Overcoming Stress - Tim Cantopher

Title: Overcoming Stress
Author: Tim Cantopher
Genre: Non-fiction
Rating: 2.5/5
# pages: 128
Date read: February 2016

Stress can lead to extensive psychological and physical suffering, but there are choices you can make that will reduce your stress and improve your ability to cope. This book offers not just the facts but a message of hope. "Overcoming Stress" looks not only at the causes of stress but also at the manifestations and psychological conditions, such as physical illness, anxiety, panic disorder, OCD, phobic states, and depression. It offers information on both acute treatments and longer term management in avoiding stress and its ill effects. "Stress will always be with us, and we will continue to suffer--unless we choose to change," says Dr. Cantopher. "The good news is that this is possible--stress-related illness is avoidable, and if you change, you will attain happiness."


I received an ARC of this book from Netgalley. I requested it because I've suffered from stress myself, and as it is an affliction some people never recover from 100%, I wanted to see if Tim Cantopher offered any useful hints on how to prevent it.

Unfortunately I found the book lacking. He made some good points along the way, but as a whole, I didn't really find anything I could use, and his main premise (stress doesn't make you ill, you make yourself ill) - while true - could be damaging to some people suffering from stress. Stress is already a "mind over matter" issue to many people, and this is just another voice telling them that they're doing this to themselves so (reading between the lines) they should be able to get over it. I understand the very valid point Tim is getting at (lazy people seldom get stressed, as they care less about expectations), but thought the wording in that section problematic as this wasn't made sufficiently clear.

His admonition to STOP is spot on though - there's no way to get better while still being on the treadmill. Slowing down might be sufficient for some, but the vast majority need to get off completely.

So take a flip through it, there may be aspects of it you can use. But I'd take everything with a huge grain of salt, and as many people suffering from stress have no salt left to take things with, I might suggest giving this one a miss.