practical side.
Pages: 199 | ASIN : B0DLV9Z99N
Burnout Proof: How To Establish Boundaries To Avoid The Negativity Of Stress – Book Trailer
Individuals are burning out at alarming rates. People feel constant demand to deliver, so they’re either burning out or they’re leaving their jobs, due to high stress and burnout. With COVID-19, this is becoming more prevalent and amplified, due to all the demands from working from home (WFH).
In Michael Levitt’s Burnout Proof: How To Establish Boundaries To Avoid The Negativity of Stress, you will learn how to:
- Recognize burnout signs in yourself and in others
- Understand how you became burned out in the first place
- Implement burnout prevention techniques that go beyond taking a 2-week vacation
- Launch immediate steps you can take today, to stop the burnout from growing
- Establish boundaries in your life, so that you can fend off potential burnout from external factors
Michael Levitt is the founder & Chief Burnout Officer of The Breakfast Leadership Network, a San Diego and Toronto-based burnout media and consulting firm. He is an in-person and Certified Virtual Speaker, a Certified NLP and CBT Therapist, a Fortune 500 consultant, bestselling author, and hosts the Breakfast Leadership Show, a top 200 podcast on iTunes. Michael’s A Top 20 Global Thought Leader on HR & Culture. and a former Healthcare executive, overseeing $ 2 Billion budgets.
The Greatest College Health Guide You Never Knew You Needed
![The Greatest College Health Guide You Never Knew You Needed: How to Manage Food, Booze, Stress, Sex, Sleep, and Exercise on Campus by [Jill Henry, Dave Henry]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51EDKFItMwL.jpg)
The Greatest College Health Guide by authors Jill and Dave Henry is a resourceful health guide that will help readers maintain their physical and mental health during their college years. When students enter college life it becomes easy to lose yourself in your studies, and the parties, and forget about your health. With a crazy study schedule, long nights, early morning, fraternities, parties, and a poor lifestyle how can you make health a priority? This book breaks through all those barriers by providing simple but effective information and tips to help you stay happy and healthy. This guide to health will provide readers with healthy habits that will help them in college, and as adults.
Authors Jill and Dave Henry wrote this book to build health-awareness that students lose after awhile. A lot of the bad habits that are mentioned in this book are some that I myself have grown accustomed to during my time in college. These tips are helpful because they can eliminate a lot of stress that you have or will experience in college. The tone of this book is casual but is still perfect for someone to easily understand and take seriously.
I dove deep into the chapter about stress because I didn’t nurture my mental health until later on in my life. If I read a book like this during my time in school, I’m sure I would’ve saved myself from numerous panic attacks. Using healthy mental health practices is extremely important no matter what stage you are in your life. This chapter featured candid personal stories as well as handy stress management tips. These tips are useful because they’re simple and effective, perfect for the on-the-go student.
This health guide also touches on the effect that relationships have on a student’s mental health. From friendships to sexual relationships, this chapter explains why evaluating relationships are important. A lot of relationships that we’ve treasured in the past become meaningless in the future because we can only see people for who they are when we are no longer in a relationship with them. The authors write about relationships in a way that feels insightful yet conversational.
The Greatest College Health Guide delivers sagely advice with a bit of humor and lots of facts. This is a very handy guide that will ensure you live a happier and healthier life. Download it on your Kindle, keep it handy, and reference it often.
Pages: 264 | ASIN: B08BZWBRBR
Essential Oils, Teas, and Self Care
![Essential Oils, Teas, & Self Care by [Hunt , Deborah , Hunt , Meaghan ]](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51CHTvVZaKL._SX260_.jpg)
The use of essential oils and herbal teas has increased over time as they are beneficial to the body. This book explores most of the common essential oils, herbal teas, spices and herbs that are widely used.
I loved the arrangement of the content in the book; it is commendable as the topics covered were listed in an orderly manner. The first chapter tackles herbal teas. Here, the authors list different types of herbal teas, the infusion, decoction, and precautions. The authors clearly describe their uses with a step by step guide which helps beginners understand how it works. Some of the herbal teas mentioned include Lemon Balm, Red Raspberry Leaf, Chamomile, Spearmint, Holy Basil, and lavender.
This book reads like a well-written health journal. It has every amazing thing you would want when reading about natural remedies to boost your health or treat minor ailments like the flu.
I was awed from the first page, as the authors go into detail, even giving the scientific names of the herbs mentioned. I particularly loved how the uses for the natural herbs and spices were listed. Nothing complex; the language is simple and helps ensure that you do not mess up when mixing your brew.
The addition of the images in the book was a thoughtful move by the authors. When reading about a plant or herb you perhaps have never heard of, you may not easily picture its size or how it looks. Having the images on the side enabled me visualize the herbs, and in that way, get to know them more intimately.
I feel like this book is a search engine for essential oils and herbal teas; it had everything I needed and was easy to lookup and did an amazing job with the explanation. I thoroughly enjoyed reading Essential Oils, Teas, and Self Care as I’m now able to differentiate herbs and know what to use and when. Self-care is important and the authors ensures that the reader understands that throughout the book.
Who knew essential oils were this beneficial? From aromatherapy to skin care, hair conditioning, reducing inflammation, treating acne, relaxation, reducing stress, improving circulation, regulating menstrual cramps, and much more. I went from knowing almost nothing about this topic to, dare I say, a semi-pro in this field.
At the start of the book the authors remind the reader to check with their health care providers to consult on safety and caution of the products. This is a great resource as a lookup guide for experts in the field, or as a starting point for people who have heard of the benefits of natural remedies and want to start exploring.
Pages: 140 | ASIN: B07F6ZXHVR
For The Difficult People Who Sometimes Never Know
Sarah Elliston Author Interview
Lessons from a Difficult Person: How to Deal with People Like Us is a guide for people who find themselves dealing with people they find difficult. Why was this an important book for you to write?
As a recovering difficult person, I find myself aching for the people who didn’t say anything to me as I gaffed, who avoided me rather than take the time to help me see how annoying I was. I wrote the book for all of us who avoid difficult people, to help them actually have conversations with them. And I wrote it for the difficult people who sometimes never know how they are perceived by others and feel lonelier and angrier and distanced from others.
I understand that you are a successful workshop leader and trainer. What is one common misconception you find that people have about ‘difficult people’?
One common misconception people have about difficult people is that their behavior is purposefully hurtful; deliberately unkind.
I enjoyed the personal stories you shared. Was this always going to be a guide book, do you think this could have easily been a memoir?
I wanted to help people understand how difficult people are unaware of their impact on others and to do that I had to use my own life stories. It could have been a memoir but my passion is helping difficult people discover that they can change and the only people who tell them would be the readers. Thus, I included the exercises and practice processes for having a conversation.
What do you hope readers take away from your book?
I hope readers will look at difficult people differently and look for ways to help. I hope readers will see that difficult behavior is a habit, and it can be changed.
What is the next book that you are working on and when will it be available?
I am currently working on a book with more stories about my life in terms of how I changed, with the focus on how difficult people can change; either a reader or a friend of a reader.
Author Links: Facebook | Twitter | Website
The funny thing is that Sarah Elliston never realized she was “a difficult person,” –someone who harangued people until she got her way, threw snip fits and temper tantrums, talked over her bosses and pointed out what she thought were their misconceptions. In her family, where she felt bullied, the only way she knew how to get someone’s attention and approval was to voice her opinion–and loudly! Without standing her ground, how could she do what she thought was best for herself and everyone else around her. She wasn’t intentionally mean-spirited. She was just trying to do what she thought was RIGHT!
Until a kind, but firm, boss woke her up! With great compassion, and strength, her boss pointed out that her actions had consequences. That in being “difficult,” she was not only disrupting the office camaraderie and production, but impeding her own professional advancement.
That’s the beginning of Sarah’s transformation– when she started on the journey to leave behind the difficult person, and become the woman who teaches others how to deal with difficult people. Sarah “Sam” Elliston is now bringing forth her vital manual on how to awaken the challenging personality, and change both the relationship and the environment with her new book Dealing with Difficult People; Lessons Learned from a Difficult Person.
Today, Elliston is a highly successful workshop leader and trainer, who offers wisdom learned the hard way–and through rigorous study and certification in many areas of professional training that aid her in her work — Values Realization, Parent Effectiveness Training and Reality Therapy. She is a faculty member of the William Glasser Institute. Glasser is an internationally recognized psychiatrist and developer of Reality Therapy, a method of psychotherapy that teaches people they have a choice in how they choose to behave.
Embrace Adversity
Annella Metoyer Author Interview
Dare to Be the Change tells the story of your life and how you overcame adversities to be the change you wanted to see in the world. Why was this an important book for you to write?
It was important for me to write this book to give the readers a glimpse into some of the adversities that women and people of color face in corporate America. More importantly, how to embrace adversity and make it your advantage by becoming the voice for others.
You grew up in a small town in Louisiana, in a time where racism was prevalent in the community. How has your perception changed of that time and place now that you’re an adult?
I do not feel my perception has changed now that I am an adult. However, as an adult, I do understand the WHY behind why some things happened.
I found this book to be inspirational and motivate me to help others seek change. What do you hope readers take away from your book?
Since the book published, I have received countless emails, phone calls, text messages from all cultures. The book is doing exactly what I hoped it would do. First, giving individuals a platform to talk to each other about a sensitive subject versus talking at each other. Secondly, it’s an opportunity for each person to tell their own story. And finally, its reenergized individuals to stand up and be the voice in the room.
What is the next book that you are writing and when will it be available?
My next book Stronger than Fear is a children’s book scheduled to be published late summer 2018. It’s about a boy named Christopher and his dog Loki experiencing bullying by members of their species.
Author Links: GoodReads | Twitter | Facebook | Website | LinkedIn
In Dare to be the Change, Annella Metoyer courageously shares the details of her life’s challenges, her family’s dedication to positive change as well as offers hope for readers through her struggles and accomplishments. Starting with the integration of her small town public school, she encounters a life-changing experience that sets her on a path of “being the change.”
Not only did she face the challenges when women were not the voice in the room, but she also did so as a person of color. From coworkers to disgruntled customers’ discrimination, she lived the evolution of attitudes. With each adversity, she became more determined to take the challenge and turn it into an advantage.
Annella Metoyer was blessed to experience many firsts. She was the first person of color employed by a local bank and ultimately became the City President for a large corporate bank. Her journey later took an unexpected turn when she transitioned from employee to entrepreneur.
Dare to be the Change will resonate with anyone that has ever faced adversities. As you read the story, you will rejoice in the strength that Annella finds within to help others and to make this world a better place.
LITERARY TITAN 